XFai is a decentralized oracle service provider that aims to address liquidity and gas issues in decentralised exchanges (DEXs) through a so-called DEX Liquidity Oraclewhich will revolutionise cryptocurrency trading whilst reducing gas fees.
If you are a regular DEX trader, you might notice that there are times when you canât complete trades. This happens often with small-cap tokens that do not have enough liquidity. In this case, traders have two options, either to wait it out until thereâs enough liquidity or to increase price slippage tolerance. But either way, it can result in huge losses on the part of a small-cap token holder.
XFai wants to address this problem by empowering DEXs with liquidity that can be supplied to small-cap tokens. This equalizes the playing field for every single trader, allowing them to execute their strategy without having to shoulder massive costs just because a DEX might not have enough liquidity on any particular trading pair.
Check out our interview with XFai’s Chief Scientist, Taulant Ramabaja.
Background
The problem with many DEXs today is liquidity. While liquidity pools and profit-generating DeFi systems like yield farming have offered revolutionary solutions in the last year or so, DEXes still face this concern. This leaves many traders vulnerable to huge price slippages and losses. And if the issue persists, cryptocurrency traders might be discouraged and go back to trading mostly on centralized exchanges despite having less options.
This is what XFai worked is trying to solve.
XFai, which was co-founded by Geoffrey Khan, was developed in order to deal with the problems hounding DeFi markets today. It has gained a substantial amount of support, garnering investments from companies like AU21 Capital, LD Capital, and Roger Ver, one of the earliest adopters of blockchain technology and the CEO of Bitcoin.com. It is also worth mentioning that they were able to generate over $3.8 million within the first 12 hours of their private sale.
What is XFai?
XFai is a decentralized oracle service provider with the aim of addressing liquidity and gas issues in DEXs through a DEX Liquidity Oracle (DLO). This means that the protocolâs role is not only limited to supplying data to price feeds and engaging with smart contracts, but is also capable of actively providing and managing token liquidity in partner DEXs such as Uniswap.
The primary goal of the project is to support small cap tokens and token holders by establishing a system that helps them earn better rewards. In other words, the project seeks to help them gain as much in incentives as they can, just like how a holder of a large cap token does.
DEX Liquidity Oracle
XFaiâs DLO is powered by the XFai smart contract, which allows users to stake small cap tokens that can later be supplied to Uniswap pools according to corresponding price ranges and existing orders. The biggest trades facilitated on Uniswap exchanges will be provided with the liquidity collected from the DLO.
This does not just benefit large volume trades for small cap tokens, but also those who supply liquidity on the same tokens. They receive rewards when they do so as well. The good thing about DLO is that it does not require liquidity providers to supply all the assets supported in a liquidity pool. They can choose to simply supply a single token in a pool, which also mitigates the risks of impermanent loss on their end.
What supports this function further is its real-time price feed from centralized exchanges. Furthermore, the liquidity from the DLO is easily accessible to DEXs, addressing the issue on price slippage. This is exactly the goal of the XFai team, to support the current DEXs in the market and not to present itself as a competitor.
How Does XFai Work?
First, the user has to add tokens on the DLO liquidity vault/pool. The DLO is governed by a smart contract that also sends the tokens to partner DEXes when liquidity is needed. Note that users do not need to supply multiple assets at a time anymore, thereby reducing their exposure.
Second, the DLO looks into the data from existing order books from other exchanges to determine existing prices and trading volume. Then, it comes up with a synthetic curve which they will use in order to pair DLO liquidity with partner DEXs.
Then, there is a smart contract that governs how and when liquidity is supplied to a DEX using the synthetic curve. The goal of the contract is to ensure that enough liquidity is met by AMMs in order to avoid price slippage while allowing small cap token holders to supply liquidity without incurring impermanent loss.
XFIT Token
XFIT token is XFaiâs native, utility token, which can be used as a medium of exchange, store of value, and means of payment for transaction fees. But more than that, it also has governance and reward functions. Liquidity farming is accessible in XFIT and all other DLO pairs.
To start liquidity mining, holders can stake their tokens in select pools to earn proportional rewards. Each time the DLO profits from the trades conducted by its platform users, token holders earn additional XFIT. They can either redeem XFIT tokens to be later sold to the market, or they can decide to return their rewards back to liquidity pools in order to increase their stake position.
In addition, XFIT token holders are also entitled to discounts on transaction fees if they use XFIT. They can also make direct swaps from XFIT to any other token in the protocol as long as they are supported by the DLO.
XFai Liquidity Generation Event: How to stake XFIT
The XFai liquidity generation event is a way to allow users to become involved with XFai’s XFIT token early, and stake them in the liquidity pool in order to earn increased, sustained yield throughout the launch period.
To participate, users can go on the XFai website and click on “Farm”, then choose your preferred pool. Note that the APY is synced for all pools so they earn the same amount of APY as each other. Then click “Connect Wallet” to connect using MetaMask, once connected the dashboard will automatically calculate how much XFIT you can purchase with the amount in your wallet. Select the amount you want to stake and hit “Farm”.
Whilst farming, you have the option to either Add to Farm, which allows you to increase your stake or Harvest, which allows you to claim your XIFT rewards.
To claim your rewards, click “Harvest” and you would be presented with the option to Harvest XFIT or Harvest XFIT and unstake. Harvest XFIT allows you to claim the XFIT tokens gained into your wallet whilst keeping the staked amount in the liquidity pool to keep farming more XIFT rewards. On the other hand, Harvest XFIT and unstake means you can claim your XFIT rewards and unstake the staked amount (or any part of it) from the pool.
The XFai LGE will be from 16th April to 7 May 2021.
Perhaps one of the largest factors that stop people from completely shifting their cryptocurrency trading activities to DEXs is the liquidity problem, apart from the fees. It is difficult to execute trades with low liquidity and even if they often do, sometimes, it takes multiple slippage tolerance adjustments before a trade gets to be completed.
While this can look trivial for some people, this is something that canât be neglected. If XFai takes off, the DeFi space might experience a better market situation. If traders do not have to be burdened by price slippages and if liquidity further improves through the same solutions the XFai team did, DEXs can be even more alluring to everyone, which would help speed up adoption.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
The Ethereum network has immensely pushed the boundaries of blockchain technology more than Bitcoin ever had, especially in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, where hundreds of different projects have been able to leverage the flexibility and effectiveness of the host blockchain.
Unfortunately, the slow transaction speeds and high costs are significantly limiting the performance of Ethereum-based projects to the point that some of them are migrating to alternative chains like Solana and Binance Smart Chain. Yet the vast majority of applications still hold on to Ethereum, waiting for Ethereum 2.0 to fully scale the network.
Ethereum is in dire need of a scaling solution that can speed up the blockchain’s throughput. Thankfully, Polygon is working on one of such solutions that would see the load on the Ethereum blockchain eased on parallel child chains.
Background
Polygon started out as Matic Network, a blockchain solution intended to speed up blockchain transactions and make them more accessible to the general public. Later on, the company refocused its objectives on the Ethereum network to furnish it with layer two scaling solutions. The name Polygon came along with the branding.
The startup was founded by four Indian technologists, Jaynti Kanani, Anurag Arjun, and Sandeep Nailwal, who had a similar vision of a future where machines and humans interacted freely. The three entrepreneurs agreed that blockchain technology is a vital tool for achieving such a society.
The trio was later joined by a Serbian tech maximalist and Ethereum enthusiast, Mihailo Bjelic. In a seed round announced on the 1st of August, 2019, Polygon received funding from MiH ventures through Crunchbase. Version 1 of Polygonâs SDK was scheduled to be released in March of 2021.
What is Polygon ($MATIC)?
Polygon is a framework that allows Ethereum-based applications to bypass the low throughput, high gas fees, and poor interface of Ethereum while still enjoying its support
Polygonâs main component is its software development kit (SDK). The SDK is a flexible structure that allows projects to develop different sidechains that suit their needs. Necessary support is provided so that the alternate chains can interact effectively with Ethereum’s main chain.
By arming developers with flexible and easy-to-use tools, Polygon accelerates the transformation of Ethereum into a multi-chain ecosystem. Its users would be able to create Optimistic rollup chains, ZK rollup chains, and other types of sidechains.
But beyond being a mere framework, the Polygon platform is focused on connecting blockchains with one another, as well as the Ethereum blockchain itself.
Advantages of Polygon
The major benefit of Polygon is scalability, which the crypto space is in dire need of today considering that it takes forever for transactions to be verified on the Ethereum network, especially if you try to decrease the gas fees. Dapp developers have to pay so much in gas fees that it curtails their development and affects their offering to users.
And this is the pain point that Polygon aims to ease, and they are on their way to scale the Ethereum network.
Polygon’s solution to the challenges facing Ethereum (Image credit: Polygon)
Polygon for Developers
Developers can build a network of scalable side chains to the Ethereum blockchain through Polygon; one with independent consensus algorithms on a more developer-friendly, Web Assembly (WASM) environment.
Developers would be encouraged to build more and advance the general direction of the crypto industry, especially the DeFi sector. Polygonâs SDK does not require developers to have blockchain expertise. In fact, knowledge of these protocols is unnecessary in building from its SDK.
Users would also benefit tremendously with more easy-to-use interfaces, near-instantaneous transactions, and low costs. If well-executed, this will likely propel the growth of Ethereum dapps to astronomical levels and will push the boundaries of crypto to include the masses outside the industry.
Support, Flexibility, and Security
Polygon permits incredible flexibility for the development of chains.
Its modular nature allows developers to assemble products at unrivalled speeds. The easy assembly will also accelerate dapp development, effectively shortening the interval between the conception and deployment of blockchain products.
Support would also be provided for easy interaction with users, as well as external systems. Token exchange, contract calls, and communication with oracles are also supported on Polygon. Furthermore, the products would be easily upgradeable.
All these and more will be possible on Polygon without compromising on security. In fact, developers would be free to choose their approach to secure their platforms, using the modular “security as a service” feature on the Polygon framework.
Above all, all products developed on Polygon would be compatible with Ethereum.
Polygon Chains
During the days of Polygonâs Matic network, an Ethereum sidechain that uses the Plasma framework was the landmark of its offering. The Plasma framework allowed sidechains to run independently, only interacting with the main blockchain when it was necessary.
