{"id":8897,"date":"2026-06-16T19:18:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T17:18:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/?page_id=8897"},"modified":"2026-09-16T05:29:33","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T03:29:33","slug":"honeypot-token","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/glossary\/signals-and-risks\/honeypot-token\/","title":{"rendered":"Honeypot token"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.pterm{max-width:880px;margin:0 auto;font-family:inherit;padding-top:30px;}.pterm-hero{background:linear-gradient(135deg,#1a1a2e,#2d2d4a);border-radius:18px;padding:30px 34px;margin-bottom:28px;display:flex;align-items:center;gap:18px;flex-wrap:wrap;}.pterm-hero .ph-ico{width:56px;height:56px;border-radius:13px;background:rgba(245,135,31,.16);display:flex;align-items:center;justify-content:center;flex-shrink:0;}.pterm-hero h1{color:#fff;font-size:1.9em;margin:0;line-height:1.2;}.pterm-block{margin-bottom:24px;}.pterm-block h2{color:#1a1a2e;font-size:1.25em;margin:0 0 10px;}.pterm-def{background:#fff;border-left:4px solid #f5871f;border-radius:0 12px 12px 0;padding:18px 22px;color:#444;line-height:1.7;box-shadow:0 2px 10px rgba(0,0,0,.04);}.pterm-p{color:#444;line-height:1.7;margin:0 0 14px;}.pterm-ex{background:#fff7ef;border-radius:12px;padding:18px 22px;color:#5a4630;line-height:1.7;}.pterm-ex .lbl{display:inline-block;font-size:.72em;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.08em;text-transform:uppercase;color:#f5871f;margin-bottom:6px;}.pterm-see{background:#fff;border:1px solid #eee;border-radius:12px;padding:16px 20px;margin-top:30px;}.pterm-see .lbl{font-weight:700;color:#1a1a2e;margin-bottom:6px;display:block;}.pterm-see a{color:#f5871f;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;}.pterm a{color:#f5871f;font-weight:600;}<\/style>\n<p><a class=\"pterm-back\" style=\"display: inline-flex; align-items: center; gap: 8px; margin: 0 0 18px; padding: 9px 16px; background: #fff7ee; border: 1px solid #f3d9b8; border-radius: 999px; color: #e08a1e; font-weight: 600; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/glossary\/signals-and-risks\/\"><span style=\"font-size: 18px; line-height: 1;\">\u2190<\/span>Back to Signals and risks<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"pterm\">\n<div class=\"pterm-hero\">\n<div class=\"ph-ico\"><\/div>\n<h1>Honeypot token<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<div class=\"pterm-def\">\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">A honeypot token is a token that can be bought but cannot, or barely, be sold. The cause often lies in the code of the token itself, which blocks or limits selling. Whether a token works this way is not always visible in advance and sometimes only emerges when someone tries to sell.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>What it may indicate<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">When buying succeeds but selling keeps failing, that can be an indication that the token was set up to trap those who step in. There can also be technical reasons that have nothing to do with intent. The signal calls for caution; it does not deliver a verdict.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<div class=\"pterm-ex\">Someone bought a new token that appeared to be rising in value but could not sell anything when they tried. Whether the block was deliberately in the code or a fault can be established by examining the code and the transactions of other holders.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>What is a honeypot token?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">A token that can be bought but cannot, or barely, be sold, often because of code that blocks selling.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>Is a honeypot token always set up on purpose?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">Not always. There can be technical reasons too. Whether it was deliberate emerges from examining the code and the transactions of other holders.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>Is a honeypot always deliberate?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">Not necessarily. There can be technical reasons that have nothing to do with intent. The signal calls for caution, but in itself it is not a judgement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>What can you check before you buy a token?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">Look at whether other holders have actually been able to sell, whether the contract has been published, and who controls the permissions. A token in which almost every transaction is a purchase and hardly any is a sale is worth a second look.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-block\">\n<h2>How does Paucitas look at a honeypot token?<\/h2>\n<p class=\"pterm-p\">We follow the money that went in and establish where it ended up, and we describe the contract behaviour that made selling impossible. That is recorded factually in an investigation report. With that report a later police report has substance. The first step is a conversation with Paucitas.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pterm-see\">\n<p><span class=\"lbl\">See also<\/span><\/p>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/glossary\/signals-and-risks\/rug-pull\/\">Rug pull<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/glossary\/technical-terms\/blockchain-analysis\/\">Blockchain analysis<\/a> (category Fraud).<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-top:8px;\"><span class=\"lbl\">Related topic<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/topics\/crypto-fraud-investigation\/\">Crypto fraud investigation: establishing a suspicion of fraud as fact<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-top:8px;\"><span class=\"lbl\">Frequently asked question<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/questions\/is-this-crypto-platform-fraudulent\/\">Who can establish whether a crypto platform is fraudulent?<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"DefinedTerm\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/glossary\/signals-and-risks\/honeypot-token\/#term\",\"name\":\"Honeypot token\",\"alternateName\":[\"honeypot crypto\",\"token you cannot sell\",\"honeypot scam token\"],\"description\":\"A honeypot token is a token that can be bought but cannot, or barely, be sold. 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The cause [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"parent":8861,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-8897","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8897"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8897\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14354,"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8897\/revisions\/14354"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paucitas.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}