Web3 wallet security: how anti-phishing extensions protect you

Phishing remains the most common cause of losses in the world of cryptocurrencies. Users lose assets not because of smart contract hacks, but due to their own carelessness. Fake websites, malicious transactions, and bogus airdrop campaigns have already become commonplace in the Web3 world.

The main points of this article:

• how to check a wallet for phishing;
• why phishing in Web3 remains the primary risk;
• how extensions and built-in filters work.

According to CertiK, in the first half of 2025, losses from security incidents in Web3 exceeded $2.4 billion. More than $410 million of this amount came from phishing attacks, with over a hundred incidents recorded. According to a SlowMist report for the same period, total losses in the crypto sphere are estimated at roughly $2.37 billion.

Phishing in crypto has grown more sophisticated. Scammers exploit compromised front-end protocols, forge websites of popular projects, and create malicious mint pages. To avoid falling victim, users began massively installing anti-phishing extensions and built-in filters. These solutions have become the first line of defense for everyone working with Web3 and DeFi.

How to check a wallet for phishing in 2 minutes:

• revoke.cash → remove Unlimited/SetApprovalForAll;
• MetaMask → Settings → Security & Privacy → Phishing Detection: On;
• Install Wallet Guard and review the simulation before signing;
• Open a dApp only from the project’s Docs/GitHub (verify the domain).

Anti-phishing for crypto wallets works like an intelligent intermediary between your browser, wallet, and dApp. It checks every site and every transaction before the wallet even connects. The primary goal of such a tool is to warn you about risks in time and prevent you from accidentally signing a dangerous action.

The wallet’s phishing protection mechanism is simple and effective. A browser security extension automatically checks a site’s domain against a database of known phishing addresses. When it finds a match, the page doesn’t open and the user sees a threat warning.

Before the user clicks “Sign,” the system shows what actions will occur. On the screen you can immediately see whether they are sending 500 USDT or allowing a contract to spend an NFT. If the operation looks suspicious, the extension immediately shows a red window explaining the risk and suggests canceling the action.

Thanks to such tools, the level of security in Web3 becomes much higher. The user sees the real consequences of their actions, makes informed decisions, and doesn’t lose tokens due to haste or inattention.

Wallet Guard is considered one of the most reliable tools for protecting crypto wallets. It’s available on Chrome/Brave/Edge (Chromium) and Firefox. The extension is especially popular among MetaMask users because it helps prevent the most common mistakes when interacting with a fake dApp.

Wallet Guard performs several functions that truly help avoid asset loss.

• The extension uses PhishFort and ScamDB databases, which are updated daily. If a site is on the dangerous list, the connection is interrupted and the user receives a warning.
• Wallet Guard shows what will happen after a transaction is signed. If a user grants a contract permission to use tokens via the approve command, the extension warns of the risk and explains that such an action can give attackers access to all funds. The check also covers the permit function under the EIP-2612 standard, which allows signing operations without a fee. Because of this, users often consent without thinking, and Wallet Guard helps spot the danger in time.
• Wallet Guard displays warnings in plain language, without technical jargon. The user immediately sees a clear message such as “You risk losing 300 USDT,” and can quickly understand the danger. This keeps the system convenient even for those just starting to work with a wallet.

The extension is built primarily for MetaMask but is also compatible with wallets that use its API, such as Rabby and Coinbase Wallet. It helps you spot threats in time and, if necessary, revoke MetaMask permissions via revoke.cash to disable unnecessary approvals.

ScamSniffer is a full-fledged platform that goes beyond extension functionality, combining the tracking of phishing attacks with the analysis of malicious smart contracts. It combines an online service and browser tools, making it suitable for those who actively work with Web3. The system integrates with MetaMask, Rabby, Coinbase Wallet, and other popular wallets.

The platform performs several important functions.

• ScamSniffer maintains an open database of phishing domains and updates it regularly. The team publishes reports on new attacks, shares examples of discovered sites, and helps the community track fresh threats faster.
• The service analyzes smart contracts on Ethereum, BSC, Polygon, Arbitrum, and other EVM ecosystems. Such checks help detect malicious code in time and avoid signing dangerous permissions.
• ScamSniffer clearly shows which tokens or NFTs can be stolen after signing a transaction. All information is presented simply and clearly, without unnecessary technical details.

