Snowman Merkle Airdrop

AI First Flight #10
Beginner FriendlyFoundrySolidityNFT
EXP
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Submission Details
Severity: low
Valid

`Snow::s_earnTimer` is a single global variable instead of per-address, causing `earnSnow` and `buySnow` to lock out all other users for a week after any single call

`Snow::s_earnTimer` is a single global variable instead of per-address, causing `earnSnow` and `buySnow` to lock out all other users for a week after any single call

Description

`Snow::earnSnow`'s cooldown is enforced via `s_earnTimer`, a single `uint256` rather than a per-address `mapping`. As a result, the cooldown check does not check if that caller farmed in the last week, but rather checks if anyone farmed or bought in the last week.

uint256 private s_earnTimer; // single uint256 not a mapping
function earnSnow() external canFarmSnow {
if (s_earnTimer != 0 && block.timestamp < (s_earnTimer + 1 weeks)) {
revert S__Timer();
}
_mint(msg.sender, 1);
s_earnTimer = block.timestamp; // resets earn timer and prevents everyone from earning SNOW
}
function buySnow(uint256 amount) external payable canFarmSnow {
...
s_earnTimer = block.timestamp; // also writes to the SAME shared timer
emit SnowBought(msg.sender, amount);
}

Risk

Likelihood:

  • High. This is not an edge case. It is the default, guaranteed outcome the moment more than one address interacts with earnSnow/buySnow within the same week, which is the expected norm for any protocol with real usage.

Impact:

Since `s_earnTimer` is not keyed by address, the very first successful call to `earnSnow` by any address resets a global timer. Every call to `earnSnow` by any other address, regardless of whether that address has ever farmed before, reverts with `S__Timer()` until a full week has elapsed since that single global timestamp. `buySnow` compounds this: since it also writes `s_earnTimer = block.timestamp` on every successful purchase, a paid purchase by any user re-locks `earnSnow` for everyone else for another full week. In practice, this means at most one successful `earnSnow` or `buySnow` can occur across the entire protocol per week: not one per user per week. Any address can call `earnSnow` or `buySnow` repeatedly (subject only to the same global cooldown) purely to keep resetting the timer and permanently deny the free-farming mechanic to everyone else, at minimal cost to themselves.

Proof of Concept


Add the following variables to the `TestSnow.t.sol` test suite:

address alice;
address bob;
address clara;
address dan;

Initialize the variables in the `setUp` function:


alice = makeAddr("alice");
bob = makeAddr("bob");
clara = makeAddr("clara");
dan = makeAddr("dan");

Add the following tests to the test suite:


function test_EarnSnowGloballyLocksOutOtherUsers() public {
// Alice farms successfully.
vm.prank(alice);
snow.earnSnow();
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(alice), 1, "Alice should have earned 1 SNOW");
// Bob attempts to farm immediately after, in the SAME week.
// He has NEVER called earnSnow() before — this should succeed for him
vm.prank(bob);
vm.expectRevert(Snow.S__Timer.selector);
snow.earnSnow();
// Confirm bob genuinely received nothing — he is fully blocked,
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(bob), 0, "Bob should NOT have been able to earn, despite never farming before");
}
function test_BuySnowAlsoLocksOutEarnSnowForOthers() public {
// Alice buys SNOW — this also writes to the shared s_earnTimer.
uint256 cost = snow.s_buyFee() * 1;
vm.deal(alice, cost);
vm.prank(alice);
snow.buySnow{value: cost}(1);
// Bob, who has never interacted with the contract, tries to farm for free.
vm.prank(bob);
vm.expectRevert(Snow.S__Timer.selector);
snow.earnSnow();
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(bob), 0, "Bob should not be locked out of earnSnow() by Alice's unrelated purchase");
}
function test_TimerIsGlobalNotPerAddress_MultipleUsersSequence() public {
// Demonstrates the practical effect across a realistic multi-user scenario:
// only ONE address total can successfully earnSnow() per week, no matter
// how many distinct addresses attempt it.
vm.prank(alice);
snow.earnSnow();
vm.prank(bob);
vm.expectRevert(Snow.S__Timer.selector);
snow.earnSnow();
vm.prank(clara);
vm.expectRevert(Snow.S__Timer.selector);
snow.earnSnow();
vm.prank(dan);
vm.expectRevert(Snow.S__Timer.selector);
snow.earnSnow();
// Confirm only alice — the first caller — actually received SNOW.
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(alice), 1);
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(bob), 0);
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(clara), 0);
assertEq(snow.balanceOf(dan), 0);
}

Run the tests in the terminal:

forge test --mt test_EarnSnowGloballyLocksOutOtherUsers -vvvv
forge test --mt test_BuySnowAlsoLocksOutEarnSnowForOthers -vvvv
forge test --mt test_TimerIsGlobalNotPerAddress_MultipleUsersSequence -vvvv

If the tests pass the contract is capable of being exploited through DDoS attack.

