The perception of airdrops as "free money" is a misleading oversimplification.
A more accurate analogy is that participating in airdrop farming is akin to providing a sort of unsecured loan with an unknown interest rate, unknown risk profile, unknown counterparty, etc., in my view.
One must effectively provide value—be it your time, attention, assets—in exchange for *potential* future payout.
But there are significant uncertainties and costs that completely negate any notion of it being "free":
- The interest rate, i.e., the eventual value of the tokens, is unknown in advance: ultimately, the tokens may turn out to be worthless.
- The risk profile is unclear and multifaceted: you expose yourself to the risk that the project may fail, be hacked, or suddenly disappear.
- The counterparty to whom you are "lending" is an unknown company that you must blindly trust to fulfill its promises.
- Transaction fees are incurred in farming, directly reducing your potential profit.
- Time and effort spent researching and maintaining airdrops represent alternative costs, as these resources could be used elsewhere.
You assume all the risks and expenses associated with an unsecured loan, without a guarantee of adequate returns.
Calling it "free" is at best misleading, at worst, deceitful.
It's yet another speculative investment, not a risk-free windfall.