> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.triton.one/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.triton.one/validators/solana/readme/white-label-validators/node-identity-protection.md).

# Node identity protection

How Triton keeps a Solana white-label validator's node identity key in memory only, fetched once from encrypted storage and never stored unencrypted.

The public-private key pair of the node identity enables the node to vote on behalf of your vote account. We hold this key pair and deploy it to the node.

This key pair's account accrues the validator's block production rewards. Its balance may need to be maintained.

{% hint style="warning" %}
The node identity must be kept safe and secure. Anyone possessing the node identity could set up a second validator that creates issues for your primary validator (and, in the future, potentially slashing). Malicious parties could also receive the rewards the key accrues or empty its balance.
{% endhint %}

To protect the node identity, we adopt a setup that ensures in-memory-only keys.

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

### Boot with a temporary identity

When our validators boot, they use a temporary node identity that cannot vote for your vote account. This means that once the validator has started up and caught up with the network, it will be in voting-disabled mode.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Fetch the real identity once

One of our node operators will then authenticate with our secured, encrypted secret storage and enable the validator node to perform a one-time fetch of the real node identity, which is then activated in the Solana validator's memory.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

This ensures that the node identity is never stored in an unencrypted form anywhere. It moves only between our encrypted storage and the validator node, over an authenticated, encrypted stream.

Without access to the validator memory space, you would be unable to retrieve the node identity, and there is no durable storage of the identity on the node itself.

***

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