Nomad offers hackers a chance at redemption and lures them with NFTs

the alpha

• Following the discovery of a security flaw in the systems of the Nomad crypto bridge, hackers stole over $190 million in crypto August 1st.
• Nomadic issued a 10% bonus for his stolen funds as part of his damage control efforts. If a hacker returns 90% of their stolen crypto, they have the right to keep the rest. Nomad also promises not to take legal action against these “white hat” hackers.
• In partnership with Metagame, Nomad is now also offering NFTs to remorseful hackers, if they return the stolen crypto.

why is it important

Community Reception at Nomad Announcement was mixed. If you put yourself in the shoes of one of the thieves who ransacked Nomad’s stores, a “useless” NFT wouldn’t be enough to get you to return hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars in stolen crypto. So why exactly does Nomad think that would sweeten the deal? Because it’s not always about the money.

As part of Metagame’s efforts to “recognize actions aligned with the values ​​of a community, large and small”, they partnered with Nomad to offer NFTs to hackers. “We can encourage actions that benefit the community by recognizing individuals who take these actions,” Metagame founder Brenner Spear said in a tweet from tuesday.

And, it seems Nomad and Metagame’s heartfelt appeals to cyber thieves haven’t fallen on deaf ears. According a blog post from August 18, approximately 20% of the stolen funds are returned to Nomad. That’s over $37 million, much of which comes from the recovery wallet Nomad had set up for hackers looking to redeem themselves.

And after

Cynics may view Nomad’s strategy of recovering its stolen funds as naive, but it is not. Nomad’s initiatives speak to a longer-term strategy to ensure the continued success of Web3. It all starts with building a community centered on trust and goodwill. “We support people doing the right thing even if it’s for the wrong reason, and we hope things like this inspire more people to do the right thing,” read an article on the Nomad’s Whitehat Prize website.

Of course, Nomad doesn’t just rely on ideals to solve this situation. As mentioned in its August 18 blog post, Nomad is continuing its work to compensate hacked users. As of this writing, Nomad is in the early phase of its recovery efforts and is working with law enforcement and blockchain forensics companies to track down hackers and stolen funds.

Phase two is expected to start mid to late September and will focus on finding a few ways to fairly return lost funds to users. Phase three, scheduled for some time in the near future, will see the reopening of the Nomad Bridge, in addition to providing users with a new option to “untie” funds stranded as a result of the hack.

But wait! There is more