Safer signing
Token approvals: connection is not permission
Connecting a wallet exposes an account to an app. A token approval can authorize a contract to move tokens. Treat the two actions as separate decisions.
Contents & sources
Separate three different events
Visiting a site, connecting an account and signing a request are different events. A connection lets an app request information or actions through the wallet interface. An approval records a particular permission. A transfer moves assets under the applicable rules.
Do not infer a permission’s scope from the friendly label on a button. Read the wallet request. This distinction is especially useful when a familiar application changes its interface or when a link leads to a convincing copy.
Inspect the spender and the limit
For a typical token approval, identify the token, contract receiving permission and spending limit. MetaMask’s documentation explains that a spending cap can be much larger than the balance currently in the account. A large permission may therefore affect assets received later.
Limits create a trade-off between convenience and exposure. Restricting permission does not make a malicious contract safe; it changes the scope of that permission. If you do not understand who receives access, reject the request instead of guessing a smaller number.
Why disconnecting is a different action
Disconnecting an app from a wallet interface ends that interface relationship. It does not by itself rewrite a permission already recorded on-chain. A continuing allowance has to be reviewed and, where applicable, revoked through a suitable transaction.
Revocation can require a network fee and needs the correct network and account. It is not a refund mechanism for a completed theft. Never enter recovery words into a revocation site, and treat the revocation request itself as another signing decision to review.
Recognize when the simple model is incomplete
Different token standards and signature-based permission systems do not all use the same approval flow. NFT operator permissions can cover a collection rather than one fungible token balance. A message signature may have consequences even when the wallet shows no transaction fee.
When the request differs from the ordinary allowance pattern, look up the exact action in current official documentation. Do not apply a familiar rule to an unfamiliar prompt just because both contain the word “approve.”
Keep a small permission review routine
Record the apps you intentionally authorize and the reason each needs access. Periodically review active permissions through trusted documentation and tools. Remove permissions you no longer need when you understand the revocation action and cost.
If you suspect a problem, stop signing further requests from the site. Use official support reached independently and determine whether the issue concerns an allowance, a compromised secret or a misleading transfer. Those are different recovery problems. Read the signing checklist and the recovery planning guide for the other parts of the model.
Sources & scope
Source-based desk research. Checked . Product specifications and documentation can change. No hands-on testing or independent security audit is claimed.