token Photo: VCG

As tokens became popular in early 2026, China's Ministry of State Security (MSS) on Tuesday warned of potential risks related to their use, including token leakage and token hijacking, forgery and tampering risks, and token-related scam hazards, urging for a rational assessment of the value of tokens and enhanced security awareness.

Along with the popularity of token, some criminals have begun to make use of tokens to plant various traps. Tokens themselves also carry certain security risks during use that need to be guarded against, according to an article seen on the ministry's WeChat account on Tuesday.

According to the article, law-breakers can steal or intercept unencrypted tokens via cross-site scripting (XSS) and public Wi-Fi sniffing. Once tokens are leaked, attackers can directly impersonate users to access private information, log into accounts, tamper with data, and carry out unauthorized transfers, threatening personal property security.

If a massive number of tokens are aggregated and analyzed, systemic risks may arise, endangering data security and national security, the article noted.

In addition, if tokens lack encryption or signature protection, law-breakers can modify the permission fields of tokens, forge administrator identities to bypass system verification, and illegally obtain users' sensitive data or perform unauthorized operations. And, they may create "fake tokens" to induce users to disclose private information such as ID numbers and phone numbers, according to the article.

In particular, claims such as "hoarding tokens can lead to sudden wealth" or profiting from the so-called over-the-counter trading not only involve illegal financial activities, but may also be exploited by overseas intelligence agencies for data theft and fund infiltration, endangering national economic security and data security, the article said.

"Despite the growing popularity of tokens, we should rationally assess their value and pay attention to information and privacy security, enhance our security awareness, and ensure proper understanding and use of tokens," the MSS article said.

China's average daily tokens usage exceeded 140 trillion in March 2026, representing more than 1,000-fold surge from the beginning of 2024, industry data showed.