Lido DAO has adopted the Whitehat Safe Harbour Agreement, a move that allows white-hat hackers to intervene to help the protocol if it is exploited and signals a broader push to strengthen security across DeFi. The collective behind the liquid staking platform voted on Friday to adopt the agreement, helping secure the protocol’s $26 billion in deposits, and this empowers white hats to potentially rescue funds that might otherwise be stolen by bad actors. Without such an agreement, white hats could face legal action or prosecution from law enforcement, even when acting in the ecosystem’s best interests.
Lido DAO’s action places it among more than 20 DeFi protocols that have already embraced the framework, which now collectively secures over $45 billion in deposits. Among those supporters are major DeFi players such as Aave, Pendle, and Uniswap, underscoring the growing emphasis on security and risk mitigation within the sector. The Whitehat Safe Harbour Agreement has gained renewed attention in recent months amid a surge in crypto crime, with the amount stolen from crypto services this year rising significantly.
Security concerns remain a central driver for this trend, as DeFi protocols like Lido—built on platforms such as Ethereum—continue to be attractive targets for attackers. Security Alliance began developing the standardised Safe Harbour Agreement after the 2022 Nomad hack, with its supporters arguing that it can prevent losses by enabling timely, legally protected intervention. “Over $190 million was drained over the course of hours while white hats stood by, willing to help, but unable to act without legal protection,” the Alliance said, adding that Safe Harbour is meant to ensure such incidents do not recur and to empower whitehats to rescue funds. The framework has also benefitted from direct input and legal review from prominent firms including a16z Crypto, Cooley, Debevoise & Plimpton, Filecoin Foundation, Paradigm, and others.
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