The cryptocurrency industry has been around for over 13 years now, and in that time, it has seen countless projects launch, with all kinds of ideas behind them, from the most brilliant to the most ridiculous ones anyone can think of. However, no matter how great these ideas were, none managed to revolutionize the sector as much as Ethereum did when it pointed out the possibilities of blockchain technology.
The blockchain’s ability to store information, do it safely, make it immutable, and store massive quantities of data, have been used, explored, and pushed to the limits ever since. However, while this ability led to people recording code on it and creating smart contracts, and through them dApps, DeFi protocols, and all kinds of other things, it is important to remember that this ability also made blockchain the biggest competitor of cloud storage.
This is what the project called Siacoin had in mind — using the blockchain to offer the creation of a post-cloud world, and launching the world’s leading decentralized cloud storage platform.
How Does Siacoin (SC) Work?
Siacoin is the native cryptocurrency of Sia, a blockchain-based, distributed, decentralized cloud storage platform. Essentially, Sia acts as a secure and trustless marketplace for cloud storage where users can store their data, or if they wish to contribute to the project — lease access to their unused storage space.
All agreements and transactions that take place on the platform are going through smart contracts, with Siacoin (SC) acting as a medium of exchange for paying for storage on the network. The project’s main goal is to become the solution for the future of storage on the internet.
Files stored on the project’s network are split into 30 encrypted segments. Each segment is then uploaded to a unique host, so assuming that someone wishes to hunt them all down, they would have to target numerous different hosts, and then deal with encryption in order to maybe retrieve all data, and the right data, and figure out how to put it back together. It is safe to say that Sia is one of the safest and most decentralized solutions of this kind out there, and that your data will be safe if stored within. Meanwhile, if you wish to lease your own extra storage space, you will be rewarded for it in Siacoin.
What Problems Does Siacoin (SC) Solve?
Siacoin aims to solve the problems that we have today with modern-day cloud storage. That includes things such as:
Decentralizing online storage
Modern-day cloud storage, such as the one offered by Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and alike, has served us well over the past decade. However, they are still plagued by certain undeniable issues. Centralization is a huge one, as users never know who can see and access their data without their consent, or even without them knowing about it. With their data stored on some corporation’s private server, the company offering the service has full power over said data. While doing anything with it, including reviewing it, would be unethical, there is no proof that these companies are truly respecting their users’ privacy.
By storing this data on the blockchain, Siacoin ensures that there will be no centralized authority that would have full control over the blockchain or the data stored within.
Preventing tampering
Tampering with data is also a large threat, as this information is not set in stone. Today, cloud storage can have pretty much any type of data, from crucial research to personal diaries, and all of that information can be accessed by the company that offers the service, and even third parties.
It is possible that the firms’ partners might be granted access, or even that someone might hack the servers and access this data, whether for the purpose of stealing it, changing it, or simply reviewing it without permission. This is, of course, not possible when the information is stored securely on the blockchain.
Making data truly private
Privacy is a big word on the internet today, but the question is – is there any true privacy left online? If so, it can likely only be found on the blockchain, which is open-source and completely decentralized. With it being open-source, anyone can inspect the code and confirm that there are no secret entries meant for stealing the information or allowing hidden entryways that would allow them to monitor it.
This is why blockchain technology is almost certainly the future of online storages, as it simply offers greater security and privacy.
Benefits of Siacoin (SC)
So far, we have seen how Siacoin can improve online data storage solutions, but what can it do for you, as a user? Here are some examples:
Earn by leasing unused storage space
Being run by the community, Siacoin allows users to contribute as much or as little as they wish to its project, and it rewards them for it. Anyone who has some extra storage space that they do not require, can lease it and grant it to the project for use. In return, they can receive rewards, as a way of compensation, which allows users to earn.
Competitive storage rates
Thanks to the fact that it is decentralized and based on the blockchain, Siacoin can offer much better storage rates than any centralized service. Centralized firms are required to buy or rent servers, maintain them, and all of that costs money. Plus, if they are offering services, they wish to be able to profit from that. With Siacoin, none of that is the case, which makes it a lot more cost-effective than traditional solutions.
Total privacy
Finally, thanks to the high levels of privacy, immutability, and security, you can be sure that all of your data will be safe if you store it on the blockchain. Especially if you store it with a project such as Siacoin, which specifically deals in providing data privacy and security to its users.
Bottom Line
While the crypto world is now heavily focused on decentralized finance, NFTs, metaverse, and alike, it is worth remembering that there are also plenty of projects working on improving the existing solutions, and that many of them may be just as revolutionizing in the long run. Siacoin is definitely worth a look, and we believe that it might be a good choice for some investors.
