Overview
- Jump Crypto’s Firedancer put the rule into effect on Oct. 18 and requires researchers to permanently burn 1 SOL for each submission with no refunds and no reward eligibility for reports submitted without proof of a burn.
- The program pairs the fee with temporary higher payouts: standard bounties are doubled through Nov. 20 and Alpenglow-specific findings are tripled, with critical Alpenglow voting flaws eligible for up to $300,000.
- The change follows an April–May audit that drew 809 reports from 162 researchers but produced only 127 unique security findings and created a triage backlog that peaked at 299 open reports, which Jump said were largely aided by AI.
- Firedancer’s new report platform adds structural limits such as 3,000-character main sections and promises to contact eligible researchers within about 96 hours after confirming a burn, and the burned SOL are permanently removed from circulation.
- The team says the measure is meant to cut low-value, AI-assisted submissions and focus scarce engineering time on consensus risks after Alpenglow went live, but the policy could deter less-funded researchers and its real-world effects on disclosure and triage remain uncertain.