Web3 Smart Contract Audit
Smart contract security audit — 10 DeFi bug classes, Foundry PoC template, grep patterns per class, and real Immunefi paid examples.
# WEB3 SMART CONTRACT AUDIT
10 bug classes. Pre-dive kill signals. Foundry PoC template. Real paid examples.
> ZKsync lesson: $322M TVL + OZ audit + 750K LOC + 5 sessions = 0 findings. Large well-audited bridges are extremely hard.
- TVL < $500K → max payout capped too low for effort
- 2+ top-tier audits (Halborn, ToB, Cyfrin, OpenZeppelin) on simple protocol → bugs already found
- Protocol < 500 lines, single A→B→C flow → minimal attack surface
- Formula:
max_realistic_payout = min(10% × TVL, program_cap)— if < $10K, skip
Target scoring (go if >= 6/10):
- TVL > $10M: +2
- Immunefi program with Critical >= $50K: +2
- No top-tier audit on current version: +2
- < 30 days since deploy: +1
- Protocol you've hunted before: +1
- Source code + natspec comments: +1
- Upgradeable proxies: +1
> "Read ALL sibling functions. If vote() has a modifier, check poke(), reset(), harvest(). The missing modifier on the sibling IS the bug."
This single rule explains 19% of all Critical findings.
> #1 Critical bug class — 28% of all Criticals on Immunefi.
What It Is
Two state variables supposed to stay in sync. One code path updates A but forgets B. Later code reads both and makes decisions based on stale B.Real Value = A - B
If A updated but B isn't → Real Value appears larger → phantom valueRoot Cause Patterns
Variant 1: Phantom Yield (Yeet protocol — 35 duplicate reports)
function startUnstake(uint256 amount) external { totalSupply -= amount; // decremented BEFORE transfer // aToken.balanceOf(this) still reflects old value // yieldAmount = aToken.balanceOf - totalSupply = phantom yield }Variant 2: Fast Path Skips State Update (Alchemix V3)
function claimRedemption(uint256 tokenId) external { if (transmuter.balance >= amount) { transmuter.transfer(user, amount); _burn(tokenId); return; // EARLY RETURN — cumulativeEarmarked, _redemptionWeight, totalDebt never updated } // Slow path: updates all state vars correctly alchemist.redeem(...); }Variant 3: Update Happens in Wrong Order (Alchemix)
function deposit(uint256 amount) external { _shares = (amount * totalShares) / totalAssets; // calculated BEFORE deposit totalAssets += amount; // assets added AFTER shares calculated → wrong rate }Grep Patterns
# Find all accounting variables
grep -rn "totalSupply\|totalShares\|totalAssets\|totalDebt\|cumulativeReward\|rewardPerShare" contracts/
# Find all early returns in claim/redeem functions grep -rn "\breturn\b" contracts/ -B3 | grep -B3 "if\b"
# For each early return: which state updates in normal path are skipped?
> #2 Critical — 19% of Criticals. $953M lost in 2024 alone.
Variant 1: Missing Modifier on Sibling Function
function vote(uint256 tokenId) external onlyNewEpoch(tokenId) { // guarded
function reset(uint256 tokenId) external onlyNewEpoch(tokenId) { // guarded
function poke(uint256 tokenId) external { // NO GUARD → infinite FLUX inflation
}Variant 2: Wrong Check (Existence vs Ownership)
function split(uint256 tokenId, uint256 amount) external {
_requireOwned(tokenId); // checks if token EXISTS, not if caller OWNS it
_burn(tokenId);
_mint(msg.sender, amount); // attacker steals tokens they don't own
}Variant 3: Silent Modifier (if vs require)
// VULNERABLE — non-admin silently gets through:
modifier onlyAdmin() {
if (msg.sender == admin) {
_; // body only executes for admin, but non-admin doesn't revert
}
}
// CORRECT: require(msg.sender == admin, "Not admin"); _;Variant 4: Uninitialized Proxy
