Revoke launches browser extension for authorization revocation! Warns users before granting permissions to prevent phishing scams.

In order to prevent the increasingly prevalent online phishing scams, the authorized revocation website Revoke has launched a browser extension. Whenever a smart contract requests user authorization, a warning will pop up to remind the user.

Revoke Browser Extension

Generally, when users are exchanging coins on decentralized exchanges like Uniswap, they need to authorize protocols to access their assets. This is where the Revoke extension comes in to provide alerts.

Using an official example, the image below illustrates the process of exchanging ENS for ETH. By clicking the red button "Allow the Uniswap Protocol to use your ENS" to authorize Uniswap to use your ENS, a warning page will pop up for users to confirm whether they want to grant permission to the other party to use their assets.

In this example, the authorized asset is the ENS token, and the authorized party, Spendre, is Uniswap. As this is a legitimate authorization action, clicking Continue allows users to proceed with the transaction.

However, if a user is simply minting an NFT on a website or claiming a free airdrop, and the Revoke warning page appears, extra caution is needed.

In the case of claiming a gem airdrop as shown in the image below, the Revoke warning page prompts the user to authorize CryptoDickbutts NFT to an unknown address. Users should double-check the legitimacy of the airdrop or review the transaction history of the address in such instances.

However, in this example, it is clearly a phishing website attack, as the gem protocol has not issued any tokens and was acquired by OpenSea in April this year.

Currently, this extension is compatible with any EVM-compatible chain, but can only be used with browsers that support the Chrome extension store. Support for browsers like Firefox and Safari will be available in the future.

Revoke Website Revocation Feature

Returning to the Revoke website revocation feature, after entering an Ethereum address or ENS domain on the main page and clicking Connect Wallet, the authorized tokens or NFTs will be displayed below.

Simply inputting 0 in the field of the token to be revoked and clicking Revoke will prompt a confirmation screen.

Upon confirmation, the previous unrestricted authorization will be changed to 0, preventing the other party from accessing those assets. However, each revocation incurs a transaction fee, so it is advisable to assess this before using the website initially.