NFT owner, approved address and operator are different roles
An approved address or operator can have transfer permissions without being the token owner. Ownership and approval fields answer different questions.
Worked example
| Role | ERC-721 example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | ownerOf(id) | Current token owner |
| Token-specific approval | getApproved(id) | Address approved for that token |
| Operator | isApprovedForAll(owner, operator) | Broader permission for owner’s tokens |
Inspect permissions separately
An item’s owner field does not list every account allowed to transfer it. ERC-721 defines both token-level approval and operator approval. ERC-1155 defines operator approval for an owner’s tokens within that contract.
Do not sign to look up approvals
These are public read calls. A site asking for a signature or transaction to reveal an address is doing more than a lookup. These references explain public data and do not require wallet access.
Common pitfalls
- An operator address is not a payment destination.
- A known marketplace operator does not make every signature request safe.
Related references
Primary sources
Examples explain identifiers. They are not investment recommendations.