Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Smart contract audits: method and limits
An audit reduces the risk of a smart contract, but does not eliminate it. Learn what auditors examine, with which tools, and what lies beyond their reach.
Topic
Ethereum
Token & Tech articles on Ethereum: explainers, analysis and guides with verifiable sources and clearly separated facts and opinions.
Articles on this topic
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Crypto wallets: custodial vs. non-custodial
Every crypto wallet answers one question: who controls the private key? The answer determines who can move the funds, who can lose them and whom you will have to turn to if something goes wrong.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Rollups: how they expand network capacity
Rollups process transactions off Ethereum and use the main network as an anchor. Understanding the internal parts shows where the extra capacity comes from and where the trust lies.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
What smart contracts are and how they work
A smart contract is a program that enforces rules by itself on a blockchain. See where the idea came from, how it works, where it tends to fail and where it fits in Brazilian law.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Layer 1 and layer 2: how blockchains scale
Public blockchains process few transactions in order to stay open and secure. Layer 2 networks try to solve this by taking work off the main chain, but they bring risks of their own.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
What is a DAO and how does its governance work
A DAO is a group that holds funds and makes decisions through smart contracts and on-chain voting. In practice, power tends to concentrate, and the label does not settle legal questions.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
DeFi: what is decentralized finance
DeFi is the name given to financial services provided by programs running on blockchains, with no bank or broker in the middle. The promise is open access; the risks are in the code, the governance and the market.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
What is Ethereum and how does it work
Ethereum is a blockchain where anyone can publish programs that run the same way on thousands of computers. See how the pieces work and where the risks lie.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Blockchain oracles: architecture and risks
In decentralized finance, what decides whether a loan gets liquidated is a number: the price reported by the oracle. Understanding where that number comes from and how it can be distorted explains a large share of attacks on DeFi protocols.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Blockchain bridges: how they work and where they fail
Blockchains do not talk to each other. Bridges make the connection by holding assets on one side and issuing representations on the other, and that is why they have become one of attackers' favorite targets.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Privacy on public blockchains: what is visible
On Bitcoin and Ethereum, anyone can see the amounts, dates and addresses of every transaction. The only thing protecting you is the distance between those addresses and your name, and that distance is usually shorter than it looks.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Smart contracts with an admin key
Many smart contracts have an owner who can pause them, change the rules or swap the code. Learn what these powers are, why they concentrate risk and what limits them.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Zero-knowledge proofs: proving without revealing data
A zero-knowledge proof convinces someone that a statement is true without showing the information behind it. See how this is possible, what it is used for and where its limits lie.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
How to investigate the security of a DeFi protocol
No check guarantees that a DeFi protocol is safe. But a few questions, almost all of which you can verify yourself, show where the risks lie before you deposit.
Crypto & Web3 · Explainer
Staking: how it works, rewards and risks
Staking means depositing crypto-assets to help validate a proof-of-stake network and earning rewards for it. Learn where that payment comes from, why it is not guaranteed and what you risk with each option.
Tokenization & Real-World Assets · Analysis
Fungible versus non-fungible tokens
A token can be identical to every other one in the same issuance or be unique. That technical choice changes its use, its liquidity and, sometimes, its regulatory treatment.