A honeypot token is a scam where developers lock liquidity or add hidden code that lets them sell freely while regular buyers get stuck—you can buy but can't sell, or face massive taxes that disappear into the dev's wallet. Before touching any token, check the contract on a blockchain explorer like Solscan or Etherscan and look for suspicious functions like "setFeePercent" or "blacklist" that only the owner can call. Run the contract through a tool like Rugpull Finder or ask in trusted communities like r/solana or dedicated Discord servers for code reviews. Red flags include no verified source code, a brand-new contract, liquidity locked for suspiciously short periods, and social media hype without real utility or team transparency. The best protection is always doing test transactions with tiny amounts first, checking if you can actually sell at a normal price, and remembering that if a project won't let you verify its code, it's probably got something to hide. Test transactions reveal what words can't hide.