It’s a common assumption that blockchain technology is a completely secure and anonymous network which makes it impossible for transactions and activities on the blockchain to be revealed to a third eye.
The Ethereum network is one of the most popular types of blockchain networks that has been subjected to this common belief, hence, many believe that information and transaction data stored in the Ethereum blockchain cannot be accessed.
However, in most real cases, every piece of information, transaction data, wallets, smart contracts and gas fees ever recorded on the Ethereum blockchain can be easily accessed with a tool called “Etherscan”.
This is a popular and important tool utilized by most Ethereum network users to access every important information they need on the network.
So what is this Etherscan and how does it work on the Ethereum network?
What Is Etherscan?
Every blockchain like Ethereum has a special tool which is used to access and search the blockchain and elicit any information needed. This tool is simply known as a ” blockchain explorer” and they are specifically used for their respective blockchains. For example, to search and access transaction details, smart contracts, wallets and many other activities on the Bitcoin blockchain, you would utilize the Bitcoin blockchain explorer.
As in the case of the Ethereum blockchain, Etherscan, an Ethereum blockchain explorer is used to search and examine data concerning transactions, wallet addresses, Ethereum tokens, smart contracts, gas fees and many other Ethereum blockchain-related information.
Etherscan is not a wallet nor a crypto trading platform, it’s mainly for navigating through all the data stored on the Ethereum blockchain.
The Etherscan platform is not funded by the Ethereum Foundation but rather by a team of seasoned developers and professionals whose motivation established strongly in making the Ethereum blockchain more accessible to users.
Etherscan is sometimes called “Ethplorer” and this app has made every inquiry on the Ethereum blockchain a lot easier.
Even though Etherscan is a centralised platform, it has grown to become one of the most reliable Ethereum blockchain explorers.
What Can You Use Etherscan For?
A lot of activities can be carried out on the Ethereum blockchain using Etherscan. Since Etherscan is a platform which gives a user access to various information on the Ethereum blockchain, there is no limit to the information one can lay hands on, provided they are made public on the network.
Etherscan can only display information or data that is public on the Ethereum blockchain. In other words, private data like private keys can’t be accessed by the Etherscan app because it is not involved in any transactions or stores any private keys.
Since this tool is only concerned with public information, it gives public evidence of crypto transactions. Users can check the status of a transaction, whether the token has been sent or received, pending, successful or unsuccessful.
With this tool, users can get useful information that will help them make a transparent transaction by verifying a wallet address before engaging in any transaction.
Users can also view their assets held on their Ethereum wallet address by entering the address in the Etherscan search box. The current balance, gas fees, smart contracts and transaction history linked to the address will be displayed by Etherscan.
While making a transaction or expecting the Ethereum blockchain to confirm a transaction, a good way to track such a transaction’s progress is to check it out on Etherscan.io using its harsh key.
Users will see the estimated time the transaction will take to confirm from the hash.
Etherscan is not limited to the above-mentioned use cases. There are so many use cases of Etherscan which include the following;
- Examine live transactions as they take place on the Ethereum blockchain.
- Check and verify the crypto assets linked to a particular public wallet address.
- Find out the smart contracts that possess a verified security audit and source code.
- Check and confirm each transaction made from any Ethereum wallet.
- Detect and track the number of smart contracts authorized by a user using their wallet.
- Using the Etherscan gas tracker to calculate Ethereum gas fees.
- Check the current ETH price.
How Does Etherscan Work?
You must not open an Etherscan account to use its features even though doing so will grant you access to more features.
However, to get the information you need from Etherscan, you must first paste the address of whatever you are searching for on the search field and then click on Enter.
The information you search for will be displayed on the screen immediately.
Track Wallets With Etherscan
Like earlier said, just paste the information you want to search (wallet address) on the search field and hit the enter button.
In this case, paste the wallet address in the search field and click enter. Different information about the wallet address will be displayed and this includes;
- The current amount on the wallet (in ETH and USD).
- A list of different transactions on the blockchain and further scrolling down the search result will reveal the transaction history on the wallet address.
- The details of the transaction. By clicking on each transaction, you can read more details about the transaction like its current status, amount, sender’s address, and the number of confirmations it has received.
Review Smart Contracts With Etherscan
A smart contract is a program that executes by itself when some conditions are met. NFTs and decentralized applications on the blockchain are powered by smart contracts.
With Etherscan, smart contracts can be scanned, verify ownership and view the history of assets.
NFTs are not displayed on Etherscan but information about the owner can be seen.
To review a smart contract on Etherscan, you simply copy the address and paste it into the search field, just like you will do when tracking a wallet address but in this case is an NFT smart contract address.
By clicking on “search” or “enter”, you’ll view details about the smart contract such as the contract creator, either value, the balance, token tracker etc.
Clicking on the contract option will give you access to three more options: Code, Read Contract and Write Contract.
However, always confirm that the contract code is a verified contract.
How To Use Etherscan Gas Tracker
With Etherscan, users can check the low, average and high gas prices on platforms like Opensea, Curve, Sushiswap and others.
The term ” Gas” is referred to the fee associated with a transaction executed successfully on the Ethereum blockchain. In other words, gas means transaction fee.
Using Etherscan to check the gas fee, simply click on More > Gas Tracker.
If you want to check the gas prices of your wallet, simply enter the address in the search bar and click enter.
Further click on Analytics > Tnx Fees. The gas price and the average value of your gas fees will be displayed.
The gas price is updated on the Etherscan platform every 15 seconds making it easier for users to predict how much they will likely pay and how congested the network could be.
Conclusion
Etherscan is the most popular and reliable tool for exploring Ethereum blockchain and accessing any public data on the network.
Using Etherscan, one can track gas prices, track wallets, review smart contract codes, monitor the activities of the Ethereum blockchain and many more.
The best part is that this tool is free and does not require users to register before they can enjoy all its features.
