Sei Gives $2M to Developer for Hunting Down Network Critical Bugs

Layer-1 blockchain network Sei was recently rescued from two critical network bugs by the white hat hacker, Usmann Khan. The white hat hacker explained that both bugs could potentially disrupt the blockchain’s primary activities. After reporting both vulnerabilities in April, the developer received $75,000 for the first bug and $2 million for the second bug.

Khan Shares Details

The white hat hacker shared details of both bugs and their potential impact on the network. The first bug concerned the blockchain’s availability. Khan explained that this issue could cause the Sei network to halt operations if exploited by a malicious user. After identifying the fault, Khan sent the report, including the fix, to the Sei team.

The second bug, which concerns Sei’s integrity, could have had a more cataclysmic effect on the network. The bug would have paved the way for a $1 billion exit from the Sei token market capitalization if a bad actor(s) exploited it. Other things malicious hackers can do with this bug include censoring users’ transactions and enabling double-spending.

Khan emphasized that these faults were detected before going on the mainnet.

“Both issues were caught after the code had been audited, merged, and slated for release but before it was shipped to production. As a result, no funds were put at risk,” the white hat hacker wrote.

Bug bounty is a crucial aspect of blockchain development, as it incentivizes developers to focus on eradicating bugs from the system. This also reduces the risk of crypto-focused hacks from occurring as there are fewer vulnerabilities exploitable by malicious attackers. 

Sei Network Continues to Grow

Launched in May 2023, the Sei blockchain quickly jumped in popularity and adoption. Since it uses the proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, the layer-1 network boasts fast and cheap transactions. According to the official website, Sei states that it facilitates 12,500 transactions per second (TPS).

SEI is the lifeblood of the Sei ecosystem. The native coin ranks as the 66th largest cryptocurrency with a market cap of over $1 billion. Its price at the time of writing sat at $0.346, representing a 9.3% decrease in the past 24 hours.