A Web3 application may look like an ordinary website. The difference appears when it asks you to connect a wallet or sign something. Using it means understanding a sequence of requests, not approving every confirmation.
The stablecoin guide introduced one possible asset. We will now follow a simulated exchange without recommending a service or committing money.
Start by observing
Before connecting anything, establish what the service actually does: which asset goes in, which comes out, on which network and with which fees? Clear documentation should let you explain this in ordinary language.
Reading explanations or a block explorer generally requires no signature. A test network and separate account can provide a learning environment. Test tokens do not prove that the same actions will be safe with real assets.
Connection, authentication and permission
Connecting usually shares an address with the website. This can make it easier to associate your public activity with your visit.
Signature-based authentication demonstrates control of an account to sign in. A structured message can identify the domain, network and expiry. Sign-In with Ethereum describes this login method. The displayed domain should match the expected service.
A spending permission lets a program act on particular tokens. It is different from connecting. Some permissions can use a signature that is processed later, as illustrated by ERC-2612 permit. A request without a visible fee still needs scrutiny.
Follow a fictional exchange
Imagine an interface offering to exchange 10 A tokens for B tokens on a test network.
- Check the network and the identity of both tokens.
- If permission is needed, identify the authorised program and amount.
- Examine the estimated output, fees and minimum accepted output.
- Sign the exchange transaction only if those settings match your intention.
- Verify the result on the network rather than relying solely on the website.
Slippage describes a possible difference between an estimate and execution conditions. Increasing the accepted difference is not a neutral solution to a failed transaction: it can permit a worse outcome.
Closing a website does not remove every permission
Disconnecting ends a relationship with an interface. A permission already recorded in a contract may remain active. Review it and, where needed, revoke it using the appropriate procedure. MetaMask’s explanation of token approvals distinguishes these actions.
Revocation does not recover assets already transferred or repair a disclosed key. It changes a particular permission rather than addressing every possible cause of an incident.
Check your understanding
An application asks you to “confirm your connection”, but the wallet displays an unlimited spending permission. Are these the same action? No. A button label does not replace the actual request.
Remember: connect, sign or grant permission only for an action you can describe. Each step has its own effect.
Next: avoiding mistakes and scams.