In a world where everything happens digitally, it should be no surprise that even contracts have been made smart and intelligent. It is now possible to strengthen the criteria and regulations stated in a contract using blockchain technology. However, there are the usual onset and development of loopholes with every advancement.

This is where smart contract audits come into the foreground. These are audits done on the contracts to ensure their maximum safety. Curious to see how this happens? Well, read on and find out!

What are smart contracts?

A smart contract is a computer program that uses blockchain technology to digitally facilitate, verify, or enforce a contract’s negotiation or performance. Smart contracts allow for the verification and enforcement of trustworthy transactions without third parties. These deals are verifiable and irreversible. The smart contract’s code is stored on a public ledger, and once it’s triggered, the contract cannot be altered or stopped.

What does smart contract auditing mean?

Smart Contract auditing is verifying and ensuring that a smart contract operates as intended and ensuring there aren’t any security vulnerabilities or potential exploits. It’s important to have your contracts audited by an experienced team to ensure that they are safe and secure before being used in production. This verification aims to find any potential vulnerabilities that could lead to financial losses or other issues.

What are smart contract audit companies?

Several companies offer services related to smart contract auditing. These companies can be divided into three categories: those that provide general auditing services, those that focus on specific blockchain platforms, and those that offer security-focused audits. These companies have experienced teams of developers who can review your contracts and find any potential vulnerabilities. The audit’s goal is to make sure that your contract is safe and secure before it goes into production.

What are the detailed steps involved in smart contract auditing?

There are several stages involved in smart contract auditing. The first step is to grasp the company’s needs and functionality for the smart contract. This entails understanding how it works, what input data is required, and what output data is generated. Once the functionality is understood, the next step is to analyze the contract’s code, i.e., to review the code line by line to look for any potential vulnerabilities. The third step is to test the contract for vulnerabilities. Finally, the fourth stage is to communicate any discoveries to the customer.

What are the different types of smart contract audits?

There are two main types of smart contract auditing: static and dynamic. Static analysis is a manual review of the code, while dynamic analysis executes the code and looks for any issues. The cost of an in-depth investigation is greater than that of a simple analysis.

How to choose which type of auditing to do? It is determined by the budget, scheduling, and available supplies. Static analysis might be the most cost-effective option if you have a limited budget. Dynamic analysis is the better choice if you have more time and resources.

What are the five best smart contract audit companies with features?

Now that we’ve answered some of the most fundamental questions related to smart contract auditing, let’s look at five of the best smart contract audit companies. These companies were chosen based on their experience, team size, focus on security, and ability to find vulnerabilities.

1. Astra’s Pentest is a company that provides a dynamic analysis of smart contracts with plenty of packages that are comprehensive and budget-friendly to choose from. Their expert group of pentesters makes this organization a great choice for one’s smart contract auditing needs.
2. Smartdec is a blockchain security company that offers both static and dynamic analysis of smart contracts. They have a staff of professional developers that can find faults in your code. Their emphasis is on security, and they have a track record of finding bugs in smart contracts.
3. Hosho is another blockchain security company that offers both static and dynamic analysis of smart contracts. They can assist you in finding bugs in your code. They work with a team of professional developers capable of detecting flaws in your code. Their primary concern is security, and they have an established track record of finding flaws in smart contracts.
4. Quantstamp is a blockchain security company that specializes in automated smart contract audits. They employ a team of skilled developers who are capable of finding flaws in your code. Their main concern is security, and they have a track record of discovering bugs in Ethereum smart contracts.
5. Solidified is a crowdsourced auditing platform that allows you to submit your smart contract for review by their community of expert auditors. They have a staff of professional developers that can identify issues with your code. They prioritize security and have a track record of finding bugs in blockchain contracts.

These five firms provide smart contract audits. When choosing a firm to audit your contract, consider your requirements and budget. A static analysis might be the most cost-effective approach if you have a limited budget. Dynamic analysis is the better choice if you have more time and resources.

Final thoughts

We hope that this post was useful in understanding some of the fundamentals of smart contract auditing. No matter which company you choose, it’s important to ensure that they have experience auditing smart contracts. This will ensure that your contract is safe and secure before it goes into production.