Ethereum’s security team has announced a four-week hackathon to test the blockchain’s security. Dubbed “Attackathon,” this initiative features a $2 million reward pool, making it potentially the largest crowdsourced security audit in blockchain history.
Details of the Attackathon
The Ethereum Protocol Security (EPS) team outlined in a July 8 blog post that security researchers are invited to search for vulnerabilities in Ethereum’s code. Participants must follow specific competition rules, and only impactful, rule-compliant reports will be eligible for rewards.
The event begins with a technical walkthrough of the blockchain’s codebase to ensure participants are well-prepared. Once the four-week challenge concludes, bug bounty platform Immunefi will compile a report on the identified vulnerabilities.
Funding and Future Plans
To fund this event, the EPS team has already contributed $500,000 and is seeking sponsors to raise an additional $1.5 million by August 1. Additionally, the team plans to make such hackathons a regular occurrence, aligning them with each future hard fork of Ethereum.
The upcoming “Pectra” hard fork, merging the “Prague” and “Electra” upgrades, is slated for late this year or early next. This update promises significant changes, including a “social recovery” feature that simplifies the management of private wallet keys and introduces smart contract-like capabilities to wallets.
Context in the Crypto World
Hackathons are a staple in the tech industry. The crypto sector, in particular, hosts numerous similar events. These competitions, along with ongoing bug bounties, incentivize ethical hacking to improve security. For example, Immunefi’s platform lists bounties ranging from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars, with the highest bounty of $15 million offered by LayerZero.