The key difference from Wallet Guard lies in the protection approach. ScamSniffer focuses on data analysis and identifying phishing schemes, while Wallet Guard operates on the user side and warns about threats at the moment of action. Together they provide comprehensive security, where one tool monitors the network and the other controls your transactions.

Many wallet developers try to build basic protection directly into their products. Thanks to this, users are protected from the most obvious attacks, and the phishing risk for newcomers becomes significantly lower. The most illustrative examples of such solutions are MetaMask and TronLink, which have their own filtering and site verification systems.

MetaMask has long implemented security tools and collaborates with PhishFort, a service specializing in monitoring phishing domains. The wallet features a built-in MetaMask anti-phishing tool that checks website addresses before connection and blocks suspicious pages.

This integration works automatically. When a user opens a suspicious site, the wallet checks the address against the PhishFort database and, if a match is found, blocks the connection. A clear warning appears on the screen with the message “This site may be a phishing attempt.” The check occurs before the wallet manages to communicate with the site, so the risk is minimal.

The feature is enabled by default and is located in the “Security & Privacy” section. The user doesn’t need to configure anything—protection is activated immediately after installation. MetaMask helps filter out obvious threats; however, it does not analyze transaction contents.

Thanks to regular updates and integration with PhishFort, MetaMask’s security remains among the most reliable of browser wallets. If you need to understand exactly what will happen upon signing, it’s worth additionally using Wallet Guard or similar extensions that simulate operations and warn about risks.

TronLink is the primary wallet of the TRON ecosystem and has its own specifics. Unlike EVM wallets, it works with different smart contracts and uses a separate filtering system. TronLink cross-checks sites against the internal Tronscan Blacklist, which aggregates known fake domains and phishing pages. In some cases the wallet also queries the PhishFort API, making its database even more precise.

When a user opens a suspicious site, TronLink displays a warning and recommends stopping the connection. This protects against the most common scam schemes, but not all of them. Unlike MetaMask, TronLink does not analyze transactions themselves and does not show a simulation of what will happen after signing.

To avoid traps, TRON network users should additionally verify contracts manually via Tronscan → Address → Approvals (or Wallet → Approvals in TronLink). This service shows the contract’s source code, transaction history, and verification status. Checking a site before connecting is especially important before large transfers or when working with DeFi, where fake liquidity pools and counterfeit tokens are common.

In the end, both systems solve different tasks. MetaMask with PhishFort effectively protects against navigating to fake sites, while TronLink with Tronscan helps users independently confirm that a contract is reliable and safe. Together these approaches form a basic level of protection you can rely on in everyday Web3 work.

Even the most advanced tools cannot provide 100% protection. Technology makes working in Web3 safer, but it cannot fully replace human attentiveness. Every user should understand that even a smart extension has its limitations.

Main limitations

• Phishing sites appear every day, and often emerge before they get into extensions’ databases. Until an address is added to the list, the system cannot recognize the threat and warn the user.
• Complex attacks such as Ice Phishing or Address Poisoning are hard to track because they masquerade as legitimate sites or substitute addresses in transaction history. As a result, a user may not notice the substitution and voluntarily confirm a dangerous operation.
• Anti-phishing extensions work only in desktop browsers. In the mobile versions of MetaMask and Trust Wallet they can’t be used, since the built-in browsers don’t support installing such add-ons.

An anti-phishing extension helps avoid many risks, but you cannot rely on it entirely. The most reliable approach remains attentiveness, source verification, and using several protection tools simultaneously. This approach creates a multi-layered security system that minimizes the chance of losing funds.

Anti-phishing extensions like Wallet Guard and ScamSniffer have become a common way to protect MetaMask and other EVM wallets. They help avoid mistakes that cause users to lose tokens.

In the TRON network, baseline security is provided by TronLink, but much still depends on the user’s attentiveness. It’s important not to forget to check contracts via Tronscan, especially before interacting with new projects.

Simple protection against scam tokens starts with the habit of verifying contracts and using reliable tools. It’s useful to visit revoke.cash from time to time to revoke old permissions and make sure the wallet is under control. Various scam schemes still occur in the DeFi ecosystem, including scams in DeFi, so you should always verify the source and the contract address before connecting.