Operational Security Assessment
Operational security focuses on OpSec: the human, credential, approval, and response paths around critical blockchain systems. We review how keys are handled, who can approve sensitive actions, how incidents escalate, and where a realistic attacker can pressure people or processes into bypassing otherwise secure code.
What we cover.
Operational security engagements are tailored to the team and operating model, but most include:
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01
Key ceremonies and signing workflows. Threshold signing, recovery, rotation, emergency approvals, and clear ownership of critical keys.
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02
Privileged access and approval paths. Who can approve upgrades, pause systems, move funds, rotate keys, or override normal controls.
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03
Founder, operator, and responder OpSec. Phishing resistance, device posture, travel and conference risk, secure communications, and social-engineering exposure.
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04
Governance and incident decision-making. Who is in the room, what authority they have, and how emergency decisions are recorded and executed.
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05
Third-party and vendor exposure. External administrators, hosted tools, support channels, and the trusted people or services that can affect production.
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06
Runbooks and tabletop readiness. Practical rehearsal for compromise scenarios involving keys, governance, signer infrastructure, or public incident response.
How we run these engagements.
We begin with a practical threat-model workshop to identify high-value assets, realistic attackers, and the most plausible compromise paths against your people, credentials, and workflows.
Assessment work combines process review, access-path review, targeted control validation, and tabletop exercises for high-impact failure modes.
Findings are prioritized by exploitability and business impact, then converted into a remediation plan with clear ownership and implementation sequencing.
What operational security reviews test.
Attackers follow authority
Operational security review starts with the people and systems that can change production outcomes: deployers, multisig signers, founders, responders, operators, governance delegates, cloud administrators, and vendor accounts. The goal is to understand how authority moves through the organisation and where an attacker could borrow it.
Incident response is part of the system
A protocol incident is rarely solved by one person finding the right button. Teams need escalation paths, decision authority, communication channels, prepared transactions, legal and public-response coordination, and a record of what happened. We test whether those pieces exist before a live incident forces the question.
Useful inputs for an OpSec assessment
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Key inventory, role map, approval matrix, and current multisig or governance setup.
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Access paths for cloud, CI/CD, admin panels, monitoring, incident channels, and support tools.
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Existing runbooks, prior incidents, tabletop notes, and unresolved operational risks.
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Known upcoming launches, migrations, governance votes, or custody changes.
Related research and guidance.
Frequently asked questions.
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How is this different from a smart contract audit?
A contract audit tests code-level security properties. Operational security tests whether your people, systems, and processes can protect that code in production.
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Do you include cloud and CI/CD in scope?
Yes. CI/CD integrity, access controls, secret handling, and deployment controls are core parts of most engagements.
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Can this run alongside an audit?
Yes. Running operational security in parallel with protocol or contract audits often surfaces cross-boundary risks earlier.
Other engagements you might be considering.
Strengthen your operational security.
Tell us what environment you operate and where your risk concerns are concentrated. We will propose a focused operational security scope.
Request a scoping call
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