5 Real Honeypot Tokens That Looked Legit (And Why They Trapped Investors)
Introduction
Honeypot scams are getting smarter. They don’t just block your sell button and vanish anymore they play the long game. They mimic real projects, hide traps deep in the code, and sometimes even ride off the trust of actual, known brands.
In this breakdown, we’re diving into five real honeypot cases that fooled thousands. These weren’t lazy scams. They looked clean, used pro marketing, and had just enough “legitimacy” to pass a quick glance. But under the surface, they were all the same: tokens designed to trap your funds and disappear.
1. Squid Game Token (SQUID)
What made it look legit:
It hit all the right buttons: pop culture hype, a polished website, and promises of a play-to-earn game. The branding leaned hard into the Netflix show even though it had no official tie-in. That didn’t stop the price from skyrocketing to over $2,800 per token.
The trap:
The smart contract blocked selling for all but a few wallets. Most users couldn’t exit, no matter what. The chart stayed “green” because no one could sell, giving the illusion of endless growth. Once enough liquidity piled up, the devs pulled the plug, drained everything, and vanished.
How tokenchecker.io could’ve helped:
- Flagged the honeypot sell restriction
- Exposed the lack of liquidity lock
- Highlighted the contract permissions tied to creator wallets
2. SnowdogDAO (SDOG)
What made it look legit:
It was marketed as an 8-day experiment in DeFi with a massive buyback event. It combined rebasing mechanics with memecoin branding and attracted a huge following.
The trap:
No explicit contract block here. The rug came from insider front running during the buyback event. The team quietly switched liquidity pools and let insiders dump before anyone else could act. There wasn’t a code flaw it was a game theory exploit masked as a feature.
Why this was next-level:
It showed how some rugs don’t need code traps. Just asymmetric information, confusing tokenomics, and tightly timed market moves.
3. Dechat Incident
What made it look legit:
Dechat was a real project. It had a real following. But in one announcement, they accidentally linked the wrong contract. That single mistake sent users to a malicious PancakeSwap pool.
The trap:
Victims thought they were investing in the right token. Instead, they ended up in a honeypot with sell restrictions baked into the code. Even though the project quickly fixed the link, the damage was done.
Lesson learned:
Even real projects can mislead you by accident. Always verify contract addresses independently before investing.
4. ZebraSwap Token
What made it look legit:
It launched on LeetSwap and had decent-looking activity. But here’s the twist it wasn’t just one token. The same scammer address deployed over 30 near-identical honeypots in two days.
The trap:
Smart contracts were filled with hidden conditional checks some required selling in the same block that a specific variable was set. Others blocked wallets by default. These weren’t bugs. They were traps hidden in plain sight.
The bigger story:
This was factory-level scamming. One address, mass deployment, all automated. It’s not a lone scammer it’s a business.
5. Fake Shia Token (BSC Chain)
What made it look legit:
It was listed on BSC, looked standard, and had normal trading behavior on the surface. But that was part of the con.
The trap:
Internally, the smart contract used a “balance change” method. It let you buy but then quietly set your true balance to zero. Public explorers showed you still held tokens, but the contract wouldn’t let you sell.
Why it’s dangerous:
This type of trap is subtle. It creates a fake reality between what you see and what the contract recognizes.
Final Thoughts
All five of these tokens used different tactics. Some leaned on hype. Others leaned on bugs. Some came from real teams. Others were faceless. But they all had one thing in common: once your funds were in, they weren’t coming back out.
tokenchecker.io exists to stop these exact traps. It simulates sell functions, flags malicious code, checks mint permissions, and analyzes liquidity and wallet control. Whether it’s a flashy play-to-earn or a fake meme coin you need a second opinion before you buy.
Because in DeFi, looking legit doesn’t mean anything. Code is truth.