Recommended Mitigation

Change the earn timer to a per-address mapping. Moving from a single uint256 to store the timer to a mapping allows for each user to have an individual earn timer, and prevents one user's actions from affecting another's:

- uint256 private s_earnTimer;
+ mapping(address => uint256) private s_earnTimer;
function earnSnow() external canFarmSnow {
- if (s_earnTimer != 0 && block.timestamp < (s_earnTimer + 1 weeks))
+ if (s_earnTimer[msg.sender] != 0 && block.timestamp < (s_earnTimer[msg.sender] + 1 weeks)) {
revert S__Timer();
}
_mint(msg.sender, 1);
- s_earnTimer = block.timestamp;
+ s_earnTimer[msg.sender] = block.timestamp;
}
function buySnow(uint256 amount) external payable canFarmSnow {
...
- s_earnTimer = block.timestamp;
+ s_earnTimer[msg.sender] = block.timestamp; // only affects the caller's own cooldown
emit SnowBought(msg.sender, amount);
}
Updates

Lead Judging Commences

ai-first-flight-judge Lead Judge 1 day ago
Submission Judgement Published
Validated
Assigned finding tags:

[L-02] Global Timer Reset in Snow::buySnow Denies Free Claims for All Users

## Description: The `Snow::buySnow` function contains a critical flaw where it resets a global timer `(s_earnTimer)` to the current block timestamp on every invocation. This timer controls eligibility for free token claims via `Snow::earnSnow()`, which requires 1 week to pass since the last timer reset. As a result: Any token purchase `(via buySnow)` blocks all free claims for all users for 7 days Malicious actors can permanently suppress free claims with micro-transactions Contradicts protocol documentation promising **"free weekly claims per user"** ## Impact: * **Complete Denial-of-Service:** Free claim mechanism becomes unusable * **Broken Protocol Incentives:** Undermines core user acquisition strategy * **Economic Damage:** Eliminates promised free distribution channel * **Reputation Harm:** Users perceive protocol as dishonest ```solidity function buySnow(uint256 amount) external payable canFarmSnow { if (msg.value == (s_buyFee * amount)) { _mint(msg.sender, amount); } else { i_weth.safeTransferFrom(msg.sender, address(this), (s_buyFee * amount)); _mint(msg.sender, amount); } @> s_earnTimer = block.timestamp; emit SnowBought(msg.sender, amount); } ``` ## Risk **Likelihood**: • Triggered by normal protocol usage (any purchase) • Requires only one transaction every 7 days to maintain blockage • Incentivized attack (low-cost disruption) **Impact**: • Permanent suppression of core protocol feature • Loss of user trust and adoption • Violates documented tokenomics ## Proof of Concept **Attack Scenario:** Permanent Free Claim Suppression * Attacker calls **buySnow(1)** with minimum payment * **s\_earnTimer** sets to current timestamp (T0) * All **earnSnow()** calls revert for **next 7 days** * On day 6, attacker repeats **buySnow(1)** * New timer reset (T1 = T0+6 days) * Free claims blocked until **T1+7 days (total 13 days)** * Repeat step **4 every 6 days → permanent blockage** **Test Case:** ```solidity // Day 0: Deploy contract snow = new Snow(...); // s_earnTimer = 0 // UserA claims successfully snow.earnSnow(); // Success (first claim always allowed) // Day 1: UserB buys 1 token snow.buySnow(1); // Resets global timer to day 1 // Day 2: UserA attempts claim snow.earnSnow(); // Reverts! Requires day 1+7 = day 8 // Day 7: UserC buys 1 token (day 7 < day 1+7) snow.buySnow(1); // Resets timer to day 7 // Day 8: UserA retries snow.earnSnow(); // Still reverts! Now requires day 7+7 = day 14 ``` ## Recommended Mitigation **Step 1:** Remove Global Timer Reset from `buySnow` ```diff function buySnow(uint256 amount) external payable canFarmSnow { // ... existing payment logic ... - s_earnTimer = block.timestamp; emit SnowBought(msg.sender, amount); } ``` **Step 2:** Implement Per-User Timer in `earnSnow` ```solidity // Add new state variable mapping(address => uint256) private s_lastClaimTime; function earnSnow() external canFarmSnow { // Check per-user timer instead of global if (s_lastClaimTime[msg.sender] != 0 && block.timestamp < s_lastClaimTime[msg.sender] + 1 weeks ) { revert S__Timer(); } _mint(msg.sender, 1); s_lastClaimTime[msg.sender] = block.timestamp; // Update user-specific timer emit SnowEarned(msg.sender, 1); // Add missing event } ``` **Step 3:** Initialize First Claim (Constructor) ```solidity constructor(...) { // Initialize with current timestamp to prevent immediate claims s_lastClaimTime[address(0)] = block.timestamp; } ```

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