function initialize(address _owner) public { // MISSING: initializer modifier
owner = _owner; // anyone can call → become owner
}
// Fix: constructor() { _disableInitializers(); }Grep Patterns
# Find sibling function families — do ALL have the same modifier set?
grep -rn "function vote\|function poke\|function reset\|function update\|function claim\|function harvest" contracts/ -A2
# Ownership check: existence vs ownership? grep -rn "_requireOwned\|ownerOf\|_isApprovedOrOwner\|_checkAuthorized" contracts/ -B5
# Silent modifiers grep -rn "modifier\b" contracts/ -A8 | grep -B3 "if (" | grep -v "require\|revert"
# Uninitialized initializer grep -rn "function initialize\b" contracts/ -A3 grep -rn "_disableInitializers()" contracts/
Real Paid Examples
| Protocol | Payout | Bug |
|---|---|---|
| Wormhole | $10M | Uninitialized UUPS proxy → anyone calls initialize() |
| ZeroLend | n/a | split() uses existence check, not ownership check |
| Alchemix | n/a | poke() missing onlyNewEpoch → infinite FLUX inflation |
| Parity | $150M frozen | No access control on initWallet() in library |
> #3 Critical — 17% of Criticals.
The Function Family Comparison Test
1. List all state changes in function A (deposit/place/create)
2. List all state changes in function B (withdraw/update/cancel)
3. For each state change in A: does B have the corresponding reverse?
4. For each token transfer in A: does B have the corresponding refund?
If A does X but B doesn't do the reverse of X → BUG.Variant 1: Update Function Missing Refund (ThunderNFT)
function place_order(OrderInput calldata order) external {
token.safeTransferFrom(msg.sender, address(this), order.price); // takes tokens
orders[orderId] = order;
}
function update_order(OrderInput calldata updatedOrder) external {
// BUG: NO REFUND for sell orders when price decreases → tokens permanently stuck
orders[orderId] = updatedOrder;
}Variant 2: Partial Fill Token Stuck (Plume)
function swapForETH(uint256 amountIn) external {
token.safeTransferFrom(msg.sender, address(this), amountIn);
uint256 filled = dex.swap(amountIn); // partial fill possible
_refundExcessEth(amountIn - filled); // BUG: refunds ETH only, not ERC20
}Variant 3: mint() Bypasses Check That deposit() Has (MetaPool)
function deposit(uint256 assets, address receiver) public override {
shares = _deposit(assets, receiver); // includes receipt validation
}
function mint(uint256 shares, address receiver) public override {
assets = convertToAssets(shares);
_mint(receiver, shares); // MISSING: _deposit() validation → mints without receiving assets
}Grep Patterns
grep -rn "function place_\|function create_\|function add_\|function open_" contracts/ -A5
grep -rn "function update_\|function modify_\|function cancel_" contracts/ -A5
grep -rn "safeApprove\b" contracts/ # safeApprove without zero-reset before
grep -rn "delete\b" contracts/ -B5 -A5 # delete before operation completes
grep -rn "function deposit\|function mint\|function withdraw\|function redeem" contracts/ -A10> #4 High — 22% of Highs. Single character change. Massive impact.
Root Cause
// VeChain Stargate — post-exit reward drain:
function _claimableDelegationPeriods(address delegator) internal view returns (uint256) {
if (endPeriod > nextClaimablePeriod) { // BUG: should be >=
return 0; // exited users get nothing
}
return nextClaimablePeriod - lastClaimedPeriod; // rewards for period AFTER exit
}Mental Test for Every Comparison
> For everyif (A > B): "What happens when A == B?" Is that correct?
6 Boundary Locations to Check
- Period/Epoch boundaries:
>vs>=at period end - Time-based locks: does
block.timestamp == deadlinelock or unlock? - Loop break conditions:
breakwith>vs>= - Array index boundaries:
i <= array.length(should bei < array.length) - Amount/balance boundaries:
>= amountallows exact full withdrawal? - Rounding/precision: can any input produce 0 output that should be non-zero?
Grep Patterns
# Boundaries in comparisons
grep -rn "Period\|Epoch\|Round\|Deadline\|period\|epoch\|deadline" contracts/ -A3 | grep "[<>][^=]"
# Loop breaks grep -rn "\bbreak\b" contracts/ -B10
# Off-by-one in array access grep -rn "\.length\s*-\s*1\|i\s*<=\s*.*\.length\b" contracts/
> 12% of all reports. Largest individual payouts. $117M Mango, $70M Curve.
