Economic & Risk Services
DAO Audit
Secure your governance. Three Sigma’s DAO Audit reviews on-chain governance, admin powers, timelocks, and treasury controls so proposals execute safely and transparently.
100+
audits
completed
$8.2B
in client assets protected
$183.2B
in transacted value secured
300+
crit / high issues found
Consolidated clients
A blockchain security company
with 3+ years of experience
We deliver end-to-end DAO audits that translate intent into enforceable rules. Whether you run token-weighted voting, delegated governance, or NFT communities, we provide safe execution paths and stakeholder-ready documentation.
What is a DAO Audit?
A DAO Audit is an in-depth security and design review of your governance stack, voting power, delegation, proposal workflow, timelocks/pauses, upgrade paths, and treasury policies. We verify that rules match intent, execution is safe, and failure modes are contained. For app/front-end paths that create or sign proposals, we advise on a performing dApp audit as well.
Why do DAO Audits Matter?
Most governance incidents come from misconfigured roles, unsafe upgrade powers, or proposal edge cases, not just code bugs. A rigorous DAO Audit reduces capture risk, prevents unintended executions, and builds confidence with tokenholders, partners, and listings.
Our Approach to DAO Audits
We map how proposals are created, voted, queued, and executed, analyze admin keys and emergency powers, and confirm timelock scopes and upgrade boundaries.
Then we recommend minimal-change controls, thresholds, quorums, delays, pause scopes, signer policies, and provide runbooks for emergencies and upgrades. For teams with incentives and loyalty programs, you can also integrate our Incentives Audit onto the review for broader coverage.
Common DAO Risks
Overbroad admin powers
Happens when multisigs or guardians can upgrade, pause, or withdraw without checks/timelocks, enabling unilateral changes that bypass tokenholder control.
Unsafe timelock configuration
Happens when delays/queues are missing or too short; proposals execute before scrutiny, or batching hides high-impact actions.
Quorum/threshold drift
Happens when parameters don’t scale with supply/delegation; small coalitions pass proposals or block governance during low turnout.
Delegation centralization
Happens when voting power clusters on few delegates; capture or inactivity stalls governance or pushes controversial changes through.
Flash-loanable voting power
Happens when voting weight can be borrowed near snapshot; temporary balances swing outcomes without lasting economic stake.
Proposal execution bugs
Happens when call ordering, target validation, or reverts aren’t guarded; partial execution leaves systems in inconsistent states.
Snapshot vs on-chain mismatch
Happens when off-chain votes differ from on-chain state; proposals pass off-chain but fail or misfire at execution.
Treasury spend risk
Happens when spending caps, signers, or review gates are weak; large transfers, emissions, or buybacks occur without sufficient oversight.
Typical DAO risks include overbroad admin powers, unsafe timelocks, quorum/threshold drift, delegation centralization, flash-loanable voting, proposal execution pitfalls, snapshot/on-chain mismatches, and weak treasury controls. These issues can enable rushed or unintended changes and misuse of funds, the items below explain what each risk is and how it usually happens.
Our DAO Audit Process
Scoping and Planning
Define DAO audit objectives, scope, and timelines.
Governance Mapping
Document proposal lifecycle, delegation, timelocks, and admin boundaries.
Implementation Review
Assess contracts, configs, and policies that enforce on-chain governance.
Scenario Evaluation
Exercise representative paths and edge cases to validate assumptions and execution safety.
Reporting & Recommendations
Provide severity-ranked findings with minimal-change fixes in a concise DAO security audit report.
Verification
Review fixes and confirm mitigations before parameter or contract changes go live.
Hear from our Clients
Deliverables You Can Expect
You receive a concise DAO audit report with severity-ranked findings, parameter tables, signer and role policies, upgrade/pause runbooks, and a short implementation checklist. Optional verification confirms fixes and updated settings.
Post-audit support is included
to help your team implement fixes and validate their effectiveness.
See our Case Studies for examples.
What You Gain
from a Three Sigma Audit
Lower risk of governance capture or unintended execution.
Clear, defensible rules that match tokenholder intent.
Faster incident response with predefined controls and runbooks.
Higher trust with exchanges, partners and your community.
Industries We Secure
Our audits have helped secure decentralized applications across multiple verticals.
DeFi &
Liquidity
Lending platforms, DEXs, and staking protocols.
NFT &
Collectibles
Marketplaces, launchpads, and minting platforms.
Gaming &
Metaverse
Play-to-earn games, asset trading hubs, and immersive experiences.
Cross-Chain Infrastructure
Bridges, oracles, and interoperability layers.
Frequent answers and questions
Check out the DAO Audit F.A.Q.
How is a DAO Audit different from a smart contract audit?
A smart contract audit checks code safety. A DAO Audit checks governance safety, roles, parameters, proposal flow, and execution, so power can’t be misused. Most teams do both: smart contract security + DAO Audit.
Do you cover multisigs and signers?
Yes. We assess signer policies, thresholds, rotation, hardware use, and emergency procedures, and align them with timelocks and governance rules.
What inputs do you need?
Addresses/ABIs, current parameters, roles/signers, proposal scripts, delegation data, and any off-chain voting (e.g., Snapshot) settings.
How long does it take?
Typical engagements are 1–3 weeks depending on scope (governor only vs. full governance + treasury + upgrades).
Can you help redesign parameters?
Yes. We provide parameter recommendations, policy templates, and sample proposals to adopt safer settings. For incentive design, see our Tokenomics Audit.