“We also should not pretend that law enforcement is going to solve the problem. It only helps, but it doesn't completely solve the problem. There will always be attackers outside the reach of the law” - Brian Pak

Web3 was starting to look like the wild west, with smart contract compromises and sophisticated attacks by hackers, but with law enforcement paying serious attention and builders like our guest, Brian Pak, Co-founder and CEO of ChainLight, the industry is starting to shine the light on these illicit actors and combat web3 and Defi hacks.

Ian Andrews (CMO, Chainalysis) sits down with Brian to discuss the early days of ChainLight, from discovering early Ethereum bugs to creating innovative security solutions like Digital Asset Risk Tracker (DART) and the Relic Protocol.

The duo explore major web3 and DeFi exploits, white hat hacking ethics, and South Korean crypto politics. Brian shares how the newly created crypto threat-sharing center (SEAL) is striving to enhance the safety and transparency of the Web3 ecosystem and the emergence of law enforcement engagement.

Minute-by-minute episode breakdown

2 | Brian’s journey into crypto and discovering Ethereum bugs in the early days

5 | Smart contract code audits and continuing to learn about new web3 attack vectors

8 | Identifying new and old attack vectors like price oracle manipulation and bridge vulnerabilities

10 | What is the Digital Asset Risk Tracker (DART) and how it identifies illicit trends in memecoin projects

14 | ChainLight introduces Relic Protocol which let smart contracts access historical data without intermediaries

20 | The crypto regulatory framework in South Korea and the impact it has on Singapore

24 | How white hat hackers have been given a bad name in crypto

28 | Building interoperability and discussions around Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP)

31 | Introducing LUMOS and how Chainlight is illuminating the Shadows of Web3 Hacks

33 | Chainlink joins white hat hacker group SEAL to create crypto threat-sharing center

Related resources

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

Website: ChainLight: Thrive Without Fear
Website: LUMOS (powered by Chainlight): Illuminating the Shadows of Web3 Hacks
Article: Cointelegraph: White hat hacker group SEAL launches crypto threat-sharing center
Blog: Are Real-World Assets (RWA) Projects Really Safe?
Article: Ticking Bombs on Interoperability Protocols
Podcast: Ep. 79: Web3 Adoption in Traditional Finance (with Kemal El Moujahid, Chainlink)
Event: TraceDC (July 16-17) The leading public sector event of the cryptocurrency ecosystem
Blog: Public Sector Survey Preview: The 2024 State of Cryptocurrency Investigations Report
YouTube: Chainalysis YouTube page
Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchain
Tik Tok: Building trust in #blockchains among people, businesses, and governments.
Telegram: Chainalysis on Telegram

Speakers on today’s episode

Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis)
Brian Pak (Co-founder and CEO, ChainLight)

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