Bug A: Missing Staleness Check (most common)
// VULNERABLE:
(, int256 price,,,) = priceFeed.latestRoundData();
return uint256(price); // If Chainlink node goes down, stale price returned indefinitely
// CORRECT: (, int256 price,, uint256 updatedAt,) = priceFeed.latestRoundData(); require(block.timestamp - updatedAt <= MAX_PRICE_AGE, "Stale price"); require(price > 0, "Invalid price");
Bug B: Missing Confidence Interval (Pyth)
// VULNERABLE:
PythStructs.Price memory p = pyth.getPriceUnsafe(priceFeed);
return p.price; // ignores p.conf (confidence interval)
// CORRECT: require(p.conf * 10 <= uint64(p.price), "Price too uncertain"); // conf > 10% of price = untrustworthy
Bug C: TWAP Too Short (flash loan manipulatable)
// VULNERABLE: 60-second TWAP
uint32[] memory secondsAgos = new uint32[](2);
secondsAgos[0] = 60; secondsAgos[1] = 0;
// Flash loan can shift price for entire 60s window
// CORRECT: 1800s minimum TWAP (30 min)
Bug D: Single-Source Oracle
// VULNERABLE: only Uniswap spot price
uint price = getUniswapSpotPrice(token); // flash loan manipulatable
// CORRECT: Chainlink primary, Uniswap TWAP as fallback, require close agreement
Grep Patterns
# Missing staleness check
grep -rn "latestRoundData" contracts/ -A5 | grep -v "updatedAt\|timestamp"
# Pyth price usage — confidence interval checked? grep -rn "getPriceUnsafe\|getPrice\b" contracts/ -A8 | grep -v "conf\|confidence"
# TWAP windows — short TWAP flag grep -rn "secondsAgo\|TWAP\|cardinality" contracts/ -A5
Exchange Rate Manipulation (near-empty vault)
// VULNERABLE — first depositor attack:
// 1. Attacker deposits 1 wei → gets 1 share
// 2. Attacker donates large amount directly (transfer, not deposit)
// 3. Exchange rate: 1 share = (1 + donation) assets
// 4. Victim deposits → rounds down to 0 shares → free donation to attacker
// CORRECT: virtual shares (OpenZeppelin v4.9+) function _decimalsOffset() internal view virtual override returns (uint8) { return 9; // add 1e9 virtual shares + assets to prevent manipulation }
ERC4626 Transfer (moves shares but not stake/lock records)
// VULNERABLE: shares transferred, but lock records stay with original owner
// → shares stuck, can't redeem → permanent freeze (Belong pattern)
function transfer(address to, uint256 amount) external override {
_transfer(msg.sender, to, amount); // moves shares
// MISSING: transfer lock record from msg.sender to `to`
}Grep Patterns
grep -rn "function transfer\|function transferFrom" contracts/ -A15
grep -rn "function deposit\|function mint\|function withdraw\|function redeem" contracts/ -A10> 2016–present. CEI pattern prevents it. Still found in DeFi.
Variants
- Single-function: attacker re-enters same function before state updated
- Cross-function: re-enters a sibling function with stale state
- Cross-contract: re-enters via a callback to another protocol
- Read-only: re-enters a view function that returns stale data used by attacker
Root Cause Pattern
// VULNERABLE (effects after interaction):
function withdraw(uint256 amount) external {
require(balances[msg.sender] >= amount);
(bool success,) = msg.sender.call{value: amount}(""); // INTERACTION first
require(success);
balances[msg.sender] -= amount; // EFFECT after → reentrancy window
}
// CORRECT (CEI — Checks, Effects, Interactions): function withdraw(uint256 amount) external { require(balances[msg.sender] >= amount); // CHECK balances[msg.sender] -= amount; // EFFECT (bool success,) = msg.sender.call{value: amount}(""); // INTERACTION last require(success); }
Grep Patterns
# External calls before state updates
grep -rn "\.call{value\|safeTransfer\|transfer(" contracts/ -B10 | grep -v "require\|revert"
# Missing nonReentrant modifier on critical functions grep -rn "function withdraw\|function redeem\|function claim" contracts/ -A2 | grep -v "nonReentrant"
# Storage slot for reentrancy guard grep -rn "nonReentrant\|ReentrancyGuard\|_notEntered" contracts/
Oracle Manipulation via Flash Loan
// Attack flow:
// 1. Borrow $100M from Aave flash loan
// 2. Dump token in Uniswap pool → crash spot price
// 3. Protocol reads Uniswap spot → undercollateralized loans accepted
// 4. Borrow max against cheap collateral
// 5. Repay flash loan, keep profitsPrice Oracle Sanity Checks (what to look for)
grep -rn "getReserves\|getAmountsOut\|slot0\b" contracts/ -A5
# spot price from reserves = manipulatable with flash loan
# slot0 = Uniswap V3 spot price = manipulatableMissing Nonce
// VULNERABLE:
function permit(address owner, address spender, uint256 value,
uint256 deadline, uint8 v, bytes32 r, bytes32 s) external {
bytes32 hash = keccak256(abi.encodePacked(owner, spender, value, deadline));
// MISSING: nonce not included → same signature usable multiple times
require(ecrecover(hash, v, r, s) == owner);
}Missing Chain ID
// VULNERABLE: signature valid on mainnet AND testnet AND all forks
bytes32 hash = keccak256(abi.encodePacked(params));
