Ethereum Developers Reignite Push for Built-In Privacy Features

Privacy is once again a hot topic among Ethereum developers, reignited by recent events surrounding Tornado Cash. In 2022, the U.S. government sanctioned the Ethereum-based crypto mixer, triggering controversy in the crypto community over censorship and privacy rights. In March 2025, President Donald Trump reversed the sanctions, supporting cypherpunk ideals and reopening the debate on Ethereum’s core design.

Many developers now question why users must rely on third-party applications for private transactions. Privacy, they argue, should be a default feature — not an optional one. Developer PCaversaccio emphasized in a post that Ethereum’s architecture should ensure user privacy by default, not by exception.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin echoed this sentiment, sharing a brief privacy roadmap in response. His proposal focuses on four key areas: anonymizing on-chain payments, making application-level activity private, enabling anonymous communication on the network, and privatizing on-chain reads. Buterin also supports integrating third-party privacy tools directly into Ethereum’s protocol stack.

The renewed focus on privacy comes amid broader concerns about surveillance, regulation, and censorship in the blockchain space. As Ethereum evolves, privacy may soon become a built-in layer of its infrastructure rather than an external addon. This shift could fundamentally reshape the way developers and users interact with the Ethereum network.

With the Tornado Cash reversal and growing support from leading voices like Buterin, Ethereum is moving closer to redefining itself as a privacy-first blockchain. Whether these ideas materialize into core updates remains to be seen, but the conversation marks a notable shift in Ethereum's development trajectory — one where privacy takes center stage.