HiveScarab › Guides

How to create a safe MEXC API key (trade-only, no withdrawals)

A trading tool needs an API key to place orders on your MEXC account. Created the right way, that key can trade but can never move your money out. Here is how to do it in about five minutes.

Before you start

• Use a MEXC account you control, with two-factor authentication turned on.
• Have a safe place ready (a password manager) for the secret key. MEXC shows it only once.

Step 1: open API Management

1. Log in to mexc.com.
2. Open Account → API Management.
3. Click Create API Key.

Step 2: choose only the permissions you need

For spot trading, enable only:

• Account → View Account Details
• Trade → View Order Details
• Trade → Trade

Never enable Withdraw. No trading tool needs it to trade. HiveScarab refuses any key that can withdraw, and checks the permission again before every use.

Step 3: link an IP address

MEXC lets you restrict a key to specific IP addresses. A linked key works only from those addresses, so a stolen key is useless elsewhere. On MEXC, a key with a linked IP also does not expire after 90 days.

For HiveScarab, link: 141.253.98.189

Step 4: finish and copy both codes

1. Give the key a label you will recognise, for example "HiveScarab".
2. Accept MEXC's risk reminder.
3. Copy the API Key and the Secret Key right away. MEXC shows the secret only once.

Lost the secret? Delete the key and create a new one. Do not try to guess it.

Step 5: connect it

Paste the key and secret only into the tool's own connection form. For HiveScarab that is the "Connect your exchange account" section of your dashboard. Never send API keys by chat, email or screenshot. The full walkthrough with screenshots is in the MEXC setup guide.

Keeping the key safe afterwards

• Review your keys in API Management from time to time and delete the ones you no longer use.
• If you think a key leaked, delete it on MEXC immediately. That cuts off access at once.
• Never give anyone your exchange password or your 2FA codes. A trading tool never needs them.

Risk warning: trading crypto-assets involves a high risk of loss. Past performance does not guarantee future results. HiveScarab provides software that executes on your own exchange account; nothing on this website is financial or investment advice. Only trade with money you can afford to lose.