# Token Security Scanner
> **Tutorial**: Use AI to analyze smart contracts and tokens for security risks before investing.
## Why Security Scanning Matters
In crypto, security risks include:
- 🚨 Honeypots (can buy, can't sell)
- 🚨 Rug pulls (owner can drain liquidity)
- 🚨 Hidden mint functions
- 🚨 Malicious transfer taxes
- 🚨 Proxy contracts with dangerous upgrades
Universal Crypto MCP gives Claude the tools to detect these risks.
## Basic Token Scan
### Quick Security Check
```
Scan this token for security risks:
Contract: 0x1234567890abcdef1234567890abcdef12345678
Chain: Ethereum
Check for:
- Honeypot indicators
- Owner privileges
- Hidden taxes
- Liquidity lock status
```
**Example Response:**
```
🔍 TOKEN SECURITY SCAN
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Token: EXAMPLE (EXM)
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
RISK ASSESSMENT: ⚠️ MEDIUM RISK
✅ Passed Checks:
• Not a honeypot - sell transactions succeed
• No hidden mint function
• Source code verified on Etherscan
• No transfer pause mechanism
⚠️ Warnings:
• Owner can modify taxes (currently 2% buy, 2% sell)
• Liquidity not locked
• Contract deployed 3 days ago (new)
❌ Red Flags:
• Owner holds 15% of supply
• No renounced ownership
RECOMMENDATION: Proceed with caution. Consider waiting
for liquidity lock and ownership renouncement.
```
## Advanced Security Analysis
### Full Contract Audit
```
Perform a comprehensive security analysis:
Contract: 0xdead...beef
Chain: Arbitrum
Include:
1. Ownership analysis
2. Token distribution
3. Liquidity analysis
4. Function permissions
5. Similar contract comparison
6. Team/deployer history
```
### Check Deployer History
```
Analyze the wallet that deployed this contract:
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
Has this deployer created other tokens?
Were any of them rugs or scams?
```
### Liquidity Analysis
```
Analyze liquidity for this token:
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
Show:
- All liquidity pools
- LP token holders
- Lock status and unlock dates
- Minimum liquidity depth
```
## Pre-Investment Checklist
Use this prompt before buying any new token:
```
Pre-investment security checklist for:
Token: 0x1234...5678
Chain: [CHAIN]
1. CONTRACT VERIFICATION
- Is source code verified?
- Any proxy patterns?
- Compiler version and optimization
2. OWNERSHIP
- Who owns the contract?
- What can the owner do?
- Is ownership renounced?
3. TOKENOMICS
- Total and circulating supply
- Top holder distribution
- Team/dev wallet holdings
4. LIQUIDITY
- Pool size and depth
- Is LP locked? Until when?
- Any large LP holder risks?
5. TRADING
- Buy/sell tax rates
- Can taxes be modified?
- Any transfer restrictions?
6. HISTORY
- Contract age
- Deployer reputation
- Any past incidents
Give me a BUY / CAUTION / AVOID rating with reasoning.
```
## Specific Risk Detection
### Honeypot Check
```
Is this token a honeypot?
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: BSC
Simulate a buy and sell transaction.
Report any failures or unusual behavior.
```
### Tax Analysis
```
What are the actual trading taxes for:
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
Compare:
- Claimed taxes (from website/docs)
- Actual on-chain taxes
- Hidden fees or mechanisms
```
### Whale Alert
```
Show the top 20 holders of:
Token: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
Flag any concerning patterns:
- Single wallet > 5% (excluding LP/burn)
- Connected wallets
- Recent large accumulation
```
## Contract Comparison
### Similar Contract Analysis
```
Find contracts with similar bytecode to:
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: Ethereum
Were any of these:
- Rug pulls
- Honeypots
- Successful projects
Show safety statistics.
```
### Known Scam Pattern Detection
```
Does this contract match any known scam patterns?
Contract: 0x1234...5678
Chain: BSC
Check against:
- Known honeypot templates
- Rug pull patterns
- Pump and dump structures
```
## Monitoring Existing Holdings
### Portfolio Security Scan
```
Scan all tokens in my wallet for security risks:
Address: 0x742d35Cc6634C0532925a3b844Bc9e7595f12345
Chains: Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base
Flag any tokens that:
- Have changed ownership recently
- Modified their taxes
- Show declining liquidity
- Have unlocking LP events coming
```
### Contract Upgrade Monitoring
```
Check if any tokens I hold have upgradeable contracts:
Address: 0x742d35...
For each upgradeable contract, show:
- Proxy type
- Admin address
- Recent upgrades
- Pending timelock actions
```
## Security Tools Reference
| Tool | Purpose |
|------|---------|
| `security_scanToken` | Full token security scan |
| `security_checkHoneypot` | Honeypot detection |
| `security_analyzeContract` | Contract code analysis |
| `security_getLiquidity` | Liquidity pool analysis |
| `evm_getContractSource` | Get verified source code |
| `evm_getTokenHolders` | Top holder distribution |
## Red Flags Cheat Sheet
### 🚨 Immediate Red Flags (AVOID)
- Unverified contract source
- Owner can mint unlimited tokens
- 100% tax possible
- No liquidity lock
- Deployer has rug history
### ⚠️ Warning Signs (CAUTION)
- High owner token holdings (>10%)
- Recently deployed (<7 days)
- Modifiable taxes
- Single LP provider
- No social media presence
### ✅ Positive Signs
- Verified and audited
- Ownership renounced
- Liquidity locked 6+ months
- Distributed holder base
- Active development
## Best Practices
1. **Always scan before buying** - Takes 30 seconds, saves thousands
2. **Check liquidity locks** - Unlocked LP = rug risk
3. **Verify on multiple sources** - Don't trust one scanner
4. **Monitor your holdings** - Things can change post-purchase
5. **Trust your gut** - If something feels off, skip it
## Next Steps
- [DeFi Analytics](defi-analytics.md) - Analyze protocols safely
- [Portfolio Tracker](cross-chain-portfolio.md) - Monitor your holdings
- [Full API Reference](../mcp-server/tools-complete.md)
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