MaidSafe is a decentralised network that offers people the possibility to safely store their personal data without any chance of it being stolen. It is a project that was started in 2006 by the Scottish engineer David Irvine and that aimed at providing people with a secure place for their private information and documentation, thus, returning people’s privacy on the Internet. Currently, 10 years later, the SAFE (Secure Access For Everyone) Network offers a database where there is no controlling body, consequently, a database without censorship and restrictions imposed by the government or any other third party.

The network consists of numerous people who deliberately let their unused computer storage space being used by others. All the data uploaded is self-encrypted, divided into separate chunks and distributed around the different computers. In that way, there is no actual complete file that can be read and accessed without the permission of its owner. What is more, the information is spread all over the world making it untraceable and virtually invulnerable to attacks. You get a safe place for your files without even using any of your hard drive space. Of course, there is compensation for all the people that actually build the network by providing their free computer resources for data storage. They get paid by means of SafeCoin digital token.

The amount of coins earned depends on the amount of storage space shared and on the time that the device is actually turned on. All the people that receive this cryptocurrency are called farmers and the act of exchanging computer space for SafeCoins is denominated farming. In fact, the 4.3 billion SafeCoins generated are the ‘way of communication’ within the peer-to-peer network as they may be earned, traded or purchased. In the spirit of MaidSafe, SafeCoin payments are completely anonymous and only the parties involved in the transactions have access to one another’s personal details.

Clearly enough, the farmers are not aware of the information, or the parts of information that they actually store. Only by logging in the self-authentication system can a person access its own files. You log in through a secure gateway that enables you to ﬁnd your data and decrypt it so that it reconstitutes from the small pieces it was broken into. The technology of MaidSafe makes the network fully reliable and secure with no possible intervention from outside it. Furthermore, there are always multiple copies made of the data uploaded so that it can never be lost. No central body, no stealing of information, just a safe and innovative way of storing data and sharing it.