Introduction

NameGuard provides an easy to understand "x-ray" of ENS names that helps to protect against hidden risks they might contain. This goes beyond simple checks if a name is "normalized" according to ENSIP-15 to include checks for risks such as confusables, limited font support, NameWrapper support, DNS support (for use with services such as .eth.limo), typing difficulty, NameWrapper fuses, etc..

When NameGuard launches (soon -- under very active development) it will include both an open source library, a hosted API, and a UI kit that makes it easy for anyone to make use of the hosted API without need to run the open source library themselves.

FrENS in Need: The Genesis of NameGuard

Web3 messaging networks, social apps, and communications platforms are rapidly launching ENS integrations. As the prevalence of ENS expands across Web3, attempts at misuse and abuse of ENS are increasing in parallel. It is critical to the community’s growth that this activity is addressed. NameGuard provides comprehensive open source solution to protect the web3 community against deceptive, malicious or otherwise risky use of ENS names.

One commonly occurring example of subversive behavior growing in web3 apps are messages being sent to users that appear to be coming from well known and trusted public figures, such as “vitalik.eth”, but it’s not actually coming from Vitalik Buterin. Instead, it is coming from some other name containing confusable, invisible, or deceptive characters that just looks quite similar to vitalik.eth.

NameGuard’s "x-ray" for ENS names ensures that users have instant full visibility on all names everywhere they go in web3. This ensures that risky names and all related attempts at deception are stopped before they even have a chance to start.

We aim to coordinate with all leading communication protocols, networks, and apps where ENS names are supported to build integrations with NameGuard to help protect the ENS community from these risks.

In addition to communications, NFT Marketplaces are another category that have also built support for ENS names. As a result, they have created large user bases by providing buyers and sellers a venue within which to trade names. This includes OpenSea, Uniswap, LooksRare, Rarible, Sudoswap, X2Y2, Foundation, and more. A number of specialized ENS marketplaces also exist. This includes ens.vision, godid.io and others.

All of these marketplaces have been inundated with a deluge of deceptive or otherwise risky ENS listings.

We will also collaborate closely with all marketplaces, forging integrations with NameGuard to help them fortify against these risks. Indeed, there is already well above $100,000 USD in ENS name sales that would have received one or more risk warnings from NameGuard.

NameGuard Result Summaries

Each name receives an overall NameGuard rating of Red, Yellow, or Green.

NameGuard Summary Tooltips

Why is the NameGuard rating Red or Yellow? It's easy to see a summary of the highest risks identified in a name or to access a fully detailed NameGuard report.

NameGuard Detailed Name Reports

View details of all the checks that NameGuard performed on a name.

NameGuard Detailed Grapheme Reports

View a summary of all the graphemes in a name, including the results of every check performed on that grapheme, and details of other graphemes that it could be visually confused with.

NameGuard's Impact

NameGuard will strengthen the integrity of the ENS ecosystem, eliminate entire classes of scams that hurt ENS enthusiasts, and support wider ENS adoption.

What's Next?

We're on the verge of making the NameGuard service available to the community, enabling any web3 app to provide their users with a 100% secure environment for ENS names. Keep an eye out for upcoming announcements.