Short answer If your funds vanished right after an approval, it usually means you granted a smart contract permission that allowed your tokens to be transferred out of your wallet. In most cases, the approval itself didn’t move the funds immediately—it enabled a contract or attacker to move them right after or shortly after you signed it. One core mechanism explanation Token “approval” is a permission system used in crypto wallets like MetaMask. When you approve a transaction, you may be allowing: • a contract to spend specific tokens • unlimited access to a token balance • or future transfers without further confirmation If the approval is malicious (often disguised as a claim, mint, or verification), it can trigger a wallet drainer contract.…