MetaMask announced new wallet protections Monday, adding warnings for lookalike addresses, investment and romance scams, and first-time recipients across its mobile app and browser extension.
The protections include clearer transaction screens and a feature called Added Protection, which automatically reverts transactions that don't match their previews. Added Protection launches on the browser extension first, with mobile support to follow.
Why New Protections Matter
Martin Peko, Staff Product Manager at MetaMask, said users often ignored scam warnings because they either trusted the recipient or were being actively coached past them.
"That's what made us think a different kind of control was needed," Peko told Decrypt. "We're also adding a route to priority support from this flow, so someone who's uncertain can reach a person rather than simply being told to stop."
Detection Technology
MetaMask is using AI to detect threats as attackers scale personalized scams. The wallet's security partner Blockaid analyzes content across websites and social feeds using language models and classification tools, alongside analysis of blockchain data to identify phishing and malicious behavior in real time.
The rollout reflects a shift toward responsive, contextual security warnings rather than static ones, including address poisoning alerts, first-time send alerts, and in-depth security data on tokens and transactions.
Rising Fraud Activity
The new features arrive as authorities pursue services supporting investment and romance fraud. In July, U.S. authorities seized more than $25 million in cryptocurrency tied to investment and romance schemes that defrauded thousands of victims across the U.S. and Canada. Earlier this month, the Secret Service froze $52.8 million in cryptocurrency linked to Xinbi Guarantee, a Telegram marketplace supplying services to scammers.
