An airdrop safety checklist for 2026

Airdrops reward early users with free tokens, which makes them a favourite lure for scammers. Most losses do not come from hacks of the project itself but from users signing something on a fake page.

Before you visit a claim page

• Reach the claim page only from the project's verified social account or official documentation.
• Be suspicious of links in replies, direct messages and search ads, even when the account name looks right.
• Check the domain letter by letter; look-alike domains are common.
• Remember that no legitimate airdrop will ever ask for your seed phrase or private key.

Before you connect a wallet

Use a separate wallet for experimental interactions and keep only small amounts in it. Your long-term holdings should live in a wallet that never connects to new sites.

Before you sign

Read every signature request. Pay special attention to:

• Requests to approve spending of tokens you are not claiming.
• "Set approval for all" requests, which give access to an entire NFT collection.
• Off-chain signatures (often called permits) that can authorise transfers without an on-chain approval first.

If you do not understand what you are signing, reject it.

After you claim

Review and revoke token approvals you no longer need, using your wallet's built-in tools or a reputable approval checker. Watch out for "claim your bonus" messages after a real airdrop; follow-up scams often target people who just received tokens.

Key takeaways

• Verify the source of every link.
• Use a burner wallet for claims.
• Never share your seed phrase, and reject signatures you don't understand.