// MISSING: block.chainid not in hash → works on any chainGrep Patterns
grep -rn "ecrecover\|ECDSA\.recover" contracts/ -B20
# Check: does the signed hash include nonce + chainId + contract address?
grep -rn "nonce\|_nonces\|nonces\[" contracts/
Storage Collision
// Implementation and proxy share storage layout
// Proxy slot 0: _owner
// Implementation slot 0: _initialized
// → writing to _initialized overwrites _ownerUninitialized Implementation
// If implementation can be initialized directly → anyone becomes owner of implementation
// Attack: call initialize() on implementation contract → call upgradeTo() → replace logicdelegatecall to User-Controlled Address
function execute(address target, bytes calldata data) external onlyOwner {
target.delegatecall(data); // target is validated, but what if owner is compromised?
}Grep Patterns
# UUPS initialization protection
grep -rn "function initialize\b\|_disableInitializers\|initializer" contracts/
# Delegate call grep -rn "delegatecall\b" contracts/ -B3 -A5
# Storage layout — proxy uses EIP-1967 slots? grep -rn "0x360894\|EIP1967\|_IMPLEMENTATION_SLOT" contracts/
// SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
pragma solidity ^0.8.0;
import "forge-std/Test.sol"; import "../src/VulnerableContract.sol";
contract ExploitTest is Test { VulnerableContract target; address attacker = makeAddr("attacker"); address victim = makeAddr("victim");
function setUp() public { // Fork mainnet at specific block vm.createSelectFork("mainnet", BLOCK_NUMBER);
// Deploy or load target target = VulnerableContract(TARGET_ADDRESS);
// Fund accounts deal(address(token), attacker, INITIAL_BALANCE); deal(address(token), victim, VICTIM_BALANCE); }
function test_exploit() public { console.log("Attacker balance before:", token.balanceOf(attacker));
vm.startPrank(attacker);
// Step 1: Setup conditions // Step 2: Execute exploit // Step 3: Verify impact
vm.stopPrank();
console.log("Attacker balance after:", token.balanceOf(attacker)); assertGt(token.balanceOf(attacker), INITIAL_BALANCE, "Exploit failed"); } }
Key Foundry Cheatcodes
vm.prank(address) // next call from address
vm.startPrank(address) // all calls from address until stopPrank()
vm.deal(address, amount) // set ETH balance
deal(token, address, amount) // set ERC20 balance
vm.warp(timestamp) // set block.timestamp
vm.roll(blockNumber) // set block.number
vm.createSelectFork("mainnet", blockNumber) // fork mainnet
vm.expectRevert(bytes) // next call should revert
vm.label(address, "name") // label for trace output
vm.assume(condition) // fuzz: discard inputs where falseRunning Tests
# Run specific test
forge test --match-test test_exploit -vvvv
# Run with fork forge test --match-test test_exploit -vvvv --fork-url $MAINNET_RPC
# Gas report forge test --gas-report
# Coverage forge coverage --report summary
meme-coin-audit— When the target is a meme coin / SPL token rather than a DeFi protocol. Workflow primitive: pre-dive kill signals diverge — this skill's "TVL < $500K skip" doesn't apply to meme coins where the rug check (mint authority, freeze authority, LP lock) is the entire audit; route tomeme-coin-auditinstead.triage-validation— When a contract finding is ready to be filed on Immunefi. Workflow primitive: Immunefi has its own report format, but the impact-validated, chain-end-to-end discipline oftriage-validationstill applies; run the 7Q gate against the Foundry PoC before submitting.report-writing— When writing the Immunefi report body. Workflow primitive:report-writing's Immunefi template (with Foundry PoC, root cause code snippet, quantified economic impact) is the body skeleton this skill's findings feed into.offensive-osint— When auditing a protocol's off-chain attack surface (frontend, admin API, RPC gateways). Workflow primitive: on-chain audit is this skill's job; any web2 component of the protocol (web-frontend, admin panel, indexer API) routes tooffensive-osintfor recon.bb-methodology— When deciding whether to dive at all. Workflow primitive: PART 0 ofbb-methodologyconfirms engagement (web3 bug bounty / private audit / smart-contract review); this skill's pre-dive kill signals replace the standard scoring rubric for that engagement type.