Polygonâs new platform sees it advance with the demands of the market by offering different chain networks that are attuned to Ethereumâs blockchain. And these are: stand-alone chains and secured chains.
Stand-alone Chains
Stand-alone chains have security autonomy, with each chain being responsible for its own security. Such chains have the freedom to choose their own validation methods. They can establish a personal pool of validators who ensure the authenticity of transactions directly on the blockchain.
On the other hand, secured chains involve outsourcing the platform’s security to a third party. The third-party can be Ethereum itself, with its fraud-proof and validity proof pools. There are other independent, professional pools of validators that offer security as a service as well.
Overall, secured chains often enjoy more reliable and tighter security even if they might have to sacrifice some independence.
MATIC is the only native token of Polygon, it is used to pay transaction fees and participate in Polygon’s proof-of-stake consensus mechanism.
Conclusion
Polygon’s vision is to launch whole blockchains that are scalable, secure, and have amazing interfaces, allowing decentralized applications to have an alternative platform to carry out transactions while enjoying the security and support of the Ethereum network.
Meanwhile, the Ethereum dev community is also continuously working on the Ethereum 2.0 project (Serenity), which seeks to ultimately scale its blockchain to unimaginable capacities even beyond Visa and Mastercard.
Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency trading involves significant risks and may result in the loss of your capital. You should carefully consider whether trading cryptocurrencies is right for you in light of your financial condition and ability to bear financial risks. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile and can fluctuate widely in a short period of time. As such, trading cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for everyone. Additionally, storing cryptocurrencies on a centralized exchange carries inherent risks, including the potential for loss due to hacking, exchange collapse, or other security breaches. We strongly advise that you seek independent professional advice before engaging in any cryptocurrency trading activities and carefully consider the security measures in place when choosing or storing your cryptocurrencies on a cryptocurrency exchange.
FTX operates two exchange domains, including “FTX.com” for users outside of the US, and the US-regulated “FTX.us” for traders in the US. Although both domains are quite similar, there are a few notable differences in their features and functionalities.
FTX cryptocurrency exchange first came onto the scene in 2019 as FTX.com. Since then, FTX cryptocurrency and derivatives exchange experienced tremendous growth in trading volumes and the number of registered users. FTX has increasingly hit several milestones on these metrics by providing innovative financial products for all types of crypto traders. The exchange offers leveraged tokens, futures trading, and many more features, including reduced trading fees and multiple ways to earn passive income. In 2020, FTX.us was launched specifically to be US Regulation compliant and to cater to US customers.Â
FTX EXCHANGE (INCLUDING FTX INTERNATIONAL AND FTX.US) ARE NO LONGER IN OPERATION
Both exchanges have filed for bankruptcy. Subsequently, the exchange was “hacked” and more than US$600 million worth of cryptocurrencies drained. The hacker is strongly rumoured to be a former FTX employee. For more about how this story unfolded and the latest news, check out these articles:
Although both domains belong to the same platform, they cater to different groups of users. FTX.com is not available for traders in the US due to securities and crypto asset trading regulations imposed by the US government. US customers can only use the FTX.us exchange, as it complies with regulatory requirements. All features users enjoy on FTX.us are also available on FTX.com.
FTX.com is more suitable for experienced traders since it is strictly a crypto derivatives trading platform with a higher risk of fund loss. Most of the financial products offered by FTX require substantial knowledge of the market and the crypto assets up for trading.
Similarities Between FTX.com and FTX.us
FTX.com and FTX.us offers similar features, including user-friendliness and an easy trading experience. Like many exchange platforms, they both feature a trading chart that provides various trading features, charting tools, and in-built indicators.
Many traders opt for the FTX exchanges because both platforms offer convenient ways to control and track open trading positions. FTX also provides more order types than most crypto exchanges. Available order types include:
Market order
Limit order
Stop limit
Stop market
Trailing stop
Take profit
Take profit limit
Another interesting feature is that they both allow the integration of API keys to automate trading using crypto trading bots. Both domains require users to complete a KYC verification process to start trading and withdrawing funds.
Differences Between FTX.com and FTX.us?
FTX and FTX.us are run by different companies, hence previous negotiations to buy out FTX international did not include FTX.us as part of the deal.
The major difference between the .us and .com FTX exchanges is that FTX.com is a crypto derivatives platform where users can’t trade any real crypto. Users can only trade derivatives, which are secondary products that derive their value from these assets. On the other hand, FTX.us allows users to trade the actual underlying cryptocurrency. Furthermore, the two domains have a few differences regarding the following:
Trading pairs and contracts
Leverage and margin trading
Deposits and withdrawals
Trading fees
Trading Pairs and Contracts
FTX.com supports futures contracts trading for over 80 cryptocurrencies. Unlike many of its competitors, FTX.com allows futures trading for coins with low market caps. It also supports many fiat currencies, including USD, EUR, AUD, SGD, GBP, TRY, HKD, TRY, CHF, BRL, and CAD.
One unique feature of the FTX.com platform is its MOVE contract, which allows users to trade market volatility. MOVE contracts represent the absolute value of the amount a crypto asset moves over a period. Additionally, the platform allows its users to trade leveraged ERC-20 tokens, which give traders leveraged exposure to the cryptocurrency market.
On the other hand, FTX.us does not support as many currencies and contracts as its .com counterpart. The US version only supports about 24 cryptocurrencies and has fewer financial products than FTX.com.
Leverage and Margin Trading
FTX.com currently offers its users up to 101x leverage, with an initial maximum leverage of 10x by default. Traders may expand this leverage if their user accounts meet the platform’s requirements. With FTX.us, crypto traders can only get up to 10x leverage subject to specific terms and conditions.
Deposits and Withdrawals
FTX.com supports deposits in many cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and various stablecoins. The exchange promptly processes all deposits and withdrawals and does not charge deposit or withdrawal fees for Ether and ERC-20 tokens. For Bitcoin, all withdrawals of more than 0.01 BTC are free. Smaller withdrawals incur withdrawal fees only after the first free one for the day.
FTX.com also allows users to deposit and withdraw in their local fiat currencies using bank wire transfers. USD transactions take one business day, while other currencies may take longer. Although there are no charges on deposits with FTX.com, fiat withdrawals below $10,000 incur a $75 fee.
Deposits and withdrawals on FTX.us are also very fast. However, depositing and withdrawing USD can take up to two weekdays. Like FTX.com, FTX.us also charges a fee for USD deposits completed via wire transfer. Users can make one free withdrawal of less than $5,000 per rolling week period. Additional withdrawals cost $25, but all withdrawals above $5,000 are free.
Trading Fees
FTX.com uses a 6-tier structure for trading fees. Like many other crypto exchanges, FTX.com gradually decreases the trading fees for its users based on their daily trading volume to encourage higher trading volumes. Tier 1 traders pay a taker fee of 0.07% and a maker fee of 0.02%, while traders in tier 6 only pay 0.04% in taker fees.
As for FTX.us, the platform generally charges its users higher fees. Although it operates a similar fee structure, FTX.us has 9 tiers. Tier 1 traders pay a maker fee of 0.1% and a taker fee of 0.2%, while traders in tier 9 pay only 0.05% in taker fees and no maker fee.
Is FTX.us affected by the collapse of FTX International?
As of 10th November 2022, when users go to FTX international, there will be a banner warning: “FTX is currently unable to process withdrawals. We strongly advise against depositing.”
Now, when accessing the FTX.us website, there is now an announcement banner warning that, “…trading may be halted on FTX US in a few days. Please close down any positions you want to close down. Withdrawals are and will remain open. We will give updates as we have them.”
Banner on FTX US website
However, Sam Bankman-Fried, Founder of FTX has tweeted that FTX US is unaffected by the crisis surrounding FTX International and that it is “100% liquid”.
19) A few other assorted comments:
This was about FTX International. FTX US, the US based exchange that accepts Americans, was not financially impacted by this shitshow.
It's 100% liquid. Every user could fully withdraw (modulo gas fees etc).
Nevertheless, many members of the crypto Twitter (CT) community are warning users to withdraw their funds from FTX.us as soon as possible. Given the current situation with FTX International, users of FTX.us are indeed urged to exercise caution and keep updated on any news from the team.
EtherDrops is a Telegram based bot designed to track major crypto markets and NFTs. Many crypto enthusiasts would use data tracking sites such as CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko, and these tools are excellent as âwikipediasâ for all the altcoins out there. However, for those with more advanced needs, there are much better resources available that can make your life easier.
If youâve been in crypto for several years, youâll probably have a Telegram account. Most of the crypto projects in existence have official Telegram channels to keep their communities informed and up to date on developments, so the chances are you also use the messaging platform.
This is just as well, because one thing that makes Telegram very useful is its ability to add bots that serve different purposes to the end-user. This is where EtherDrops comes in, so you can be part of the various crypto communities and track your tokens all on the Telegram app.
What is EtherDrops?
Originally created in 2018 as a tool to monitor Ethereum wallets, EtherDrops was mainly used to track the transactions of Ether âwhalesâ as well as oneâs own wallets on the first smart-contract blockchain.
Four years later, EtherDrops has evolved into something much bigger than wallet monitoring. It is now integrated with Ethereum, Polygon, Fantom, Avalanche and BNB Smart Chain, providing a convenient place to track all your crypto activities within one Telegram bot.
Users are equipped with simple-to-use tools to follow coin prices, as well as track and receive real-time notifications on wallet transactions, DEX and CEX swaps, NFTs, liquidity pools, Binance funding, gas prices, and more.
By shaping settings according to your own personalized needs using a unique combination of advanced tools and instruments, EtherDrops becomes a simple yet essential bot that notifies you about anything you want, or alerts you to certain conditions. Thousands of investors, traders, and holders use it to navigate their crypto journeys.
The bot already has more than 400,000 users on board and keeps growing steadily. With the product sending over 5,000,000 notifications daily, itâs no surprise that each day they welcome hundreds of new users onboard.
EtherDrops Features
Major features of EtherDrops include:
Price tracking;
Wallet tracking;
Liquidity pools;
OpenSea integration;
Gas price notifications;
Integration with Telegram groups and channels; and
Token distribution alerts.
Price Tracking
Tracking the prices of various cryptocurrencies is a basic need for long-term investors or traders. Add coins by name, ticker or contract address. Apply your personalized settings to receive instant notifications about price changes and swaps.
