ContractInspector: Inspecting Contracts, Reducing Risks

Inspiration

The inspiration for ContractInspector came from the growing popularity and adoption of blockchain technology and smart contracts. As per Alchemy's Ethereum statistics, the total number of smart contracts created in Q1 2022 was 1.45 million, a 24.7% increase compared to the previous quarter. This growing usage of smart contracts signifies the need for a tool that can provide users with an easy-to-understand risk assessment of smart contracts.

What it does

ContractInspector is a Chrome extension that inspects smart contracts on various blockchains - Ethereum, Polygon, Flow, Sharedeum, Sola,na, etc. calculates their risk scores based on potential vulnerabilities found, and presents these scores to users in an intuitive, color-coded format. This allows users to make informed decisions before interacting with these contracts, reducing the risk of financial loss.

How we built it

We built ContractInspector using JavaScript for the core functionality, HTML and CSS for the user interface, and Google's Chrome Extension API for integration with the Chrome browser. We used the Fetch API to retrieve risk scores from a backend API that analyzes smart contracts.

Challenges we ran into

One of the main challenges we faced was dealing with the asynchronous nature of JavaScript and ensuring that the risk scores were retrieved and displayed correctly. We also had to ensure that our extension was compatible with the latest Manifest V3 Chrome extension standard, which required some adjustments to our initial design.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're proud of creating a tool that can potentially protect users from interacting with high-risk smart contracts. We're also proud of the user-friendly design of our extension, which makes complex risk assessments accessible to users with no technical background.

What we learned

We learned a lot about Chrome extension development, particularly the new Manifest V3 standard. We also gained a deeper understanding of smart contracts and the potential risks associated with them.

What's next for ContractInspector: Inspecting Contracts, Reducing Risks

Looking ahead, we plan to extend ContractInspector's capabilities to more blockchains and improve our risk assessment algorithm to provide more accurate and comprehensive risk scores. We also plan to add more features based on user feedback and needs. The smart contracts market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 23.5% over the forecast period 2022 to 2032, indicating a huge potential for growth and expansion for tools like ContractInspector.