Prop 30: Software Upgrade V2 : Introducing CosmWasm

Simple Summary

This proposal initiates the mainnet upgrade of Hippo Protocol to v2.0.0. This release integrates CosmWasm for smart contract capabilities and applies critical vulnerability patches flagged by Dependabot for underlying dependencies.

• CosmWasm Integration: Validators and node operators will need to download the new v2.0.0 binary file from the release notes. The upgrade process follows standard Cosmos-SDK procedures. Using cosmovisor is highly recommended.
• Vulnerability Patches: Updates cometbft and golang.org/x/crypto to patch known upstream vulnerabilities.

Abstract

The upgrade introduces the CosmWasm module (wasmd v0.54.2) to the Hippo mainnet, enabling the deployment and execution of secure, Rust-based smart contracts. Furthermore, this release patches critical upstream dependencies flagged by Dependabot by updating github.com/cometbft/cometbft from v0.38.19 to v0.38.21 and golang.org/x/crypto from v0.36.0 to v0.45.0.

Motivation

To expand the capability and protect the infrastructure of Hippo Protocol in the global healthcare economy, it is necessary to:

• Enable programmable smart contracts via CosmWasm to support decentralized applications, automated healthcare workflows, and verifiable data consent registries.
• Patch upstream security vulnerabilities in CometBFT and Go cryptography libraries to prevent potential consensus disruptions and denial-of-service attack vectors.

CosmWasm is a mature, production-grade smart contract framework, and updating core dependencies is the logical next step for Hippo’s infrastructure.

Documentation

• Hippo Protocol v2.0.0 Release Notes
• CosmWasm Documentation
• CometBFT v0.38.21 Release Notes

Specification

• Integrate and wire the github.com/CosmWasm/wasmd module (v0.54.2) in app.go.
• Upgrade github.com/cometbft/cometbft from v0.38.19 to v0.38.21.
• Upgrade golang.org/x/crypto from v0.36.0 to v0.45.0.
• Update Go toolchain to 1.24.3.
• Define upgrade handler to ensure a state-safe transition.

Rationale

CosmWasm provides standardized, secure, and modular smart contracting capabilities without introducing EVM-related attack vectors like re-entrancy. Concurrently patching CometBFT and Go cryptography dependencies addresses known vulnerabilities without introducing breaking architectural changes, keeping network security hardened.

Drawbacks

• Adding a smart contract module increases the overall state machine complexity and storage requirements for full nodes.

Unresolved Questions

• None

Security Considerations

• CosmWasm introduces a new execution surface, mitigated through the use of audited, battle-tested wasmd modules.
• Dependency patches actively neutralize known upstream vulnerabilities in cometbft (consensus stability) and golang.org/x/crypto (cryptographic operations/DoS prevention).

Prior Art

• Osmosis, Neutron, Secret Network, Archway

Backwards Compatibility

• Need to upgrade node to v2.0.0 at upgrade height.
• Upgrade handled via versioned handler in app/upgrades/v2_0_0/upgrade.go.

Test Cases

• CosmWasm contract upload, instantiation, and execution on Hippo testnet.
• Validator consensus stability and p2p sync verification on CometBFT v0.38.21.
• Regression tests across existing core modules.