A user connects their non-custodial wallet to a decentralized exchange, stakes tokens in a yield farming protocol, or interacts with a new NFT marketplace. The transaction appears complete. What the user may not realize is that they have granted that smart contract—or a malicious actor controlling it—permission to move an unlimited amount of their tokens without further authorization. This is the approval mechanism, and it exists on nearly every blockchain that supports ERC-20 and similar token standards. The approval is not inherently dangerous; it is how most DeFi workflows function. But approvals can become a silent drain when a contract is exploited, abandoned, or deliberately designed to steal.
Bitget Wallet, a non-custodial Web3 wallet supporting 90+ blockchains, gives users direct control over their private keys and the ability to interact with thousands of decentralized applications. That control is genuine—but it is also a responsibility. Unlike a centralized exchange that might block a suspicious transaction, Bitget Wallet cannot prevent you from approving a malicious contract or revoke an approval on your behalf. What it can do is provide visibility into existing approvals so that you can audit them regularly and remove access before it causes harm. Understanding how to use that visibility is the difference between active custody and passive exposure to theft.
Why smart contract approvals exist and why they can become dangerous
The approval mechanism evolved because blockchains are immutable and users cannot be asked for permission twice per transaction. When you want to swap tokens on a decentralized exchange, the exchange smart contract must be able to move your tokens from your wallet address to its own contract in order to process the trade. Rather than require you to sign a separate authorization for every swap, the ERC-20 standard allows you to approve a contract once, granting it permission to transfer a specified amount. Most DeFi protocols default to asking for an unlimited approval, meaning the contract can move as many tokens as it wants, whenever it wants, without further interaction from you.
That design choice made DeFi accessible and affordable in terms of transaction fees. It also created a vector for theft. If the contract is exploited, abandoned, or deliberately malicious, it can drain every token of that type in your wallet. The attacker does not need to steal your private key or breach your device. They simply need to trigger the approved contract to move your funds. A compromised frontend website, a contract upgrade that introduces a backdoor, or a contract owner who decides to become a thief can each enable this attack. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been drained through approval exploits, often from users who had no idea they had granted access.
The approval system also creates a time-decay risk. You might approve a contract months ago, use it once, and then stop. The approval remains active indefinitely unless you explicitly revoke it. Over months or years, the likelihood increases that the contract will be exploited, the service will be hacked, or the owner’s intentions will change. A DeFi wallet that supports direct dApp connections and smart contract interaction gives you the ability to see these dormant approvals and remove them before they become a liability.
Revocation is straightforward in principle: you send a transaction to the token contract, setting the approval amount back to zero. On most blockchains, this costs only a small network fee and takes minutes to confirm. Yet many users never perform this basic audit because they do not know how to find existing approvals or understand the risk they represent. Bitget Wallet, available as a Chrome extension and iOS/Android/Windows/Mac app, provides tools to view and manage approvals, but those tools only work if you use them.
Where to find your approvals in Bitget Wallet
The first step is understanding where Bitget Wallet stores this information. The wallet itself does not track approvals—that would require the wallet to maintain a server database of user actions. Instead, approvals are recorded on the blockchain itself. Every token approval is a transaction that modifies the contract’s internal state, and that state can be queried by examining the blockchain or by using a blockchain explorer service. Bitget Wallet integrates these tools into its interface so you do not have to manually query a blockchain.
On Ethereum, Polygon, Binance Smart Chain, and other EVM-compatible blockchains, the process is similar. Open Bitget Wallet, select the blockchain you want to audit, and look for a menu or settings option related to connected contracts or approvals. Different versions of the wallet may label this differently—it might be called “Authorized Contracts,” “Token Allowances,” “Connected dApps,” or “Revoke Permissions.” The exact label depends on which device you are using and which version of the wallet you have installed. If you cannot locate it immediately, check the wallet’s help documentation or browse through the wallet’s settings tabs.
If you want to use an external tool to verify approvals before taking action in Bitget, you can visit a blockchain explorer such as Etherscan (for Ethereum), BscScan (for Binance Smart Chain), or PolygonScan (for Polygon). Paste your wallet address into the search bar, and then look for the “Token Approvals” tab or similar section. This will show every token contract that has approved access to spend your tokens, which spender address has access, and how much each spender can move. Cross-referencing this list with the dApps you actually use will immediately reveal which approvals are stale or unexpected.
You can also visit specialized approval-auditing websites that aggregate this data in a user-friendly format. Tools like Revoke.cash allow you to connect your wallet and see all approvals across multiple blockchains in one interface. You can even revoke approvals directly from these tools. However, when using third-party services, be cautious about connecting your wallet to websites you do not recognize. Use only established, open-source tools with a strong community reputation. For more information about managing your wallet securely, you can reference resources at sites.google.com/mywalletcryptous.com/bitget-wallet-extension/ to understand best practices for secure crypto wallet setup and maintenance.