Price Change Notifications â Set % Price Change to generate an alert.
Swap Alerts â Set $ Value to track Swaps on Uniswap, Sushiswap, Balancer and other supported DEXs.
Wallet Tracking
Add a wallet by its address to monitor incoming and outgoing transactions, airdrops, NFT transactions, and created contracts.
Transaction Notifications â Choose between different event types and set $ alerts to be notified about transactions.
Wallet Balance â Check Balances of assets and NFTs.
Liquidity Pools
Add a liquidity pool by its contract address and receive % pool changes should it increase or decrease within the specified range.
LP Changes â Set the % change value to stay on top of your added pool.
OpenSea Integration
Track the floor price and metrics of NFTs and arts on the Ethereum network. To follow your collection, add it by the name or address and set a % price change or generate a $ price target.
Gas Price Notifications
At times ETH gas prices can be really high and leave you with an eye-watering bill in fees to pay if you make a transaction. Set gas price notifications and save yourself a fortune!
Set Gas Alerts â Set Gwei amount to generate an alert. As soon as it hits the target or lower, youâll be immediately notified.
Check out our Advanced Tips and Tricks to Save on Ethereum Gas Fees:
Integration with Groups & Channels
If you are an admin or a community manager of a project using Telegram, or you run a trading group, your channel could benefit from integration with the EtherDrops bot.
All Bot Features in your Groups and Channels â The same alerts and notifications you set in your individual account can be applied to groups and channels.
Token Distribution Alerts
Token distributions often create market price pressure and increase capitalization. Be the first to obtain such info and assess market conditions to make a play in your favor (if you use Margin or Futures trading).
Token Distribution â Receive distribution alerts from seed, private and other events for tokens that youâve added to monitoring.
Tutorial: How to use EtherDrops
1. How to install EtherDrops bot
To install EtherDrops, simply follow this link to open the bot in Telegram. It will automatically link the bot to your account. Here is an official list of the available EtherDrops install links. If you experience any delays with bot updates, you can switch to any other official link.
2. How to add a wallet
In the Main Menu, select â+Add walletâ. Tick â which networks you wish to add to monitoring for your wallet and press â Done (for example ETH and Polygon). Then type in your wallet address and name it. Youâll now be immediately notified whenever there are any transactions happening within the wallet, including NFT activity, in/out transactions, airdrops, etc.
3. How to edit wallets
In the Main Menu, select âEdit Walletsâ. Choose the wallet you wish to edit. The menu with available options will open up. You can Delete, Rename, make it your Favourite (if ON, notifications with this wallet will be illuminated for better visibility), follow only IN, OUT or ALL transactions, check Balances, add/remove Networks for this wallet, set Alert Transactions filter (youâll only be notified about transactions that are bigger than the specified threshold).
4. How to add a liquidity pool
In the Main Menu, select â+Add poolâ. Choose the network. Next, enter the address of the liquidity pool. Enter the % liquidity change to create a notification. When the liquidity of a pool changes within your specified range, you’ll be instantly notified.
5. How to edit liquidity pools
In the Main Menu, proceed to âEdit poolsâ. Choose the liquidity pool to add additional settings. You can Delete, Rename, turn your Notifications ON or OFF for this specific pool, or change the % notification alert.
6. How to add a new coin
In the Main Menu, select â+Add coinâ. Next, enter the contract address, symbol, or name of the coin. Choose the coin from the list and select network (ETH, BSC, ERC-20, Polygon, or CEX). Finally, enter the % price change and $ value for swaps (in case the coin is traded on a DEX) to create a notification. Now you are following this coin. Whenever there is a swap or price change within the range you specified, youâll receive an instant notification.
7. How to edit coins
In the Main Menu, proceed to âEdit coinsâ. Choose the coin. You can Delete, turn your Notifications ON or OFF for this specific coin, change Price Denomination (in USD, BNB, ETH, BTC), change the price % notification alert, create a price alert (if a coin is x USD, youâll receive a notification), or change swap alerts.
8. How to add an NFT
In the Main Menu, select â+Add NFTâ. Enter the contract address or name of the NFT. Select the right one and type in the % price change alert to receive notifications.
9. How to edit NFTs
In the Main Menu, select âEdit NFTâ. Choose the NFT. You can Delete, change % alert or price, set a new price alert, or turn notifications ON/OFF.
10. How to set gas price alerts
In the Main Menu, select âSet gas alertâ. Type in the desired fast gas price to create an alert.
Conclusion
EtherDrops is a simple yet comprehensive one-stop tool for all your crypto tracking needs and continues to add new networks, coins, and exchanges as the market expands so youâll never be short of what you need. It just takes one click and a few easy-to-follow steps within Telegram to get set up, and that short initial setup time proves to be well worth it.
For a comprehensive tutorial on the more advanced features of EtherDrops such as quick shortcuts, special commands, managing profiles, how to set up the bot for groups and channels, and subscription options, read to the end of this quide. If TL;DR you can also watch a video tutorial here.
Follow DropsTab / EtherDrops for more information:
We have compiled an updated list of the top performing blockchain security and smart contract auditing companies in 2022, giving you comprehensive data and history of these firms for you to make the best informed decision possible.
A lot has happened since 2020 when we last ranked the best smart contract auditors at the time. As the crypto space is evolving, so are hackers and scammers around the world. Web3 attacks are becoming increasingly frequent, and each day malicious players have found creative ways to exploit smart contract vulnerabilities for quick profit.
One of the largest crypto hacks in history happened earlier this year when Wormhole, Solana’s cross-chain bridge, was hacked on February 2nd. The attack exploited a signature verification vulnerability in the network that allowed the hacker to freely mint 120,000 wETH, worth $325 million at the time. As a result, security audits are extremely important. According to an article by Hacken, though Solana may be blamed for providing the instrument with security flaws to its projects, Wormhole might have “prevented the incident by auditing the instruments it used.”
Quality smart contract assurance helps identify potential issues, and ensure that the protocol is ready at all times to address any threat that could put its users’ funds at risk. However, there are no guarantees that a protocol will be 100% secure after an audit, but a good smart contract auditor can still perform thorough reviews to potentially prevent major vulnerabilities after launch. To keep up with the increasing demand in blockchain security, certain auditing firms have also branched out to offer other cybersecurity services such as penetration testing, running bug bounty programs, vulnerability assessments, and threat modelling.
What Makes a Good Smart Contract Auditor?
We have compiled our list of the top smart contract auditors this year based on a set of criteria. One of the first steps in finding a reliable smart contract auditor is to check the portfolios of projects they have audited. Doing so allows you to see the size and popularity of the projects they have audited, and more importantly if any of the projects they have worked on have been compromised. Larger projects tend to attract more attention from hackers, and if they have not been exploited for a long period of time, then it is a good sign that their security is up to date thanks to their auditor(s).
The next factor to consider is the auditor’s expertise in certain blockchains. As of now, most auditors offer only Ethereum contract audits. Only some are specialized in auditing projects on altchains such as BNB, Solana or Polygon. This is because EVM-compatible chains have different architectures, and certain altchains use a completely different programming language, e.g. Rust for Solana. Different firms have different areas of expertise in auditing protocols built on different blockchains, so it is best to assess their level of competency before engaging them for an audit. For example, if you are looking for a Polygon-based contract audit, check the firm’s past audits for Polygon-based projects.
Finally, it goes without saying but the quality of audit reports is an important consideration to look for in a reliable auditor. Different auditing firms have their own methodology and approach. In many instances, the scope of an audit varies according to the scale and complexity of the project as well as the auditor’s agreement with their clients. It is important to note that a good report should include a comprehensive description of all the problems that were found during the test and inspection, and the findings of the audit have been addressed by the project.
Hacken is a leading cybersecurity consulting company focused on blockchain security. Since its inception in 2017, Hacken has been educating and growing the ethical white hat hacker community to continually nurture and build the blockchain security ecosystem. Who better to identify and address cybersecurity threats than a hacker? (https://www.kambioeyewear.com/)
Hacken provides a wide range of security services including blockchain security consulting, web/mobile penetration testing, vulnerability assessments, coordination of bug bounty programs and more. The company also encompasses security products such as HackenAI Security Platform, hVPN, and hPass etc. Beyond just blockchain security ecosystem, Hacken has also partnered with non-blockchain giants like Air Asia.
Over the years, Hacken has built a commendable reputation as a security risk assessment for companies requiring a digital environment to create or enable services for their consumers, which is why Hacken is certified as Web 3.0 security standard by two of the world’s largest cryptocurrency data aggregator Coingecko and Coinmarketcap.
Quantstamp is a security validation protocol for smart contracts and is one of the most recognized auditing companies in the blockchain sector. Their security team consists of PhDs and security professionals with experience in top IT companies such as Google, Facebook, Apple, and Ethereum Foundation.
Quantstamp specializes in auditing services of all programming languages designed for use in blockchain applications. Since its launch in 2017, Quantstamp has audited over 200 projects and helped secure over $200 billion in value. Its services include auditing layer-1 blockchains, smart contract-powered NFT and DeFi protocols, and developing financial frameworks for layer-1 blockchain ecosystems.
Trail of Bits is a cybersecurity industry giant with a long list of big-name clients such as Microsoft, Adobe, Reddit, Zoom, Airbnb, and Reddit etc. Founded in 2012, before smart contracts were even invented, the company prides itself as a network of developers with the capabilities of identifying and fixing loopholes in software, devices, and code. They have long developed tools that help developers find and fix critical vulnerabilities. Manticore is one of their signature tools, a multi-contract and multi-transaction emulator. Other tools include Cryptic, Slither and Echidna which are also blockchain-focused solutions.
Major Clients: 0x Exchange, Aave, Balancer, Uniswap
Chains Supported: Ethereum
Consenys is a US-based blockchain technology solutions company and is one of the biggest and prominent blockchain incubators in the industry. Unlike other security firms mentioned on this list, ConsenSys dedicates its resources and technological expertise solely to the development of Ethereum blockchain applications and software, especially financial infrastructures.
Its signature product, MythX, is one of the most powerful automated scanners for Ethereum smart contracts, providing a solid API which developers can use to access security analytics tools. Over the years, ConsenSys has successfully protected over 100 Ethereum-based projects and uncovered over 200 issues. Apart from security auditing, the company also provides two other services known as Fuzzing, a bug-finding tool for first specifications, and Scribble, a runtime verification tool that translates high-level specifications into Solidity code.
