Building safe and ethical web3 projects

Since the dawn of the Internet, emerging technologies have had their share of shady characters. Web3 is no different and has been associated with scams and malicious get-rich-quick schemes. However, the Web3 community has what it takes to shape public sentiment, promote safe practices, and ensure that DeFi is a force for good, bringing financial inclusion and innovation to web3 entrepreneurship and the broader financial industry.

Freedom + Responsibility tradeoff

DeFi has been called the Wild West of the internet for a reason. It offers abundant freedom within its trustless ecosystem, enabling both innovation and exploitation. To grow our trustless technology into a trusted industry, we must go above and beyond to build integrity with governments, businesses, and users worldwide. But how do we build trust and integrity? Trust and integrity are earned through clarity, honesty, and adherence to positive moral principles.

The first step is adopting some common ethics: maintaining project openness, promoting benevolent behavior, and communicating openly with the community are excellent starting points.

So, what does ethical development look like in the world of Web3?

Projects should be open and transparent

Developers should make projects open-source, allowing anyone to inspect the code and contribute to its improvement. This level of transparency fosters trust within the development community and the general public.

Stay current and informed

If you’re building something, using a project, or collaborating with another developer in the DeFi space, be sure to stay up to date on the latest developments that might pertain to your project. Whether it’s compliance and regulations, data privacy, code documentation, or legal guidelines for your industry, you need to ensure you’re following the law and doing everything you can to protect users and maintain the integrity of your project.

Build with equity in mind

Building with fairness and equity in mind is equally as crucial as preventing opportunities for exploitation, manipulation, coercion, and fraud. Any lapse in security that allows for malicious exploitation poses a significant threat to a Web3 project. Prioritizing users’ security, safety, and general well-being is crucial to building trust and integrity, regardless of the industry.

Communicate everything, always.

The beating heart of ethical development is clear, timely, and open communication. Ethical developers understand the importance of regular communication regarding their projects’ latest changes, updates, and potential risks. Honest and transparent communication is a surefire way to build trust and integrity with the public.

Public mission statement

A public mission statement lays out your project’s values, goals, and commitments for the world to see. This level of transparency builds trust with the public while dissuading malicious intent. A mission statement also guides decision-making, helping developers find the most beneficial path to navigate complex ethical dilemmas.

Transparent Fees

Transparent fee structures are crucial for building trust in any Web3 development project. All users and potential users should have access to documentation that shows how fees are calculated in easily understood terms. This includes thoroughly explaining all transaction fees, gas fees, and any other fees related to using the product.

Putting ‘trust’ in trustless

As more developers adopt clear work ethics like the ones mentioned above, Web3 will eventually shed its dubious appearance and become just another place to build and innovate.

However, this won’t happen overnight. The benevolent web3 projects must outshine the shadier characters and their corresponding press. So, let’s code with conscience and build with integrity. Together, we can turn Web3 into a trusted technology for the world’s benefit.