How Can a DAO Implement Secure Access Control without a Central Owner?

A Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) implements secure access control by replacing a single owner with a collective, on-chain voting mechanism. Critical functions are guarded by a contract that requires a successful, weighted vote from token holders to execute.

This typically involves a governance smart contract and a time-lock. No single person can unilaterally change the protocol; the change must be proposed, debated, voted on by the community, and then pass through a time-lock delay before being enacted.