CertiK is a blockchain security company specialized in formal verification and AI technology in collaboration with some of the world’s best cybersecurity experts to create end-to-end audit services. The company has developed “CertiK Chain”, a public blockchain focused on mathematically validating the safety of smart contracts through formal and manual verification. Other services of CertiK include Skynet, Skytrace and Penetration Testing.
CertiK is an official partner company of Binance, and is also backed by numerous big-name firms such as Golden Sachs, Coinbase, Lightspeed, Matrix Partners, and DHVC.
Major Clients: Ethereum Foundation, Chia Network, O(1) Labs, Protocol Labs, cLabs, Tezos Foundation
Chains Supported: Ethereum, Chia Network, Tezos
LeastAuthority is a cybersecurity consulting firm with its main focus on privacy. Using privacy-enhancing technologies, it classifies itself as an enabler of private and disruptive storage solutions. The platform offers two major products which are essentially storage architectures. The first, Privatestorage (formerly S4), is a centralized system that provides storage infrastructure to end-users and offers them the autonomy over the collection, processing and distribution of their private data. The second product, Tahoe LAFS, enables a decentralized, distributed and fault-tolerant storage facility.
Apart from security audits, other services also include penetration testing, network and traffic analysis, and mechanism and incentive design. The company’s consultants work with developers throughout their development cycles to ensure that their projects are not susceptible to security threats.
Major Clients: yearn.finance, Maker, Compound, Curve, Rarible, Kyber Network
Chains Supported: Ethereum
ChainSecurity is a blockchain security firm led by security experts from the renowned university ETH Zurich. Similar to ConsenSys, the company specializes in Ethereum contract auditing. They have developed an automated audit platform that allows projects to thoroughly analyze smart contract designs, test their viability, and monitor metrics detailing their performances after launch. The company has worked with more than 85 Ethereum-based projects and helped secure more than $17 billion worth of assets.
Major Clients: Ethereum Foundation, Coinbase, Compound, Aave, The Graph
Chains Supported: Ethereum
OpenZeppelin is a cybersecurity technology and services company known for its development of Solidity libraries known as “OpenZeppelin Contracts.” These libraries are used in most Solidity projects as a tested and standard template for contracts deployable on DApps. Developers can easily integrate these solutions into their applications through OpenZeppelin’s native SDK.
OpenZeppelin was the first cybersecurity company to reinvent blockchain security by introducing elements of gamification to identify security vulnerabilities in smart contracts. “Ethernaut” is a web3/Solidity war game which challenges gamers to find and exploit loopholes in smart contracts to progress to the next level. The company also provides free services such as “Defender”, which helps clients automate their smart contract administration, offering a more secure and private transaction infrastructure.
Major Clients: Binance, OKX, Huobi, Pancakeswap, Crypto.com
Chains Supported: Ethereum, EVM Chains, EOS, Fabric, Solana, VeChain, ONT
SlowMist is China’s leading blockchain security company founded in 2018. The team at SlowMust has over 10 years of experience in network security, specializing in smart contract audits, blockchain security, wallet security testing, and more. The company constantly tracks and publishes data about security situation on crypto exchanges through their Blockchain Threat Intelligence (BTI) service. Their most notable product MistTrack is a system that tracks the movement of stolen funds. Since its launch, it has helped recover nearly $1 billion in stolen funds.
Major Clients: Algorand, Polkadot, Tezos Foundation, Ethereum Community Fund, NASA
Chains Supported: All Chains
Runtime Verification is a research and development company focused on verification-based techniques to perform security audits on virtual machines and smart contracts on public blockchains. The platform is a dynamic software analysis approach that analyzes programs as they execute, observing the results of the execution and using those results to find bugs. This solution designs standard models for high-value applications and uses them as templates to develop security-sensitive products.
Runtime Verification has developed two main smart contract security products. The first, K Semantic Framework, offers smart contract correctness proofs to validate the viability of Ethereum and Cardano’s smart contracts. The second, Firefly, is a test coverage analysis tool for Ethereum smart contracts. The company has also worked with Ethereum Foundation on building a formal framework for Ethereum 2.0 testing.
There are tens of thousands of cryptocurrencies out there, with over 1,000 new tokens launched between January and July of 2022. Over time, people in the crypto community have realized that there are many bogus projects in the blockchain space whose sole aim is to entice unsuspecting people and defraud them. This makes it compulsory for everyone to research blockchain projects before making financial commitments.
What Does DYOR Mean?
DYOR (Do Your Own Research) is a well-known acronym in the crypto and blockchain space. DYOR means that people are encouraged to conduct due diligence and gather all the necessary information on projects before depositing any funds, especially for new projects. Adequate research protects new and existing crypto enthusiasts from scams and projects with no real value. By “doing your own research,” members of the crypto community can find viable blockchain projects and avoid fraudulent or deceptive ones.
Why is DYOR Important?
DYOR is important to avoid losses, especially from scams or fraudulent actors. The evolution of decentralized finance (DeFi) and blockchain tech has made it easy for creators to sell the promise of a revolutionary product and attract cash from the general public. Since anyone with enough technical knowledge can create an asset on a blockchain, people no longer require intermediaries such as banks and brokerages before investing in the opportunities available within the crypto market. However, without governmental checks and regulations on these intermediaries, it also means that there is a high risk that the average investor will fall for a scam or fund a project with nefarious intentions.
Furthermore, since there are no centralized authorities in the DeFi space, people have no place or authority to report their grievances should the project turn out to be a scam. Fraudulent development teams know this, and exploit it by making promises they cannot deliver. In addition, transactions recorded on a blockchain are immutable. This design is a significant reason DYOR is important, since funds lost to scams or harmful projects are usually irretrievable.
How to Do Your Own Research (DYOR) in Crypto Projects
Here are some tips on how to DYOR before investing in crypto projects:
Find the project team and its Unique Selling Proposition (USP);
Evaluate the project roadmap;
Check the projectâs social media reputation and presence;
Research the projectâs source of funds
Read the projectâs whitepaper
Find Third-Party Audit Reports
Find the Project Team and its Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
People looking to invest or deposit funds must first find information about the project’s motives, purpose, and development team. The data could include the project’s past performance and detailed use cases of featured products. If a project team is anonymous, it should set off red flags in your head, as you should be wondering why they aren’t willing to put their name behind a project if it is reputable. Also, what is the project trying to achieve? Consider if it is actually something that there is likely a market for, and whether other competitors have attempted the same idea in the past and their results?
Evaluate the Project Roadmap
Reading and understanding a project’s roadmap, which provides a strategic overview of objectives, milestones, deliverables, and resources, is an effective way to DYOR. You should also evaluate if the roadmap is feasible – this relates to the above research on the team and their background. A fake or deceptive crypto project may publish a roadmap that promises all kinds of products or features in a short time. These projects sometimes do this to excite new backers into believing the project is viable in the long run and things are moving along quickly. However, the roadmap may be too good to be true. If a project makes promises like partnerships, new products, plans to raise a large sum of money, and full government approval all within a short time, buyers should be wary.
Check the Projectâs Social Media Reputation and Presence
Reputable blockchain projects usually have a verifiable social media presence and reputation. Checking the project’s reputation on major social media platforms such as Facebook, Telegram, Reddit, and Twitter gives insight into people’s thoughts about the project. See how other users are interacting with the community. Also, see if there are any questions or grievances concerning the project, and whether the team is immediately on hand to address them.
Research the Projectâs Source of Funds
Before making financial commitments to a project, it is important to determine whether a single individual or an established firm backs the project with capital and other resources. Prospective investors should also research previous projects backed by these sponsors to see if they were successful. Additionally, these sponsors should have a good reputation in the crypto community. This information can be located in the projectâs whitepaper.
Read the Projectâs Whitepaper
All crypto projects should have at least a whitepaper that documents information and technical aspects of the project. Whitepapers contain critical information about a project’s development process, potential opportunities, and utility.
Find Third-Party Audit Reports
Many auditors, such as Certik, Hacken and Quantstamp review the code of blockchain projects before launch to ensure their security. These audits involve double-checking the code and testing it for vulnerabilities, which results in the funds within the application being much safer than a non-audited smart contract. Looking up the audit report of projects before investing is a sure way to build confidence in a project. However, people should be aware that a positive report does not mean that the project is completely safe, as there are instances where malicious code was added after the report was released.
People researching crypto and blockchain projects should use multiple tools, common tools include CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap, Investopedia and social media.
CoinGecko
CoinGecko is a popular market research source for blockchain projects. The platform provides detailed information on market caps, prices, and daily trading volumes of various crypto assets. In addition to being a credible source of crypto information, CoinGecko also provides crypto-focused podcasts, industry commentary, and daily newsletters. When going into individual asset pages, you can also find the token’s website and social channels, allowing you to continue your due diligence.
CoinMarketCap
CoinMarketCap is the leading platform for cryptocurrency market information and research. The platform provides market information on nearly all the crypto assets available. CoinMarketCap also ranks crypto assets and projects in real-time, using features like market capitalization or 24-hour trading volume to sort projects in order. Like with CoinGecko, make sure to check the individual asset pages for more information on a specific cryptocurrency.
Investopedia
Investopedia is a leading online resource in the finance space. It is a repository that explains related terms and contains news and general financial information. Investopedia explains many complex blockchain concepts in layman’s terms, making it an ideal platform for newcomers in the finance and crypto space.
Social Media
It is almost essential to sample public opinion about a project before spending money. Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Telegram and Reddit contain raw and undiluted information from members of the crypto community who may have in-depth details about the project.
Although the information posted on social media may be unverified, these platforms can still be an excellent way to get much-needed information about projects. Posts may be from people who have lost money, made money, or those who noticed specifics that they considered to be red flags. However with everything on social media, always confirm that the statements being made are legitimate before you take them as truth.
Conclusion
DYOR is crucial for investors in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space. The absence of easy-to-understand information and lack of regulation somewhat makes scams more likely in the crypto space than in traditional financial markets, so never overlook the importance of research and verification. Doing the proper research before getting monetarily involved in any project is a concept that has more relevance in the blockchain sector than in many other industries because it is a disruptive and highly volatile sector.
