Glossary
Token approval
Also called: allowance
Permission you grant a contract to move a token from your wallet. Approvals persist until revoked, and an unlimited approval to a malicious contract is how wallets are emptied without any transfer being signed.
This is the mechanism behind most drainer losses. The victim signs an approval rather than a transfer, sees nothing leave, and the contract withdraws later at a time of its choosing.
See also
Wallet drainerA kit that tricks a holder into signing an approval or transfer that hands over their assets, usually behind a fake mint, airdrop or support page.
Smart contractCode deployed to a network that runs exactly as written when called. "Trustless" refers to the execution, not to whether the code does something reasonable.
Signature requestA prompt from your wallet asking you to authorise something. Reading what it authorises, rather than what the website claims it is, is the entire defence.
Last checked 19 Oct 2026.