> Engagement-derived + 2026-specific additions to the vendored foundation. > Wisdom from real authorized engagements + Phase 2 verification across > this repo's 31+ skill-area live tests. The upstream content covers the WHAT; > this layer covers the WHEN-IT-WORKS-vs-WHEN-IT-DOESN'T.
Bug classes still paying in 2026
Flash-loan attacks remain top-paid on Immunefi (top 5 in 2024-2026 by bounty). The economic primitive — borrow $50M, manipulate price oracle, drain pool, repay — keeps reappearing because new protocols keep shipping with composability assumptions that don't hold under flash-loaned imbalance.
Reentrancy IS still paying because new protocols keep shipping with ERC-777 / hooks / callbacks. Don't assume the class is dead — the 2023-2025 paid corpus contains 40+ reentrancy bugs against post-Checks-Effects-Interactions codebases (cross-function reentrancy, read-only reentrancy via view functions called during state-mid-flight).
Oracle manipulation: still paid heavily but harder. Most projects use Chainlink price feeds now; the attack target is the SECONDARY oracle most projects also use (TWAP from a low-liquidity Uniswap V2 pair, the protocol's own internal oracle, a stale fallback path). Audit the failover chain, not just the primary feed.
What's new since the vendored content was written
- EIP-1153 (transient storage) — introduced in 2024. New reentrancy classes: transient-storage reads cached across the same transaction can desync from persistent storage. Audit any
tload/tstoreusage for read-after-external-call. - EIP-7702 (Pectra hard fork 2025) — added EOA-to-smart-account upgrades. New ATO-like primitives via re-delegation: an EOA signed-once can delegate to a contract that the attacker controls, then signature replay across delegations.
- Account abstraction (ERC-4337 bundlers) — paymaster sponsorship abuse and bundler griefing. Paymaster contracts that don't enforce strict sender allowlists drain on first call.
- ZK-rollup bridge bugs — proof-replay across rollups, off-chain prover compromise, sequencer censorship leading to forced-inclusion edge cases.
- LST/LRT depeg dynamics — liquid-staking and liquid-restaking tokens that assume 1:1 peg under loss conditions; oracle assumes peg, market reflects depeg, liquidation logic breaks.
Tool stack for 2026
Foundry remains the test framework. forge test --gas-report --debug for invariant testing; forge fuzz for property-based testing; forge inspect for storage-layout audits. Slither + Echidna for static + fuzz. Mythril for symbolic execution on smaller contracts. tenderly.co for forking + simulation (best UX for replicating attacks against mainnet state).
For Solana: anchor framework, sealevel-attacks corpus (curated PoCs by anchor maintainers), soteria-sec / sec3 scanner. For Move (Aptos, Sui): move-prover, aptos-cli aptos move test.
For cross-chain: hyperlane and LayerZero each have audit-tooling repos; bridge bugs require simulating both endpoints, not just one.
Where pre-dive kill signals matter
TVL under $500K isn't worth the audit time unless the bounty floor is high. Audit firm already covered it = low ROI unless you find what they missed — look at the audit-report scope-exclusion section for what they EXPLICITLY didn't audit (oracles, governance, off-chain components, frontend, the admin path).
Multisig signers > 5 + timelock > 48h = low rug-pull risk; if your finding requires team-malicious assumptions, it's low-impact and likely out of scope per Immunefi's "centralization risk" exclusion. Read the program brief — most Immunefi programs explicitly downgrade or reject findings that assume admin malice.
Reporting discipline
Immunefi requires Foundry PoC. Submission without PoC is auto-rejected. Submission with a PoC that requires manual setup ("first deploy this, then call that") usually gets downgraded — the PoC should be a single forge test invocation that proves the impact, with explicit assertEq on the drained balance / minted token / corrupted state.
Severity claims must use Immunefi's severity matrix exactly; don't invent severities. The matrix gates on direct economic loss percentage of TVL — a critical against a $500K protocol pays differently than a critical against a $500M one. Read the program's specific severity assignment before claiming Critical.
Questions about Web3 Smart Contract Audit?