Whether a blockchain project lives or dies depends on its capability toattract and grow its user base, and projects that are unable to gather or maintain their clientele eventually fold. To kickstart or encourage engagement within the community, these projects often find themselves doing token airdrops, using them to raise awareness and value for their products while also incentivizing new and existing customers.Â
A crypto airdrop is a method used to distribute cryptocurrencies to a project’s community of users for free, usually in exchange for participating in a campaign or owning other related assets. Airdrops are typically used as a marketing and awareness strategy to draw attention to a product or event. These projects may share tokens to existing users’ crypto wallets or encourage prospective users to register accounts to receive assets.
Types of Airdrops
Over the years, the airdrop marketing strategy has taken many different forms. Several projects have used airdrops to create awareness, promote features, and attract users. For instance, gaming metaverse ArcadeLand launched an airdrop in March where 850 participants shared a 2,000 USDT prize pool. Eligibility required simple tasks, including social media activity such as following ArcadeLandâs Twitter and participating in the projectâs announcement channel on Telegram.
There also was a MetaGods airdrop in November for 800 winners, including bonuses for the top 50 referrers. Participants also qualified for a $2,000 prize pool by completing tasks on Twitter and Telegram.
The Sukhavati Network also launched an airdrop of 10,000 $SKT worth 6000 USDT to celebrate achievements, including an official startup sale on Gate.io and a MEXC listing. The prize pool was for a total of 1050 winners, with 1000 $SKT reserved for the top 50 referrers. Although projects use different types of airdrops depending on their aim for each one, the most common types include:
Standard Airdrops
During a standard airdrop, wallet holders receive small amounts of the new cryptocurrency in return for completing tasks, such as signing up for a newsletter or creating an account with the crypto project. Some projects require participants to complete a KYC (Know Your Customer) verification or provide their email and wallet addresses before receiving the tokens.
Standard airdrops often serve as a good preface for projects to introduce themselves to the public. New projects, such as this recent airdrop hosted by Questian, attempts to pull in more attention by asking their community to complete tasks for USDT.
Bounty Airdrops
Projects that use bounty airdrops distribute their tokens among users who help to create awareness â usually across social media platforms. To be eligible for these airdrops, participants must perform simple tasks such as retweeting an official tweet, sharing a Facebook post, or creating Instagram media. Participants may also earn by referring new users. Although this type is similar to standard airdrops, the main difference is that crypto projects usually reserve bounty airdrops for people who help create public awareness. Standard airdrops are simply open to anyone who joins the projectâs community via accounts, newsletters, or other similar channels.
Exclusive Airdrops
Blockchain projects usually reserve exclusive airdrops for loyal followers. In many cases, these airdrops automatically go to early adopters or users who are frequently active on the platform. Eligible members of the community receive these exclusive airdrops with no strings attached.
Examples include a recent sudden airdrop hosted by MetaGods, which asks their community to simply drop their wallet address for an exclusive prize. The method was also utilized by AkiralGal, whose tweet asked their followers to screenshot their brand new AkiraGal wallpaper for more rewards.
Exclusive Airdrop hosted by MetaGodsExclusive Airdrop hosted by AkiraGal
Holder Airdrops
These are airdrops for users who already hold specific cryptocurrencies or tokens. So, to be eligible for these holder airdrops, users need to be holding a specified type and/or amount of a particular token by a specified date. For instance, a new Ethereum-based project may offer free tokens to the Ethereum blockchain community, or a new exchange may offer its tokens to holders who own the native cryptocurrency of a competing exchange.
Hard Fork Airdrops
This type of airdrop occurs when a permanent blockchain split creates the need for a new token to go with the new chain. While the previous blockchain still exists along with old tokens, users may receive tokens from the new blockchain via an airdrop. However, this does not happen with every fork, only with hard forks. A hard fork occurs when the community cannot decide how to move forward, and a new chain must be created via a split.
Growth and Popularity of Airdrops
Since the inception of cryptocurrencies, people have used digital assets to move finance to decentralized platforms. Several decentralized cryptocurrency projects have also emerged to satisfy the global need for decentralized finance, with many of them using airdrops to attract users. These projects usually airdrop a percentage of their total token supply shortly before or after an official launch. A recent example is the Looks Rare airdrop, distributing 12% of the total $LOOKS token supply to anyone in the OpenSea community that spent more than 3 ETH on the NFT exchange.
Another example of the popularity of airdrops was the recent MetaWars Alliance Gleam Campaign which features an extensive collaboration between multiple projects. Running from April 17 to April 22, the campaign had a prize pool of more than $20,000 open to 100 winners. The MetaWars Alliance Campaign had 9 partners, including Souls of Meta, MetaLand, Battle Saga, The Three Kingdoms (TTK), Bit Hotel, Age of Tanks, Mouse Hunt, MechaChain, and FitEvo. The initiative was yet another prime example of how multiple projects can use airdrops for cross-promotion that can help all involved projects gain much-needed traction. MetaWars successfully achieved this aim as the campaign saw nearly 232,000 different entries.
The Dark Side of Crypto Airdrops: Scams and Controversies
The need for blockchain projects to launch airdrops spurred the creation of several platforms that aggregate airdrops from promising projects. These platforms made airdrops a lot more popular, increasing the number of people who consider the method a channel for passive income and an opportunity to earn new crypto assets.
Beware of SCAMS!
(Beware of scams! This recent ApeCoin attack stole $1 million through hacked verified accounts)
Unfortunately, the airdrop method has suffered its fair share of scams and controversies. As with anything tagged “free,” illicit players exploit community members’ innocence and use deceptive means to obtain funds from unsuspecting people. In March, a Twitter phishing scam pretending to airdrop ApeCoin tokens successfully stole $1 million from unsuspecting users. The Ape Coin scam promised users a rare NFT airdrop which can only be received after paying an ETH gas fee. The scammers then not only made off with the ETH fee, but because users had to approve and sign the transaction with their cryptocurrency wallets, the scammers were able to take the rare and often valuable NFTs contained in those wallets. Some notable NFTs stolen in this scam included Jay Chouâs Phantabears, Bored Ape Yacht Club, Mutant Ape Yacht Club and Doodles.
There was also a fake Azuki NFT airdrop where self-proclaimed Azuki affiliates hijacked verified user handles, got users to connect their Ethereum wallets, and made away with their highly valuable NFTs.
How to Protect Yourself Against Airdrop Scams
In light of these scams, members of the crypto community should adhere to certain precautions when participating in airdrops. The most important is the DYOR (Do Your Own Research) rule, which requires people to do extensive research on projects advertising airdrops before buying in.
However, scammers are keeping ahead of the game. For example in the ApeCoin airdrop scam, the scammers hacked into and hijacked the Discord servers for Doodle and BAYC, posting the faked website on the server to make it look like a legitimate announcement. The scammers also used faked Twitter accounts (including some from verified Twitter handles) to spread the fake links.
The following are other steps that help avoid airdrop scams:
Never pay for airdrops;
Check multiple sources and social media accounts belonging to the project to see if the airdrop is legitimate. For example, if a projectsâ Discord server is being compromised they may make an announcement on their official Twitter or Telegram;
Never participate in an airdrop that requires user private keys or mnemonic phrases;
Protect personal identity and data as much as possible;
Avoid KYC airdrops if possible (although not always the case); and
Most airdrops require an email address. Users should create a new ‘burner’ email address to use only for airdrops.
It might be impossible to create an exhaustive list of steps required to avoid scams because fraudsters get more creative with their illicit activities, but participants should always be on the lookout for airdrops that do not tick security boxes or have little to no information obtainable from research.
Airdrops have many benefits in the blockchain space, such as marketing, building communities, and providing additional value to loyal users of crypto assets. Authentic airdrops help people earn extra income and provide additional utility with little to no effort. However, airdrops may be harmful to people who do inadequate due diligence or personal research. If an airdrop seems too good to be true, there’s a good chance it is.
The gaming market has seen impressive growth over the last few years and is still set for more expansion. According to a 2021 report, the gaming marketâs valuation for the year hit $198.4 billion. The same report states that the market will register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.94% from 2022 to 2027. By 2027, the valuation could jump 71.3% to $339.95 billion.
Several factors contribute to the gaming marketâs popularity, attracting more people to the sector. Game developers are continually improving options and general gameplay, a factor that keeps existing gamers interested enough to stay. In addition to improved features, there is also increased advancement in technology.
The introduction of blockchain technology to the gaming sector is easily the marketâs most significant advancement. Apart from the immutability and security of the gaming infrastructure and assets stored, blockchain also provides players with an opportunity to earn while enjoying their gameplay. Platforms like Colizeum are taking this further by stretching blockchain gameplay features past earning rewards.
Colizeum is an ecosystem bridging the gap between the blockchain and traditional gaming worlds. It is a play-to-earn platform that connects several games and related applications from multiple developers, providing a shared marketplace for developers and gamers alike.
Colizeum continuously closes the traditional and blockchain gaming gap through its Colizeum Software Development Kit (SDK). Conventional game developers can use the Colizeum SDK to effortlessly build blockchain games without the expected technicalities from decentralized applications. The kit also provides a cost-effective way for creators to design and publish games since there is no need for blockchain developer teams.
Why Colizeum?
There are several features the Colizeum ecosystem offers the gaming public. In addition to the ease of creating exciting play-to-earn games, here are a few points to note:
Earnings for All: The Colizeum ecosystem maintains an equal focus on gamer and developer earnings. As players accumulate rewards by participating in their favorite play-to-earn games, developers also earn from gamers and the entire Colizeum community.
In-Game NFTs: Colizeum supports low-cost NFT minting while checking other related boxes, including demand programming and multilayering.
Tournaments-as-a-Service: The Colizeum SDK allows developers to create multiplayer games in different modes and designs. Depending on game specifics, players can enjoy tournaments and earn by winning or simply participating.
Colizeum is a fully-decentralized, anonymous, on-chain, and community-focused ecosystem. The platform also features an Attention Marketplace – a tokenized product that allows the direct monetization of gamersâ attention. Instead of going through Ad Exchanges that charge excessive fees and still keep a large portion of generated revenues, the Attention Marketplace enables transparent user acquisition and monetization via $ZEUM staking. Colizeum already has an exciting list of partners, including the Israeli Blockchain Association, IHODL, and Cex.io.
