How to Choose Safe NFTs
A quick guide to choosing a safe NFT and what to search for when buying one. For NFT holders, we will show you the best ways to verify and secure your token.
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are all the rage right now, and for a good reason! They offer a new way to interact with games, apps, and other dapps. But with so many NFTs on the market, how can you be sure you are choosing secure tokens?
Choosing Safe NFTs
Though the NFT market utilizes blockchain technology, it is still in its early stages and may experience some glitches that render users’ purchases worthless. In addition, if you are new to the world of NFTs, it can be challenging to determine which tokens are safe to invest in.
With so many scams and Ponzi schemes out there, it’s hard to know who to trust. This guide will teach you how to spot a safe NFT and provide tips on staying safe when investing in them. So, this guide is for you, whether you are looking for your first NFT investment or simply want to ensure you are doing things safely.
As an NFT collector, here are some critical signs to ensure the security of your digital art.
For Minted NFTs
Only trade your NFT art on reputable trading sites like OpenSea: Avoid using untrustworthy third-party applications to exchange your digital assets. Also, ignore invitations to trade or link your wallet to these applications.
Check transaction history: One way to find out if your NFT is safe is by checking the history. For example, some NFT artists maliciously sell their digital artworks to themselves to falsely raise the price of their NFTs. Always look out for these red flags:
- Transactions that are carried out within an unusually short time frame.
- Accounts that have made no prior transaction and have no activity.
- Multiple NFT purchases by the same account multiple times.
You should, however, note that heavily priced NFTs (like CryptoPunks) may not have as much activity. So less activity may not necessarily mean that the NFT is not safe.
Check Project Authenticity: NFT authenticity on OpenSea is usually depicted by a checkmark next to the creator’s name. You can also verify the authenticity of your NFT art by checking the attached links to ensure that the blockchain art has been listed for release in the NFT community or crypto market. If this information is absent, such NFT is probably a scam.
Verify smart contract: Every NFT has an underlying smart contract which you can look through on the blockchain explorer, Etherscan. Check if the smart contract listed on the Twitter page is the same as the one found on the original NFT collection.
Check the Twitter page and discord groups: Do well to check the pages and read reviews of other users in the comment section to detect a potential scam.
For Unminted NFTs
Check out the Dev Team: If the development team of an NFT project is not revealing themselves, it may not be a safe idea to buy such an NFT.
Check the Twitter and discord groups: Check how interactive the members on the Twitter and discord groups are. If there is an unusual silence, think twice before choosing to buy such NFT.
Review the project roadmap: knowing what the NFT project is about before investing in it cannot be overemphasized. Do well to check if the project timeline is achievable and possible. A valuable project needs a reasonable length of time to be carried out. If the NFT seems too good to be true, it probably is.
‘Don’ts’ to Avoid When Choosing NFTs
Don’t Be Carried Away by Influencers
Many projects get popular influencers to boost the popularity of their NFTs. However, some influencers do not carry out research before recommending a project. This means that scammers can also use these influencers to push the popularity of their ‘scam projects.
Don’t Forget to Do Your Own Research (DYOR)
You must thoroughly conduct your own research before investing in any NFT.
Don’t Forget to Ask Answers From the Developers
Valuable projects usually allow users to ask questions. So think twice before buying an NFT whose developers ignore all questions asked by users.
Don’t Click on Unsolicited Links
If you suddenly receive an NFT gift in your discord DM or are sent a link by someone you do not know, do not click. Doing so may lead to your wallet being hacked and your NFTs stolen.
Examples of Safe NFTs to Buy
Galaxis
Formerly known as Ether Cards, is a blockchain-based project that provides a platform for digital artists to create and monetize dynamic NFTs with real utility.
Dynamic traits on Galaxies can be added to existing or new NFT artworks.
You can check out the Galaxies NFT vault at https://galaxis.xyz/#/nft-vaults.
You can interact with the Galaxis team and ask questions via Twitter space which is usually held every Wednesday by 9 pm Eastern time.
Girls Robots Dragons
This trailblazing sci-fi and fantasy NFT is safe to buy. The iconic duo Zoltan Boros and Gabor Szikszai displayed high-level digital artistry, as evident in the magnificent artistic depiction of the characters.
This NFT game has 15 characters (5 each of girls, robots and dragons). These unique characters also have four levels of rarity: common, rare, epic and legendary. GRD card holders are also eligible to benefit from the price pools.
You can check out the game at https://grd.fan/#/.
Also, be sure to listen to the weekly Twitter space, which holds every Monday and Friday at 9 am Eastern time.
Conclusion
NFTs are taking over the crypto space. You should, however, be careful and remember the tips provided in this article when making your next (or first) NFT purchase. Also, check out GRD and Galaxis NFTs, as they show great promise of being worth your crypto investment.
Written by Olasoji Amujo, Business Analyst & Crypto Writer