How to identify which approvals are actually necessary
Once you have a list of your approvals, the next task is sorting them into categories: necessary, stale, and suspicious. A necessary approval is one for a protocol you actively use. If you regularly swap tokens on Uniswap, you need an approval for the Uniswap router contract. If you farm yield on Aave, you need an approval for the Aave lending contract. If you have stopped using a service, that approval is stale. The risk from a stale approval is not imminent, but it increases over time as the service may be hacked, the contract may be upgraded with malicious code, or the owner may change.
A suspicious approval is one you do not recognize or one that came from an interaction you do not remember. This might indicate that you approved something by accident, were phished into approving a contract disguised as a legitimate dApp, or were the target of a frontend injection attack where malicious code was inserted into a website you visited. Even if you do not remember the interaction, the approval is still active and still a risk. The solution is the same: revoke it immediately.
When reviewing approvals, pay attention to the amount. Some legitimate protocols request a capped approval, such as 1,000 USDC or 100 ETH. This is a better security practice because it limits the maximum loss if the contract is exploited. However, most protocols request unlimited approvals, represented on-chain as a very large number (often the maximum value that a 256-bit integer can store). Both capped and unlimited approvals are risky if the contract is compromised, but unlimited approvals represent a higher potential loss. If you see an unlimited approval to a contract you recognize and use regularly, it is generally safe to leave it active. If you see an unlimited approval to a contract you do not use or do not recognize, revoke it immediately.
Timing also matters. If you interacted with a contract months or years ago and have not used it since, the approval is a candidate for revocation even if the contract was legitimate at the time. Older contracts are statistically more likely to be exploited or abandoned. A conservative approach is to keep only the handful of approvals for services you actively use and revoke everything else. This takes more time to revoke and costs more in transaction fees, but it dramatically reduces your exposure to theft.
The mechanics of revoking an approval in Bitget Wallet
Revoking an approval is technically simple, but the exact steps depend on which blockchain and which interface you are using. The most direct method is through Bitget Wallet’s built-in approval management feature, if your version of the wallet has one. Look for an option to “revoke,” “disconnect,” or “remove access” next to each approval. Clicking that button should open a transaction confirmation screen showing the gas fee and the contract addresses involved. Review the details to ensure you are revoking the correct approval, then sign and broadcast the transaction.
If Bitget Wallet does not have a built-in revocation feature for your blockchain, you can revoke approvals using an external tool like Revoke.cash. Connect your wallet through the tool, find the approval you want to revoke, click the revoke button, and sign the transaction in Bitget Wallet when prompted. The transaction will reduce the approval amount to zero, making it impossible for the contract to move your tokens without a new approval.
Another method is to interact directly with the token contract using Bitget Wallet’s smart contract interaction feature or an advanced interface like Etherscan. This requires more technical knowledge but gives you precise control. You would call the approve function on the token contract, specify the spender address (the contract you want to revoke), and set the amount to 0. Sign the transaction, and the approval is removed. This method is more work, but it confirms that you understand exactly what you are approving or revoking.
Regardless of which method you use, verify the following before signing: the blockchain is correct (you should be on Ethereum if you want to revoke an Ethereum approval), the token contract address matches the token you intended to target, the spender address is the contract you want to disconnect, and the amount is set to 0. A transaction cannot be reversed once it is confirmed, so double-checking these details is essential. The transaction fee will be small—typically less than $5 on Ethereum, less than $0.10 on Polygon or Binance Smart Chain—so cost is not a reason to delay revocation.
Creating a regular approval audit routine
Revoking one set of approvals is a one-time task, but maintaining security over months or years requires a regular habit. A practical approach is to audit your approvals quarterly or whenever you have been particularly active in DeFi. Set a calendar reminder to review your approvals every three months, or do an immediate audit whenever you interact with a new protocol or visit a new website. The time cost is minimal—typically 10 to 20 minutes to review all your approvals across your most-used blockchains—and the security benefit is substantial.
During each audit, ask yourself three questions about each approval. First, is this a service I actively use right now? If not, revoke it. Second, do I recognize this contract address and do I trust the service? If the answer is no to either question, revoke it immediately. Third, if this contract were exploited tomorrow, how much could I lose? If the answer is “all of my tokens on this blockchain,” consider reducing the approval to a smaller capped amount or revoking it and re-approving with a limit whenever you need to use the service.
A non-custodial wallet like Bitget gives you complete control over your approvals because you control the private keys and every transaction is signed by you, not by a service on your behalf. That control is powerful, but it also means that you are responsible for managing your own security. A centralized exchange would revoke old approvals automatically or prevent you from approving unknown contracts entirely. Bitget Wallet cannot do that—it cannot and should not prevent you from interacting with any smart contract you choose. Your job is to use that freedom responsibly by regularly auditing what you have approved and removing access that is no longer needed.
Understanding cross-chain approval risks and hardware wallet integration
Many users interact with multiple blockchains—Ethereum for major protocols, Polygon for cheaper transactions, Solana for speed, Aptos for newer dApps. Bitget Wallet supports 90+ blockchains, which is convenient but also means you may have approvals scattered across several chains. An approval on Polygon does not affect your Solana tokens, and an approval on Ethereum does not protect or endanger your Aptos assets. However, this multi-chain complexity can lead to forgotten approvals because users do not realize they need to audit each blockchain separately.
