As Airdrops Continue to be a Challenge, Reputation-based Proof-of-Value May Bring Hope

Introduction

Berachain recently concluded a highly anticipated airdrop for testnet users, distributing BERA tokens based on various participation categories such as testnet activity, RFA, community engagement, Twitter, and Discord. However, despite the best efforts of the team, inconsistencies in the distribution process have cropped up and some real contributors have missed out.

This research highlights a specific case where a high-ranking testnet participant, Moroz, did not receive the expected airdrop, despite significantly higher engagement than another wallet that did receive the allocation. Further investigation reveals potential exploitation patterns and suggests that airdrop farming strategies may have been used to game the system.

The Moroz Case: A Clear Discrepancy

Moroz's tweet (link)

Moroz’s Activity & Missing Airdrop

• Wallet Address: 0xe6666cd611439a9a3500e8c0e14670dfbb5027c5
• Testnet Activity: Described by Moroz (link)
  • Total Transactions: 1,500+ (link)
  • BGT Farmed: 10,000+ BGT
  • Validators Delegated: 200+
  • DApps Used: Nearly all available testnet dApps
• Airdrop Received: 0 BERA for testnet category
• Total Airdrop Breakdown: verify at checker.berachain.com
  • RFA: 512.22 BERA
  • Ecosystem: 337.98 BERA
  • Twitter: 425.12 BERA
  • Discord: 413.22 BERA

A Lower Ranked Wallet That Received Testnet Airdrop

• Wallet Address: 0x13aa4fb6f83045927fb9e21f355738fda2ece61f
• Testnet Activity:
  • Total Transactions: < 380 (link)
  • Airdrop Received: 348.048 BERA for testnet category
• Total Airdrop Breakdown: verify at checker.berachain.com
  • RFA: 5.94 BERA
  • Testnet: 348.048 BERA
  • Ecosystem: 36.514 BERA

This discrepancy suggests that the airdrop distribution may not have been solely based on genuine testnet engagement.

Potential Solutions

• Reputation-Based Airdrop System (zerufinance):
  • Track user wallet creation history and link them to their primary wallet address.
  • Reward wallets based on actual value-generating transactions by looking at their reputation score.
  • Discourage mass wallet farming and script-based interactions.

Conclusion

The case of Moroz’s missing testnet airdrop reveals significant challenges faced by protocols in their distribution methodology. More concerningly, a pattern of airdrop farming through middleware contracts and mass wallet creation suggests that malicious actors may have exploited the system to unfairly claim rewards.

For airdrops to be fair and sustainable, future distributions must prioritize:

• Reputation-based validation over raw transaction counts.
• On-chain verification mechanisms to prevent farming abuses.

Without addressing these issues, legitimate users will continue to be sidelined while airdrop farmers profit from the loopholes in the system.