Benefits to Game Developers
The SDK provides quick and inexpensive game development that can shorten developer timelines by up to 1 year
Creators can introduce a play-to-earn feature to any mobile game, attracting more players and allowing gamers to earn during gameplay
Colizeum is a cross-chain and cross-platform ecosystem that enables gamers and developers to enjoy the best of multiple games regardless of their host platform
In-game assets can be easily converted to NFTs
Since there are no middlemen on the platform, all processes are cheaper and faster
Benefits to Gamers
Colizeum allows players to use one token across all games hosted in the ecosystem
In-game assets are tradeable as NFTs. This will enable players to earn more in addition to direct gameplay. Trading NFTs also serves as passive income for gamers
Enjoy earnings from any of the games hosted by Colizeum
Tokenomics
The Colizeum ecosystem has a total supply of 1 billion $ZEUM tokens available for different purposes. The seed round featured 6% or 60 million tokens, while 13% or 130 million tokens were available at the private round – both with 18-month vesting periods. There also is another 19% allocated to the Colizeum team, 5% to the DAO fund, 15% for strategic partnerships, and 8.650% for its in-game reward program. As a community-focused platform, Colizeum also allotted 10% (100 million tokens) to community incentives.
Colizeum is set to be one of the largest play-to-earn platforms in the blockchain sector as it leverages flexibility and interoperability. Creators will be able to develop games that easily interact with each other, thereby adding to Colizeumâs credibility as the go-to play-to-earn host platform. Furthermore, the earning opportunities available to players across all games will attract more users and also appeal to game developers.
Play-to-Earn experienced a massive wave of adoption during 2021, as crypto-friendly gamers jumped on the opportunity to earn money while playing games. P2E games such as Axie Infinity, Star Atlas, and others saw a dramatic increase in user and revenue growth. However, after the initial hype wave over P2E games settled, what was left was a realization that many of these games lacked truly engaging gameplay, social features, and sustainable tokenomics.
Fast forward to late 2021/early 2022, we witnessed a significant pivot in the blockchain gaming space: Move-to-Earn. M2E has taken the world by storm, with numerous projects popping up and their valuations skyrocketing. Among the younger generations, there is a trend towards self-care and maintaining a more healthy lifestyle as we continuously get reminded of just how much time we end up spending indoors. Covid lockdowns took this lifestyle to the extreme and forced everyone to spend time at home longer than many felt comfortable. Now there is a thirst for a more active, healthier life.
P2E games have had (and continue to have) a good run, but M2E has managed to capture the interest of not only gamers, but also those blockchain enthusiasts who might not be fully on board with just spending time tapping away at their phone screen to earn their P2E tokens. However, every project comes with its own shortcomings. Letâs take a look at these shortcomings and how an emerging project â FitEvo has transformed its platform amidst this trend with a new edge.
With popular M2E games such as STEPN, Genopets, and STEP, you’ll find that they share a common gameplay model in which the user acquires an in-game asset, be it a sneaker or a pet animal, and upgrades it further as they keep on exercising.
But these features on their own are not enough to make an M2E game successful. The focus should be just as much on the social aspects and community engagement opportunities around a user’s physical activities, as it is on the earning and NFT upgrading experiences. And many of the games in this space seem to have forgotten what the most popular traditional social fitness apps such as Strava, FitBit, and MyFitnessPal have already done in order to expand their user base, and keep it engaged.
Strava, one of the pioneers in the social fitness app space, has achieved an enormous global user adoption, boasting nearly 100 million users. Much of this growth can be attributed to the app offering not only a feed of activities of their friends, but also other social features that are geography-centric and community engagement focused.
This precedent for a successful M2E game is exactly the reason why FitEvo is so appealing in terms of fundamentals. FitEvo, an M2E dragon breeding NFT game, has the makings of an incredibly successful blockchain-based game, as they have incorporated many of the social features that people know and love.
FitEvo: Focusing on the Interaction Between Individuals
FitEvo aims to engage the masses through a powerful combination of NFT dragon breeding (evolving together with a dragon companion), and social features that gamify physical activity and human competitiveness, and bring friends and communities closer together.
An engaging and fun dragon breeding game, FitEvo has been inspired by the greats, like Tamagotchi and Pokemon, taking it to the next level by syncing the user’s movements with the development of their very own dragon. In FitEvo, the dragon co-evolves with the user, creating a bond between the two. The hatching of eggs, breeding and evolving of dragons, will be intimately linked to the physical movements of their masters.
And here is where FitEvo will really shine – the social and gamification features. For those familiar with the M2E STEP game, FitEvo will be like a new and improved Step 2.0, incorporating all the crucial engagement mechanisms that have made traditional social fitness apps so popular. If you’re one of those who didn’t manage to get in on STEP early on, it might be worth your while to pay close attention to FitEvo.
The multiplayer feature alone will offer an enormous amount of value to the users, FitEvo allows FITamins(as the FitEvo community calls itself) to meet other like-minded and even geographically adjacent individuals by organizing group runs or other group exercises. Anyone who has ever tried getting back in shape with their friends cheering them up or even being right next to them, sweating off their own dietary sins, knows how much it helps to have someone give you motivation and some peer pressure at your lowest moments. This type of community support will be possible, with FITamins helping each other become their better selves.
Of course, what would a fitness app be without some healthy competition? FitEvo will offer many opportunities to challenge others and stimulate their competitive neurons through classical challenges, as well as user-created routes with leaderboards.
In addition to earning $FIVO tokens through movement, FitEvo has made sure that attention is paid to incentivizing more extensive user engagement beyond exercising and dragon breeding. Users will be able to collect Active Points through interactions, referral count, daily sign-ins, missions completed, community contributions, and more. The Points will significantly influence users’ earnings to the upside, so it will be in everyone’s best interest if they try to make the best of their experiences on the FitEvo app – and why shouldn’t they?
Another interesting feature that we are yet to hear more about is the training programme, which will offer inexperienced users the opportunity to learn from the community and follow pre-planned exercise curricula without having to design them themselves.
Incorporating all of these features will be no small feat for FitEvo, and it will be interesting to see how the project progresses forward. With such a clear edge over their competitors defined, it’s now up to the FitEvo team to deliver on these ambitions and rise through the ranks of the M2E space.
ArcadeLand is placing back control in the usersâ hands â the gamers, the builders, the visionaries â with the Ultimate Gaming Metaverse. Hundreds of top-quality games, advanced cross-platform avatars with NFT wearables, and a blockchain-optional UI to make ArcadeLandâs platform easy to use. Welcome to the Ultimate Gaming Metaverse!
ArcadeLand is Coming, Why Do You Need It?
ArcadeLand sees the Metaverse as the natural evolution of the web experience in terms of socializing, gaming, exploring, and learning. While it took nearly a decade to catch on, the world-wide-web quickly gained significant market share while antiquated competitors in the areas of postal, television, newspapers, education, entertainment, and gaming either adapted or were left behind by the new companies that embraced this technology.
For example, what happened to Blockbuster when Netflix came along, and this trend is expected to repeat as the newest generation of Web 3.0 technologies emerge. While P2E games and Metaverse platforms are relatively new to the market, there are still significant barriers to overcome before mainstream audiences can fully embrace them.
Blockchain remains a double-edged sword, in the sense that, although it grants the benefits of ownership, security, and the ability to earn great rewards from playing games; it also represents a significant learning curve. This comes with a number of dangers for new users, and itâs largely seen in a detrimental way due to the many negative media headlines of bad actors within the industry.
Many P2E games in development, and currently on the market, require players to be knowledgeable about blockchain technology. This limits their total addressable from the billions worldwide, down to around roughly 400,000 to 500,000 players, the âniche within a nicheâ of savvy crypto users who still find time to play such games. User acquisition becomes a battle for these games, as they struggle to compete for adequate DAU numbers within a narrow audience.
While the definition of the Metaverse, according to Wikipedia, is: âa network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connectionâ the current offerings fall short of this important network aspect. Leading Metaverse platforms suffer from a lack of compatibility and interconnectivity, which are hallmarks of a âtrue Metaverseâ. They create a restrictive environment where games of high quality cannot exist, as developers are forced to build within them using only the tools provided by the platform. Avatars and their accessories are only compatible with their own platform, and users cannot show off their costumes or treasured digital wearables elsewhere. By all measures of what a fun, interconnected Metaverse should be, they simply come up short.
ArcadeLand is creating a platform that will serve game developers, gamers, and the entire community that supports the future of P2E gaming. Arcadeland is connecting games, guilds, studios, and publishers with players from within and beyond the crypto community accelerating this future and removing the obstacles to mass adoption. Increasing the reach of this rapidly growing industry.
ArcadeLand Will Push the Boundaries of Gaming
A Metaverse must be complete in its offering and for its intended purpose, as it is by nature a platform to host many applications. A true Metaverse is an environment for exploration, socialization, and play. Compatibility and interoperability with a total array of ecosystem products and services are paramount, as the sandbox-style of exclusivity limits the variety, replayability, and quality of the games within. ArcadeLand understands this and has shaped the platform accordingly.
ArcadeLand will:
Feature hundreds of top-quality games
Integrate both mainstream and crypto games via SDK
Provide virtual land and a No-Code Builder with UNLIMITED potential
Offer avatars with NFT accessories compatible with thousands of other games
Deliver a holistic and complete gaming ecosystem for users of all types
To address the issue of game quality, ArcadeLand is onboarding top-quality game partners with successful titles from both the mainstream space as well as crypto. The objective is to make the developerâs jobs as easy as possible by providing a comprehensive suite of tools to allow for rapid integration with little labor required.
ArcadeLand can apply its dual-tokenomics model to mainstream games with dynamic rewards and tournament payouts. This allows game owners and users to benefit from an easy to deploy and use P2E model that can be adopted by any type of game.
On the crypto gaming side, ArcadeLand can support the seamless integration of games along with the important token features to allow players to take full advantage of the games and their earning potential.
ArcadeLand provides a safe environment and tools for newcomers with no crypto knowledge to acquire, manage, and sell their NFTs with their built-in wallet and native marketplace. ArcadeLand provides native and easy-to-use interfaces to share updates on social media channels.
