What are sybil attacks?

A sybil attack happens when someone acts as many different people to trick others into believing something that's not true.

Imagine you're playing a game where everyone has to agree on what time it is. If one person wants to change the time, they have to get most of the other players to agree with them. But suppose there’s a sneaky player who uses multiple fake names, like having 10 different friends all pretend to be separate people. That sneaky player can trick everyone into thinking more people are on their side than they really are.

In this game, each person is like a player, and the act of pretending to be many people is called a sybil attack. The fake names or identities are like having extra toys, they help you win the game even if you're just one person behind the scenes.

If there aren’t enough real players, the sneaky player can make everyone believe it's time for dessert when it’s actually still morning! That’s how a sybil attack can change the rules of the game.