A systematic approach is to create a list of every blockchain you use and every token you hold on that chain. Then, query your approvals on each blockchain and document them. This takes time initially but makes future audits much faster and ensures you do not miss an entire chain. If you use Bitget Wallet across multiple devices—a phone and a desktop computer, for example—remember that approvals are on-chain and visible from any device you use to access your wallet. You do not have to revoke an approval separately on each device; one revocation transaction affects the blockchain state and is immediately visible everywhere.
Hardware wallet integration is an additional security layer that Bitget Wallet supports through devices like Ledger and Trezor. If you use a hardware wallet with Bitget Wallet, your private keys never leave the hardware device, and every approval or revocation must be signed on the hardware wallet itself. This prevents malware on your computer or phone from approving contracts without your knowledge. However, it also means that you must physically confirm each revocation on the hardware device, which is slower but more secure. The trade-off is worth it if you are managing substantial assets, but for smaller balances, the convenience of signing approvals directly in Bitget Wallet may be acceptable.
Responding to a suspected approval exploit or compromise
Despite your best efforts, you may discover that an approval you thought was inactive or limited has been used to drain your tokens. This is not a failure of Bitget Wallet specifically—it is a failure of the contract you approved. Your immediate actions should be rapid but not panicked. First, stop using any service related to the compromised contract. If you used the contract through a website, avoid that website until you are certain it is secure. Second, audit all of your remaining approvals on all blockchains and revoke anything that is unnecessary or unfamiliar.
Third, move any remaining tokens to a fresh wallet address that has never been exposed to dApps. This is more extreme than revoking approvals, but if you have been targeted, the attacker may have learned to look for your address or found other ways to compromise your security. Do not reuse the same address or the same passwords or recovery phrases until you have investigated how the exploit happened and confirmed that you have eliminated the cause.
Fourth, enable biometric authentication on Bitget Wallet if you have not already, and ensure that your device itself is secure. Biometric authentication prevents someone from accessing your wallet even if they gain access to your phone or computer. For a Web3 wallet managing cryptocurrency assets, this extra layer of device security is essential. Finally, if the exploit was the result of a website compromise or a phishing attack, report it to the relevant service or community. Other users may be at risk, and early warnings can prevent further losses.
Building approval discipline as a DeFi user
The fundamental lesson is that approval risk is self-inflicted but preventable. Every approval you grant is a choice, and every approval can be revoked. The difference between a secure user and a user who gets drained is not whether they have made mistakes—most DeFi users have approved suspicious contracts or forgotten about old approvals—but whether they check and correct those mistakes regularly. Bitget Wallet, as a non-custodial wallet, gives you the information and tools to audit your approvals; using them is up to you.
A practical discipline starts with understanding that approvals are not harmless. A single approval can enable theft of unlimited tokens. They should be treated as seriously as you treat your private keys and recovery phrase. Whenever you interact with a new dApp, assume that the approval might become dangerous and resolve to audit it in three months. When you stop using a service, revoke its approval immediately rather than assuming it will not matter. When you use specialized tools to view or revoke approvals, verify that you are on the correct website and that you are revoking the correct spender contract.
Finally, remember that Bitget Wallet itself cannot prevent a malicious dApp from requesting an approval, cannot block a transaction if you have already approved it, and cannot guarantee that a contract you approve will behave safely. The wallet is a tool for managing your assets and interacting with smart contracts securely, but security ultimately depends on how you use it. An approval audit should be as routine as checking your bank statements or reviewing your email permissions. The few minutes it takes could prevent catastrophic loss.
Frequently asked questions
Can Bitget Wallet prevent me from approving a malicious contract?
No. Bitget Wallet is a non-custodial wallet, which means you have full control over your private keys and the ability to interact with any smart contract you choose. The wallet does not and should not prevent you from approving contracts. Your responsibility is to audit approvals regularly and revoke access that is no longer needed. The wallet provides visibility into existing approvals through its interface and integration with blockchain explorers, but you must take action to revoke them.
If I revoke an approval, can I still use the dApp that I revoked it from?
Yes. Revoking an approval simply removes the contract’s permission to move your tokens. If you want to use that dApp again, you will need to approve it again. The next time you interact with the service and it requests an approval, you can grant it. The temporary inconvenience of re-approving is a small price for the security benefit of not maintaining unnecessary active approvals on dormant protocols.
How much does it cost to revoke an approval?
Revoking an approval is a smart contract transaction, so you pay network fees just like any other transaction. On Ethereum, this typically costs $2–$10 depending on network congestion. On cheaper blockchains like Polygon or Binance Smart Chain, it costs less than $1. On Solana and some other chains, the cost is negligible. Compare this cost against the risk: a single approval could enable the loss of thousands of dollars worth of tokens, so revocation is almost always worth the fee.