Land within ArcadeLand can be developed in over a dozen ways. Builders can create their own shops, entertainment venues, or virtual headquarters for almost any type of business or service. Assets generated via ArcadeLandâs No-Code Builder tools can even be listed and sold on the platformâs marketplace to allow players to monetize their designs and speed up the building process. Games can import all popular file formats of their 3D objects without the need to recreate their designs to use them in their virtual spaces. This expands compatibility and creativity in those who wish to thrive with their plots in the Metaverse.
People love to display their achievements, express their individuality and creative style in real life and virtually. So, what good is clothing you can only wear to one place? ArcadeLand has taken a unique approach by comparison to other existing Metaverses and chose to incorporate one of the most advanced avatar systems on the market.
The tokenized avatar accessories issued are already compatible with 1,750+ other games and that number is increasing weekly. Any costume or wearable created, earned, or purchased in ArcadeLandâs Metaverse will be the playersâ to show off in hundreds or thousands of other games on all platforms including AR/VR.
ArcadeLand is taking an inclusive and cooperative approach to bringing in all the best games, partners, and ecosystem-related services needed to create the Ultimate Gaming Metaverse. Whether youâre a gamer, creator, developer, business owner, social butterfly, eSport champion, or some combination of these, youâll find everything youâre looking for in ArcadeLand.
Start Getting Pump!
To sum up, ArcadeLand is addressing three of the most critical issues halting the widespread adoption of play-to-earn gaming:
High-Quality Games – They have nearly 200 games available and are actively onboarding more weekly
Ease of Use – Their platform is designed for gamers of all walks of life, not just the crypto-savvy.
Broad Compatibility – Arcadeland prioritizes compatibility, from their avatar system to their various ecosystem partners.
Join ArcadeLandâs social media channels below to stay abreast of developments. Thereâs much more to reveal about how it all works.
About ArcadeLand
ArcadeLand is building the ultimate gaming Metaverse. Its mission is to deliver the most rewarding experiences with the best selection of high-quality games and an ecosystem designed to serve gamers, developers, and the community, to propel the future of gaming.
Generally speaking, creating strong passwords and protecting those passwords from being found out is a userâs key tenant in their own protection online when using certain services. But creating complex enough passwords that are difficult to guess or hack with a dictionary attack often leaves a bunch of passwords for each service thatâs difficult to even remember.
You could write it down, but that could be found out. And while browsers like Google Chrome do come with their own password managers, that does leave all your passwords behind one single password that is probably just as vulnerable as any others.
Password security is particularly important for crypto enthusiasts and traders, who deal with hackers and infiltrations on a far more regular basis than regular internet users, because thereâs literally money to be gained by these bad forces and stolen funds are extremely difficult to recover. There are a lot more hackers out there, and a lot of times where cryptocurrency and other digital assets get stolen.
So with that in mind, a slew of password managing services have become available in the market over the years to aid users with this specific security issue. Let us look at some of the most popular ones in the market right now. (https://duckysonline.com/)
1- Yubikey
Check out our video: YubiKey Review and Guide for a full look at how to use the YubiKey and all its features. You can also check out our article Yubicoâs YubiKey: Review and Guide for a step by step written guide on how to use it. Also, check out our YubiKey Review and Guide for a full look at how to use the YubiKey and all its features:
YubiKey Review and Guide
Pros:
Fundamentally, the YubiKey has the same advantages of having a literal physical key for a physical vault. Itâs a physical object, so in order to login and configure the account of an online service, the actual YubiKey must be used to deliver the necessary passwords it provides.
This already makes the usage of hardware authenticators like YubiKey very hard to hack, which is why Google and Facebook use them to secure employee and user accounts.
Yubikey, like all hardware authenticators, essentially allow two factor authentication (2FA) to be used safer and more conveniently, because it can produce one time passwords (OTP) you donât have to create yourself or remember and enter them for you. So not only is it safer, but itâs also very convenient – two advantages that donât usually coincide.
Physical hardware authentication devices are particularly good at avoiding the kind of hacks seen in Coinbase and USD1mil crypto heist last year, where SMS-based 2FA codes were hacked using SIM swapping.
Itâs easy to set up as well as use and provides a strong layer of security for the services it protects. Just plug it in, follow the prompts on the service that youâre using (assuming it is supported), press the key and itâs set.
For crypto exchanges such as Binance, password keys like the YubiKey can be set to lock withdrawals, logins and password resets individually. What this means is that even if someone were to hack into the account, the individual actions a hacker could do inside is also locked away and needs the YubiKey to access them.
Cons:
Its greatest strength is also perhaps its biggest weakness. Physical objects used for security can still be damaged, left behind in a rush by accident or even lost. And losing a YubiKey can involve some incredibly tedious solutions, so be forewarned. On top of that, some might find the need to carry one around a minor inconvenience, particularly if they do exchanges in different locations.
Another issue that needs to be addressed is that some crypto exchanges might not support YubiKey, particularly for mobile users. So itâs important to check for support before purchasing one. For mobile power users, this makes the YubiKey models with USB-C and Lightning connectors somewhat useless, even if USB-C models are still useful on certain laptops like MacBooks.
One minor issue was discovered by the people at Zapier who kept triggering their YubiKeyâs when accidentally touching them, resulting in a secured code being entered into whatever textbox you have open at the time. Itâs happened so often on Slack, that Zapier has decided to run with the joke and made a custom Slack emoji. Most hackers wonât know what to do with this sudden burst of password code getting posted on a chat, but itâs not a habit many would encourage, and they do provide a means to make the press less sensitive.
And like many password managing solutions, this wonât stop hackers from getting into your account if the exchange itself is not secure.
Using the Trezor physical wallet as a password manager is somewhat similar to using the YubiKey, but takes the process of securing passwords one level higher. Physical wallets like Trezor and Ledger are cold wallets because they confirm transactions within themselves before they are made, and while you compromise convenience and speed using them, they are by their very nature far more secure.
And by virtue of how it works, Trezor can essentially save an unlimited amount of passwords too.
One noted advantage The Trezor might have over the YubiKey is that so long as you know your seed key, losing a Trezor and getting a replacement is far more straightforward. It is a series of words between 12 and 24 words long using the BIP39 format, and using it in one physical wallet that supports it basically replicates that wallet in another device, restoring your passwords and addresses.
Cons:
Itâs important to note that while using a Trezor as a password manager, itâs main focus is as a physical wallet. Getting one as just a password manager is a bit overkill considering the prices they go for. It must also be pointed out that this is still a physical device that can be lost or damaged, and replacing one is still kind of pricey as well.
On top of that, the seed key is fundamentally the walletâs identity and is often targeted by hackers. The same convenience that allows a Trezor to be replaced with a seed key, also means anybody else that has it can replicate yours too and steal your assets, if youâre not careful.
It is therefore incredibly risky to keep online, so it must also be written down or inscribed on a physical medium of some kind. Paper is typically not encouraged, but there are metal alternatives that are far more durable and secure. Again, these can be damaged, lost or stolen if youâre not careful too.
If you have multiple physical wallets (and some traders do, for diversification and security purposes), you can use a single physical wallet to store the multiple subordinate sed keys, but this can also lead to a recursive rabbit hole of problems, where compromising of the âprimeâ key jeopardises the other âsubordinateâ keys, even if the later is now incredibly secure.
But to be fair, if you do trade large amounts of capital and you are concerned about hackers, then maybe getting a physical wallet like the Trezor is not a bad investment, and if they are valuable, most people know to treat them as such and secure them well. Plus you get to reap the perk of having a physical authentication device that supports far more kinds of cryptocurrency than the YubiKey.
3- LastPass
Pros:
Lauched in 2008, LastPass is well-known among cyber-experts and is among the most feature-rich password protectors available. It has multi factor authentication as well as browsers and is easy to use. The free version is also pretty decent but has its own limitations as weâll get to below.
LastPass also uses 256-bit AES encryption to scramble your passwords, allowing a zero-knowledge policy within the company. It also allows users to use it in an offline mode, which is a rare trait in online password managers.
The product is also very highly rated across the board for its incredibly feature rich paid-version and is generally considered affordable for what it can do, with Forbes, CNET and manyothertechsites.
One the one hand, this could be a little worrying. Even if no passwords seemed to be compromised, the idea that they could have been is a little nerve-racking. But on the other hand, LastPass seems to be on the ball with regards to making sure users are well-informed and that their product is constantly patched and reinforced.
LastPass will also lock you into the country that youâre in, but you can add more countries into your permissions as needed. Or you could get around that issue and use a VPN.
LastPassâ free version has seen what might be seen as a huge downgrade as of last year after it was limited to only one device per user. People already on LastPassâ free version before found this change worthswapping to another manager altogether. For newer users looking to just secure one device, this isnât really an issue but most password manager users would rather their manager work across several platforms.
4- KeePass
Pros:
At first glance, this doesnât look like a very impressive password manager. The installation is a bit confusing and the application itself isnât very stylish or intuitive.
It is however open-source and free (barring the modest demand for donations), and while the former seems frivolous to the end user and the later not all that important to crypto-enthusiasts who are looking to protect fairly large amounts of capital from hackers, they matter for two crucial reasons
Firstly, its open-source nature allows anyone to create a startling myriad of plug-ins and customisations. This almost DIY nature of KeePass allows a savvy-enough user to modify KeePass in almost whatever way they want. On top of that, it could be argued that open-source software allows more experts to scrutinise it and its flaws (assuming a sizable-enough enthusiast community, which KeePass has).
Secondly, that it is free makes it an incredible password management solution for tech-savvy individuals, tech businesses or organisations that are cash-strapped but have the skills to utilise KeePass to its fullest potential. Staying free factor turned out to be quite an important factor, as LastPassâ changing its terms on its free users showed.
On top of that, various versions of KeePass (that was originally meant to run on desktops and laptops) have come about to provide for platforms it wasnât originally designed for, such as for iPhone and Android.
Cons:
KeyPassâ incredibly customisable, almost DIY nature also reflects the fact that on its own, it is a very bare password manager and probably alienating to a user who isnât particularly tech-savvy or wants to do the extensive customization to provide features its other rivals have out of the box.
The necessity for its over 100 plugins to provide the convenience most other solutions have right out the box is going to turn off people who want to simply get the solutions over and done with. Its interface is not intuitive and there is no official tech-support.
On top of that, you must choose which database to store your encrypted passwords, because it does not have cloud-based storage for them built in. It is possible to have KeePass store it on detachable storage, such as a thumbdrive, but again, that must be opted. This does make it more secure, but if the storage device is stolen, you lose access to all your devices.
