Saturday, September 7, 2024

Ethereum to launch first $2M protocol-wide ‘Attackathon’



Ethereum is about to launch its first-ever hackathon with a slated reward pool of $2 million that “goals to be the biggest crowdsourced safety audit” of the blockchain’s codebase.

The so-called “Attackathon” will see safety researchers “actively seek for vulnerabilities within the protocol’s code” in a four-week “time-bound audit problem,” the Ethereum Protocol Safety (EPS) analysis crew defined in a July 8 weblog post.

“They may comply with particular guidelines set for the competitors, and solely impactful and rule-compliant stories will likely be rewarded,” it added.

The occasion would begin with a technical walkthrough of the blockchain’s code so “individuals are well-prepared to establish and perceive potential vulnerabilities.”

After the occasion wraps, its host — bug bounty platform Immunefi — will collect the findings right into a report detailing the found vulnerabilities.

The crew mentioned it pitched in $500,000 to the competitors’s prize pool and known as for sponsors to lift one other $1.5 million by Aug. 1, when it can share extra particulars.

The EPS crew plans on internet hosting related hackathons “at each laborious fork protecting modifications to the codebase.”

Ethereum’s subsequent “Pectrahard fork is predicted to go reside someday late this yr or early subsequent and combines the “Prague” and “Electra” upgrades.

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The deliberate main updates for customers embody a “social restoration” function that could eliminate the need to recollect the as much as 24-word non-public pockets key — an indicator of the know-how since its creation — and provides wallets smart contract-like features.

Hackathons are widespread within the tech world, and crypto has seen its share of the occasions, with different blockchains and tasks internet hosting related hacking sprints.

Crypto tasks additionally provide a continuing roster of bug bounties aiming to entice hackers to share their exploits as a substitute of maliciously enterprise them. Immunefi’s web site shows most bounties are within the tens to tons of of 1000’s of {dollars}, with the biggest reward provided by LayerZero reaching $15 million.

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