What is a honeypot token?

The trick

A honeypot lets anyone buy, so the chart goes up and looks healthy. But the contract blocks or heavily taxes selling for everyone except the creator. Buyers are stuck while the creator sells into their money.

The blocking code is often hidden: a blacklist that is switched on after launch, a 'max sell' of zero, a sell tax that the owner raises to 99%, or a transfer rule that only fails when the receiver is the trading pool.

Why charts and holders do not help

A rising price and thousands of holders say nothing about whether YOU can sell. Holders can be fake wallets, and the price only rises because nobody can sell.

Reading the contract code helps only if you can follow every function, including owner-only settings that change later.

How RugWard checks it

RugWard simulates a real buy and then a real sell of the token on BNB Chain at the current block, using its own on-chain simulation (nothing is actually traded). If the sell fails or returns far less than expected, the token is flagged DANGER and Safe Swap blocks it.

A token can change after you check it: an owner can raise taxes or enable a blacklist later. Check again right before you trade, and prefer tokens where ownership is renounced and taxes cannot change.

Checklist

Simulated sell works and sell tax is low.

Owner cannot change taxes, blacklist wallets or pause trading (or ownership is renounced).

Liquidity is locked or burned for a meaningful time.