For many years now, internet censorship, geo-restrictions, and data security issues have been making the web less safe for internet users, while access to vital content has become more restricted. With so much of our lives now dependent upon the worldwide web, secure access to important information is a matter of global importance.
In response, many users have turned to virtual private networks (VPNs) and pay for special software that allows them to connect to servers all over the world. With a VPN, users can connect more securely to the web and redefine what is and what is not available to them in their region. And while VPN services do provide an added layer of protection, they are not immune to a visit from a government authority demanding that the VPN company hand over it’s customer records (credit card data included!)
The problem with traditional VPNs is that they are still bound by a business model wherein data is routed and collected in a centralized location that makes it easy for third parties to demand access -- parties whose intentions may or may not be benevolent. In either case, user privacy with a traditional VPN is not guaranteed. In the case of malicious intent, this ease of access and low barrier to privacy-infringement becomes a dangerous liability.
One organization leading the way to combat internet censorship and provide secure freedom of access to information is MASQ, whose secure platform for accessing the web represents a quantum leap in internet freedom and security.
What is MASQ?MASQ is a project that supports a free, open, and decentralized internet. By combining the power of a VPN with the security features of Tor technology it is a platform where users form a decentralized mesh network (dMN) using superior, next-generation software to replace the traditional VPN. Leveraging blockchain technology, and powered by you the individual user, MASQ has empowered a community to form around this formidable advancement in the cause of internet freedom. What is more, users can earn rewards when they participate, getting paid in cryptocurrency for supporting a secure and uncensored global web.
In the simplest terms, users can help promote internet freedom in a way that goes beyond just moral support -- they can help make it happen at the technological level and earn crypto at the same time. While surfing the internet as they always do, users on the MASQ platform are secure, and they can also choose to contribute bandwidth to its dMN. In doing so they not only help solve the problems of centralized data routing and storage, they become undetectable to malicious third parties and support the capacity of others to do the same. Combined with the security features of blockchain technology, a decentralized platform helps users regain their anonymity and privacy while ensuring safe and secure access to content from anywhere in the world.
All this is secured and powered by the $MASQ Utility Token, which is rewarded to users who serve internet traffic to other members of the network, and spent by users in a “pay-as-you-go” fashion. MASQ is built on the Ethereum blockchain and has now integrated onto Polygon Network and the project rewards those who help run it -- cryptocurrency rewards are securely and anonymously deposited to a user’s Ethereum Wallet. Developers can also help build apps to support the project’s ecosystem, further contributing to the innovations and improvements of the project’s tech and user privacy missions.
MASQ Network Integrates with PolygonMASQ recently announced that it has integrated with Polygon’s infrastructure, becoming the first decentralized mesh network of its kind to join Polygon’s ecosystem. In MASQ’s first governance proposal, a vote was taken by MASQ-WETH LP holders (who receive staking rewards and the right to vote on project proposals through their liquidity provision) who democratically confirmed the decision to integrate.
The Polygon Network integration provides a number of benefits, including greatly reduced gas fees, faster transaction times, and greater scalability while maintaining all the security that the blockchain industry can muster. With its potential to process up to 7,000 TPS, Polygon’s extreme scalability is important, making network congestion and poor user experience quite literally a thing of the past.
MASQ Development, Today and TomorrowMASQ is a rapidly growing project with new developments announced every other day (so it seems). In the last month alone, MASQ developers reached the 92% completion mark in the software component of its project, GEMINI v0.2-alpha, and are currently in the final process of reviewing code. As just mentioned, the integration with Polygon is a profound advancement in the crypto space that will do much to ensure a robust and profitable future for all technologies involved. If that were not enough, the project has also been working on hardening the Accountant Module for Blockchain Bridge scanning, a connection that allows for the transfer of tokens and arbitrary data between chains with different protocols, rules, and governance models.
It is important to remember that MASQ is pioneering the most advanced way yet to access and power the decentralized internet, which means that things sometimes appear to progress slowly. Much, much testing is required to ensure that users will have the best possible experience from the moment they begin using the project’s platform and its features.
A recent announcement worth particular mention is a secret feature they have built into GEMINI called the Veil Initiative, which has never been showcased or previewed in any previous product demo. According to the developers, it is something that “both new and experienced users will appreciate greatly, as it will be useful in daily interactions with the world of cryptocurrency.”
MASQ Staking RewardsOne of the most powerful aspects of many crypto related projects is the ability to stake tokens in a liquidity pool reward program. MASQ has offered staking with two Aludel reward programs, both of which became active in October of 2021. The first, called NEO, was the MASQ single-sided rewards program. The NEO Aludel Pool (NASDAQ:POOL) ended on October 13th, but it remains open for users to claim their rewards, as of now, with no time limit.
The second, known as GEMINI, is a SUSHI-MASQWETH Sushiswap Liquidity Provider rewards program. As for this GEMINI Aludel Pool, it offers four major advantages to its users -- standard liquidity provider rewards from Sushiswap fees, the activation of GEMINI subscription rewards, considerably higher APY rewards than the completed NEO pool, and most importantly, it grants the holder voting rights in the project’s governance proposals. These reward pools have been massively popular, with 3.7 million MASQ tokens in subscriptions as of October 9th, worth over $1 million. The Gemini Aludel Pool has been extended until December 31st, 2021, so there is still plenty of time to join -- plenty in crypto-time anyway.