5- BitWarden
Pros:
Inmanyreviewseitherabout, including or just mentioning Bitwarden, the positives of its free version are often contrasted to LastPassâ own ever since the later changed its free versionâs service terms to only sync between either personal computers or mobile devices, almost to suggest that Bitwarden has dethroned LastPass among free app users.
And itâs hard to deny that it has earned its reputation as one of the best open-source free password managers out there.
Bitwarden provides multi-factor authentication via authenticator apps, and is secured with AES-256 encryption, which is then hashed with SHA-256. You can even host all your passwords on your own server for added security. Bitwarden also allows you to create and share passwords and audit password usage. It also auto-fills passwords and their credentials in one go, though this can malfunction on certain sites. And all synch via an unlimited amount of devices.
Thatâs not to say that it’s affordable paid version doesnât get much better, with support added for YubiKey, U2F, and Duo, 1GB encrypted data vault storage, vault health reports, a time-based OTP authenticator and generator and even priority customer support.
Its creators too have had a sterling reputation for transparency, having gone through a third-party audit by Insight Risk Consulting as well as German cybersecurity team Cure53, while its source code is available for anyone on Github to examine. It has even a bug-bounty on vulnerability coordination platform Hackerone.
Cons:
Like its open-source counterpart KeePass to an extent, Bitwarden does suffer from a lack of an intuitive interface and its true capability requires some expertise to extract via plugins. But generally speaking, it’s an incredibly difficult password manager to fault for most reasonably experienced users.
6- Keeper
Pros:
Its introduction is fairly intuitive and quite helpful, walking you through the setup process step-by-step from a warning about browser-based password managers to password imports, and then an installation of web plugins, a tour of its features and the introduction of multi-factor authentication.
Keeper can be used via a web-app, but the actual desktop app allows for biometric logins and an offline mode. Keeper also has a series of other add-on features that you can pay for (or opt out from), such as encrypted file storage, secure messaging and dark web monitoring. Overall, itâs a well-priced, intuitive and easy to use password manager with rather good support for businesses.
In terms of security, Keeper is quite strong, having third party audits, compliance with ISO 27001 information security management system standards, the US Department of Commerce and the European Commissionâs Privacy Shield framework and even has an internal bug-bounty programme.
One possible vulnerability is that Keeper doesn’t fully automate password updates. When it detects a password-change page, it offers to update and save a stronger password. Your passwords exist for a certain time on Keeperâs company servers – unconducive to the zero-knowledge test.
7- 1Password
Pros:
Itâs one of the best password managers available on the market right now, priced similarly to LastPass for its standard version, which allows unlimited passwords across unlimited devices, and is offered in a variety of packages suited for their intended demographics too. This allows
It has the sort of features you expect from a good password manager of this range, such as 256-AES encryption, a zero-knowledge policy, two factor authentication, password strengthening and good browser extensions.On top of that, it has straight-forward security recommendations and an easy to use interface.
One is being able to make multiple password vaults that you can organise for different purposes. On family and business plans, you can set up sharing settings with other users that are unique to each vault. On business plans specifically, administrators can remotely configure these settings for team members.
When in travel mode, it hides all password vaults and only shows the ones deemed safe for travel, and gives no indication that the mode is on, which is good if someone wants to keep sensitive information secret, particularly if a device is stolen. Such vault information might include form fills, passwords, secure documents and credit card information.
It will also tell you if your passwords are weak, or if youâve been reusing them for different services, and has a simple-to-use feature that wipes clipboards to remove sensitive data after a timer is set.
1Passworld can also create an Emergency Kit – a PDF with your account email, Secret Key, and a place for you to write down your master password. It offers peace of mind in case you lose some valuable bit of data and can’t gain access to your passwords.
Cons:
There are some minor concerns, though. 1Passwordâs browser extensions canât be used to add passwords or edit them, and while it will tell you if your passwords are weak, it wonât insist they get stronger with special characters, which is odd.
Cardano is a decentralized smart contract platform which would be driven by peer reviewed academic research and capable of running both financial applications and decentralised applications. Established by a former co-founder of Ethereum, Cardano aims to improve on Ethereum by offering low-cost, secure and scalable transactions. To improve smart contract security, Cardano uses the programming language Haskell which has been proven to be easier to audit and formally verify. In addition, Cardano openly addresses the need for regulatory oversight whilst maintaining consumer privacy and protections through an innovative software architecture.
Check out our explainer video on Cardano ($ADA)
What is the ADA token and its uses?
ADA is Cardano’s native cryptocurrency. It was launched on 1st January 2018 through an initial coin offering as a utility token and will have 45 billion total supply. It is currently the 8th most popular cryptocurrency based on market capitalisation according to CoinGecko.
Upon the opening of the Shelley Public testnet on 9th June 2020, and any operator can set up a Cardano stake pool in anticipation for staking and delegation on the mainnet to be released in Summer 2020.
Eventually, ADA will allow users to send value between two parties, pay for goods or services, deposit funds on an exchange, or enter an application. ADA will also be used to power the transactions on the Cardano network.
Founder: Charles Hoskinson
Charles Hoskinson is a co-founder of Ethereum and founder of Ethereum Classic, with extensive experience working with smart contracts and the programming language Haskell. He is an outspoken critic of Ethereum and parted ways with the Ethereum team in 2016. This was likely due to ideological differences arising from the team’s response to the DAO hack of 2016. Hoskinson is now the CEO of Input Output Hong Kong (IOHK), and they have devoted a large team of expert engineers and researchers to build Cardano from the ground up.
Cardano – development of the blockchain protocol
Cardano aims to become the third generation blockchain, overcoming issues with previous generations of blockchains namely lack of scalability, interoperability and sustainability. Cardano aims to develop its platform upon these 2 guiding principles:
Peer-review: any science guiding the solutions to these issues goes through peer review.
High assurance code: Cardano aims to bring the same level of scientific rigour for mission critical systems such as aerospace to the development of their project.
Cardano’s platform has the following key features:
Cardano will be built in Haskell code. Haskell uses a math based approach that results in a much more secure and reliable protocol.
A formally verified Proof of Stake consensus called Ouroboros. It is the first provably secure blockchain protocol developed by the IOHK team and peer reviewed. It has advantages over the traditional proof of work blockchains (e.g. as used by Bitcoin) by requiring less computation resources (there will be no mining) and is thus cheaper to run, yet being just as secure as the more popular Proof of Work algorithm. It also comes with a novel reward mechanism to prevent attacks like block withholding and selfish-mining.
Recursive InterNetwork Architecture (RINA): Cardano is looking towards building RINA in order to reduce the bandwidth which is required for communicating and disseminating data. The idea is that RINA has fewer protocols but is able to work faster, yet still providing transparency, privacy and scalability.
The protocol is geared towards protecting users’ privacy rights while taking into account the needs of regulators. In doing so, Cardano is the first protocol to balance these requirements in a nuanced and effective way, pioneering a new approach for cryptocurrencies.
Cardano will also be completely open source and patent-free.
Cardano’s platform is being constructed in 2 layers- a settlement layer and a computational layer. This gives the system flexibility during maintenance and allow for upgrades by way of soft forks.
After completion of the settlement layer that will run ADA, the separate computing layer will be built to handle smart contracts. Cardano will also run decentralised applications, or dapps, services not controlled by any single party but instead operate on a blockchain.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Cardano?
Advantages of Cardano
Many smart contract users believe that Cardano holds the key for long term secure development. This because of the numerous hacks and vulnerabilities in platforms such as Ethereum. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has criticized Ethereum as a “rushed product” with vulnerabilities which led to famous hacks such as The DAO. This could be viewed as a symptom of the flaws in Ethereum’s programming language, Solidity. Cardano improves on this by allowing for development using Haskell which can be formally verified.
Cardano’s use of the proof of stake model in itself brings lots of advantages such as less susceptibility to interference because the nodes will be responsible for throughput and thus eliminating the need for extra machines. In turn less energy will be consumed which is better for the environment.
Rewards are given out based on the number of tokens held rather than the amount of computational power contributed, which is fairer.
The platform’s 2 layered system allows for each layer to be responsible for a complete set of tasks. This means more potential for interoperability with different cryptocurrency platforms and is therefore more scalable compared to Ethereum.
Disadvantages of Cardano
Critics of Cardano have pointed to the slow development and overly ideal goals of the project. This can be risky for Cardano because it could be overtaken by more aggressive competitors, or the regulatory environment can change meanwhile.
Many features promised by the Cardano team are still not yet available. So a lot of what is said about how its cryptocurrency ADA would work is still theoretical.
What is the Daedalus wallet?
In order to store and use ADA, you must install Cardano’s Daedalus wallet. With the wallet you can send and receive ADA as well as view your transaction history.
The Daedalus wallet will also offer the following features:
Unlimited Accounting – Manage any number of wallets with Cardano’s innovative hierarchical deterministic wallet implementation. This will give you more control over how your funds are organised. It also has powerful backup features to help recover your funds anytime.
Advanced Security – Cardano will not hold your keys. They use the most advanced cryptography in the world to ensure safety from attack and offer spending passwords and seeds for all your accounts.
Export to paper certificates- Wallets can be exported to paper certificates giving users the option of placing funds in cold storage.
Built with Web Technologies – Daedalus is built on top of Electron, a battle-proven open source development platform to build cross-platform desktop apps using Javascript, HTML and CSS.
The Daedalus wallet is still a work in progress, features which are expected to be coming soon include:
Support for Bitcoin and Ethereum Classic.
Staking features which allow ADA holders to earn more ADA tokens.
A mobile wallet for both iOS and Android.
What is the Goguen Era of Smart Contracts?
On 12 September 2021, Cardanoâs Alonzo hard fork upgrade went live on mainnet. Therefore, users can now create and deploy smart contracts on the Cardano blockchain.
To learn more about what the Gouguen Era and Alonzo Hard Fork means for the development of Cardano, check out our detailed article here.
Cardano enters DeFi with Occam Finance ($OCC)
Occam Finance ($OCC) is a suite of DeFi (Decentralized Finance) solutions tailored for Cardano and managed and maintained by the Occam Association, a blockchain entity based in Switzerland. Currently, Occam offers 3 major products: OccamRazer, OccamX and OccamDAO.
