[IMAGE: https://s14-eu5.ixquick.com/cgi-bin/serveimage?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftse1.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.Me201fdf4259055a53c760c9f8b59c38do0%26pid%3D15.1%26H%3D234%26W%3D160&sp=9e4a94be3056a6e007e8ed9e1933af98]

I was pleased to notice today, while going through the changelog for ethereum wallet 0.8.3:

> PGP-verified releases (#546)

> This is long-awaited, and probably more useful than checksums itself (although they have slighty different purposes). Look for the Verified badge in releases and commits.

Github issue #546

This practice has, of course, been in use in the wider open source ecosystem for a long time.

It always struck me as incredibly strange that in a world where it is people's money/value/whatever-you-want-to-call-it that is at stake, such a simple precaution is repeatedly not being taken by crypto-currency projects everywhere.

Checksums are not enough. They serve a different purpose.

Congratulations to the ethereum project for getting it right.

Conclusion

[IMAGE: https://s14-eu5.ixquick.com/cgi-bin/serveimage?url=https%3A%2F%2Ftse3.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.M9c197596c4560a8a0ac866055c0dc36co0%26pid%3D15.1%26H%3D102%26W%3D160&sp=acbcf019620dd93fbb9dce032d2ea7bf]

Developers: Sign your releases. Give your users the warm fuzzy feeling (tm).