Dear Crypto community,
Because the privacy of transactions is, in my view, one of the most important features that cryptocurrency should have - no one wants Big Brother to look at where, how much, and why you use your money - I tried to make an overview of private coins and their main features. I wonder which privacy coin you see as the best one ?
Also, if I missed any good privacy coin, please write about it in this thread.
ZCash
Zcash uses a new method of cryptographic privacy called “zk-SNARKs”. At the basic level, zero-knowledge proofs allow for a way to prove that the information you are sending to the other party (e.g. the amount of funds) is true, without having to broadcast said information besides the fact that it is true. However, Zcash is not “private by default” particularly due to the inefficiency of zk-SNARKs. Zcash offers the choice of optional privacy - “shielding” is not on by default.
Monero
Monero uses Ring Confidential Transactions to improve privacy and security. By bundling the sending and receiving of public keys with older network transactions, a “mixer” is created that is capable of obfuscating addresses. On top of Ring Confidential Transactions, Monero makes use of ring signatures and Stealth addresses to hide both the sender and the receiver in a transaction.
Dash
Dash is not cryptographically private. Dash promises privacy through mixing, utilizing a modified version of CoinJoin – a method initially created to “anonymize” Bitcoins. Dash functions similar to Bitcoin, in that the blockchain is transparent by default while offering optional privacy by way of mixing. However, the mixing is being done by masternodes and there is nothing preventing these masternodes from logging the user’s output destinations, and there is no way to audit whether or not a masternode is logging anything at all.
Verge
Verge is not cryptographically private. Verge only offers “privacy” by way of Tor and I2P routing, to obfuscate traffic and conceal a user’s IP address when transacting. There are no cryptographic privacy features with regards to the blockchain, the linkability and traceability of transactions and addresses, nor the concealment of the amounts being transacted.
ZenCash
ZenCash uses zk-SNARKS (Private transactions with hidden sender/receiver information) like ZCash, however it has got more privacy features like Domain Fronting (Hides internet connection endpoints to prevent censorship}, IPFS (Publish or access data anonymously via a distributed system) and Secure Nodes. Unlike ZCash, it utilizes DAO-style governance model.
PivX
Pivx uses Zerocoin protocol - Zerocoin transactions (using so-called zPIV coins) exist alongside the PivX currency. The first step is converting PivX into anonymouns zPiv coins. Users then send zPiv to other users (splitting or merging is used along the way). Receiving users then convert zPiv back into PivX. PIVX is also working on implementing with the Invisible Internet Project (I2P), so that the IP address of every PIVX node will be hidden from its peers by defaut.
NAV Coin
NAV Coin is actually two blockchains, the main Nav Coin blockchain and another called the Subchain. When a user wants to send an anonymous transaction, they send the amount of Nav Coin and the recipient’s address to a NavTech incoming processing server. The NavTech processing server creates a transaction of random size on the Subchain and sends the transaction, and the encrypted address of the recipient, to a randomly selected outgoing server. The outgoing server decrypts the recipients address and sends Navcoin, from a pre-filled pool, on to the correct recipient.
And which one is the best for me? ZenCash
Let me know your opinions..
Added on the recommendation of the community:
DeepOnion
DeepOnion is natively integrated with the TOR network and ALL connections are made over the TOR network. Recently, it also supports Obfs4 (protocol on top of the tor network, allows access to tor in the regions that tor is not allowed or banned). Nice DeepVault feature - allows adding file validation credentials(hashes) to the blockchain, can be used to verify a file integrity. More privacy features coming. Good marketing.
SpectreCoin
SpectreCoin is integrated natively in TOR network and it supports masking TOR traffic mechanism (OBFS4). Additional privacy features are zero-knowledge proofs, ring signatures and stealth addresses (they are currently optional but will be made default in Q2 2018). Another nice feature will come in Q2 2018 - staking on Stealth Addresses.
Intense Coin
Intense Coin is a low market cap privacy coin also used as a utility coin for VPN services - a new approach to VPNs whereby peers can offer their own internet connections as encrypted tunnels for interested parties. VPN providers will receive Intense Coin (ITNS) in exchange for their services. Ring signatures are used to ensure privacy - the same technology is used by Monero (XMR). Uses CryptoNight proof-of-work mining algorithm - CPU mineable.
Sumokoin
Sumokoin is a low market cap coin - slightly improved Monero fork (ring Confidential Transactions (RingCT) with minimum ringsize (mixin) of 12). Developers do their job, people talk about it. Aims to be used easily by normal users - they've got easy miner and intuitive GUI wallets.
Electroneum
Electroneum is a Monero fork from autumn 2017. It doesn't have any improvements over Monero regarding privacy, and I haven't found any plans to implement new and planned Monero features since the fork in their roadmap. The Electroneum team seem to be good in marketing and they also concentrate on user-friendly interface. They made a "mobile miner", however the app is just a marketing trick and does not perform real mining – it's only a simulation of mining (distributing premined coins).
I think that you could also add Wancoin to the list. They implemented a possibility to send and receive private transactions.
I just don't get the idea of all privacy coins. Of course privacy is important but I think privacy will become a feature of every coin soon.
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