MaidSafeCoin (MAID) Review – A Decentralized Token for a Server-Less Network

MaidSafeCoin is a token for SafeCoin, the currency for the SAFE network. The SAFE (Secure Access for Everyone) network’s goal is to bring users an improved and safe internet experience by delivering a new, decentralized architecture that eliminates the need for human involvement in private data. The company’s mission is to provide privacy, security, and freedom for everyone in the world, free of charge, as the name of its network suggests.

MaidSafe and the MaidSafeCoin Token

MaidSafe.net is a Scottish company, founded in 2006 by Scottish engineer David Irvine, who wanted to provide a secure data and communications platform. He did this by developing the SAFE network, the world’s first autonomous data network, powered by its currency, the Safecoin. MaidSafeCoin is a token for the SafeCoin currency. These tokens were released during MaidSAfe’s crowdsale in 2014 and will be swapped for Safecoin at a 1:1 ratio when SafeCoin is released. MaidSafeCoin is listed on the bitcoin blockchain.

The name MaidSafe is an acronym for: Massive Array of Internet Disks, Secure Access for Everyone. MaidSafeCoin is the token that will be swapped at a 1:1 ratio for SafeCoin once SafeCoin is released.

MaidSafe now has 33 members, and the founding members are based in the company’s headquarters in Scotland. The company recently switched from offering either open source licensing or a commercial license to only open source to encourage more developers to contribute to the project.

“We always see the SafeNetwork a bit like a public utility,” says Nick Lambert, COO at MaidSafe to TechCrunch. “In terms of once we’ve got this thing up and launched we don’t want to control it or own it because if we do nobody will want to use it — it needs to be seen as everyone contributing. So we felt it’s a much more encouraging sign for developers who want to contribute if they see everything is fully open sourced and cannot be closed source.” Before MaidSafe, Lambert was the director of Paligap, a digital agency.

The SAFE Network

The SAFE (Secure Access for Everyone) network’s goal is to offer a secure, autonomous, data-centric, peer-to-peer network, similar to predecessors such as Napster, BitTorrent and Bitcoin. The SAFE network is designed to be locally encrypted, with data broken up, distributed and replicated across the network. Instead of servers, it relies on the users’ resources. It will provide every type of web service currently on the Internet, but self-managing and self-correcting. This will be done by having individual nodes or computers run by people who share resources.

The SAFE network puts users in control of their data, rather than handing it over to a third party. It does this through a number of network features, including:

Self-Authentication –  A user’s PIN and keyword are for that person’s data, which never leaves your machine. Data is decrypted locally so that no one needs a record of your files or permission to access it.
Self-encryption – Files uploaded to the SAFE network are broken up into chunks (C1, C2, C3). These chunks are then encrypted with individual hashes so that only those authorized can read them, randomized and distributed across the network. No one can read these chunks of data except for the original owner.
Decentralized “opportunistic data caching” system – Decentralized network means that it is stored all over the world on different devices, making it harder to attack. It also means no third party will have access to it. Opportunistic caching more that as more copies of data are created closer to where the data is being requested, speeds up popular websites and data feeds, rather than slowing it down as it does today.
Data availability and built-in redundancy – Duplicate copies of each chuck of data is available at all times. This constant movement of data, churn, makes the SAFE network secure because hackers have no central point to target for data.

In the SAFE network, users receive Safecoins for giving their unused computer resources, like free storage space, processing power, and internet connectivity. This is referred to as “farming.”

How does SAFE ensure that data isn’t lost by these farmers? It does this through Proof of Resource, which requires that resources that are not committed to the network receive less earning potential and can be rejected from the network through a process called Close Group Consensus.

The SAFE network is available now in Alpha mode. You can use the SAFE Network yourself by logging into the SAFE Authenticator, which allows you to login into SAFE’s applications anonymously and privately. Current applications available include the SAFE browser, a web hosting manager, and a desktop email tutorial.

MaidSafeCoin Price History

MaidSafe had a crowdsale in 2014 that brought in $7 million, a very successful fundraiser at the time. In this crowdsale it sold 10% of all the Safecoins that will ever be produced. It raised the money in 4 hours although it allowed 30 days for the sale. However, much of the money was in Mastercoin, a cryptocoin that had very few traders in the market, and as a result, was not liquid.

In 2016 the company raised an additional $1.7 million in cash and Bitcoin.

The coin started to rise more in 2016 peaking at $1.17 in January of 2018.

How to Purchase MAID

The best option for purchasing MAID is with Poloniex which currently has the second largest volume in MAID/BTC pair.

MAID is also available on the following exchanges:

• HitBTC (Trade MAID with BTC on HitBTC )
• HitBTC (Trade MAID with USDT on HitBTC
• HitBTC (Trade MAID with ETH on HitBTC)
• Cryptopia (Trade MAID with BTC on Cryptopia)
• Poloniex (Trade MAID with XMR on Poloniex)

How to Store MAID

You can use the web wallet Omniwallet for storing your MAID. Omnicore is an offline wallet alternative.

For maximum security, you should store your MAID offline.

Roadmap and Future Plans

MaidSafe is in its Alpha2 testing phase, which is the development of its core network and initial implementation as well as its first public testing phase.

“People are starting to create different apps against that network. There are a couple of storage style apps… There is encrypted email running as well, and also that is running on Android,” said Lambert to TechCrunch. “And we have a forked version of the Beaker browser — that’s the browser that we use right now. So if you can create websites on the Safe Network, which has its own protocol, and if you want to go and view those sites you need a Safe browser to do that, so we’ve also been working on our own browser from scratch that we’ll be releasing later this year… So there’s a number of apps that are running against that alpha 2 network.”

Additional phases include a secure autonomous network routing layer and secure autonomous data services, testing of Safecoin, and real-time network upgrades.