Will Tachyon Help Us to Create a Borderless, and Scalable Internet?

From last year’s scandal of Cambridge Analytica stealing Facebook’s user data to the recent hack of an IoT device in a Milwaukee couple’s home- our centralized Internet services have turned highly unsecured. While the acceleration of the Internet and VPN providers gave new dimensions to commercial businesses, it also gave rise to issues concerning data safety and security.

The Virtual Private Network (VPN) is supposed to add extra security and privacy to the data of users and enterprises. However, the centralized VPN providers, especially the ones offering free services, engage in unsafe protocols and logging of user data. This further results in exposure of sensitive data and cyber-attacks. By engaging in unfair practices, the basic rights of security and privacy of users are compromised.

Moreover, each and every aspect of our lives are online and secured by the Internet. A report predicts that there are going to be 20 billion IoT devices connected with each other by 2020. In such a data-driven future, our identities, data security, and privacy are potentially at huge risks.

The Internet protocol hasn’t evolved well with time. The TCP/IP protocol might be working well 20 years back, however, it doesn’t meet the growing requirements. But, things are changing now. The broken TCP/ IP protocol has found its perfect partner in blockchain technology.

New startups and companies are aiming to decentralize the web using the schematics of blockchain technology. Leveraging the principles of blockchain, a decentralized VPN, with increased security and privacy protection has given rise to new modules in the market. The project I am going to overview is Tachyon Protocol.

Our present centralized VPN providers have completely changed the terms of data protection. Either by manipulating the so-called ‘terms and conditions’ or exposing our private information to the government- such providers have altered the very fundamentals of a VPN service. In order to tackle the concerning issue and aiming to reform our current model of the Internet, the Tachyon Protocol has come up with an advanced solution.

Tachyon protocol aims to decentralize the Internet and reconstruct the TCP/ IP protocol by combining the techniques of encryption and decentralization. It wants to transform the dynamics of our present model of the Internet and thereby create a borderless, efficient, secure, fast and reliable decentralized Internet network.

By relying upon multiple advanced features such as blockchain, Distributed Hash Table (DHT), and User Datagram Protocol (DHT), the tachyon protocol aims to provide enhanced security to data and boost the level of privacy.

One of the fundamental features of this project is that it has the backing of powerful teams with an already established user base. The centralized provider X-VPN has a 50 million existing user base and is a renowned VPN provider. Coupled with X-VPN is V-Systems, which has a hold on blockchain technology in the field of cloud infrastructure.

The key features of the Tachyon Protocol are built so as to provide maximum security and user privacy.

This component of Tachyon is the bottom transparent layer that will reconstruct the TCP/IP architecture using DHT, blockchain and UDP techniques. According to its whitepaper, this will enable much faster transmission, about 200%-1,000%, than the current TCP/IP architecture. Furthermore, by completely reconstructing the 3 layers of the Internet protocol, it claims to have up to a 90% connection success rate even in weaker networks.

The security in this decentralized model is protected by the TSP component of Tachyon. The network is protected by encryption keys using AES so that the attacker is unable to read or decrypt the content. Further, it ensures security by adding random data to the transmission, thereby guarding the data broadcasted.

As in the case of a decentralized framework, it has a risk of single node capture by any hacker. Tachyon mitigates this risk using Tachyon Anti Analysis (TAA). The protocol ensures it using multipath routing and multi-relay forwarding techniques. It basically assigns multiple different IP’s, wherein each of them is routed through a different path. In other words, messages are broadcasted through different routes so that the attacker cannot interpret the actual node.

One of the fundamental parts of this project is its native token, IPX, which will provide backing and fuel to the Tachyon project. The native cryptocurrency will have a total supply of 1 billion coins, that are going to be stored on V-Systems blockchain network

It is going to play a vital part in the project by ensuring successful development through incentivizing nodes and facilitating identity verification in the system. Furthermore, token holders of IPX can also enjoy additional benefits of storing or trading the token on exchange platforms.

Projects such as Unstoppable Domains have been launched with the noble intention to take a step towards decentralizing the web. However, in the wide scale of the Internet, it offers limited advantages, chiefly concerned with domains. Another similar project named Substratum was launched with the aim of providing free and borderless Internet in the world. But, due to mismanagement of funds, and other controversies, sadly the project has not gained any further momentum.

Other projects like Skycoin and Blockcloud, aiming to generate transformation in the Internet protocol through blockchain technology, are still in the development stage. Focused on creating a safe and secure platform for the Internet, these projects have still quite a lot of groundwork to cover. From other side, Dreamr offers to connect distinctive individuals pursuing their goals on a peer to peer platform, powered by blockchain technology.

Major established VPN providers are also now focusing their attention on reforming the TCP/IP architecture through blockchain technology. The reputed firm engaged in providing VPN services, X-VPN has teamed up with V-Systems, provider of blockchain infrastructure for cloud technology in developing the next generation TCP/IP protocol to build a borderless and new Internet.

Ever since the Internet came into existence, its underlying infrastructure has more or less remained the same. Marred with privacy issues and data exploitation, centralized organizations have taken advantage of this age-old system.

Projects like Tachyon are a ray of home in creating a scalable, reliable and secure TCP/IP infrastructure. Particularly, for this project, what sets it apart is the backing of two organizations, who have already attained success in their respective fields.

Admittedly, decentralizing the web with Tachyon, which can make our online lives private and secure is what the data-driven future needs.