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Usenet, unseen. Unseenet is a decentralized, encrypted discussion network in the spirit of old Usenet and BBSes: groups and chats you reach by running one program, carried between independently run nodes over Tor onion services.

Pre-alpha

Unseenet is in its design phase. The protocol may still change, the test nodes may be reset at any time, and the code has not had a security review. Do not rely on it to protect anyone yet.

Where to start¶

I want to read and post
Install the client, connect to a node and join a group.
Using the client
I want to run a node
One command on a Debian/Ubuntu box, a Raspberry Pi or a Proxmox LXC.
Installation
I want to understand how it works
Identities, group types, closed groups, postage.
Concepts
I want to build something compatible
The protocol is specified in the UN-RFC series.
Specification

The idea in one picture¶

  you (USB stick)                 the network
  +-----------+     Tor     +--------+  Tor  +--------+
  | unseenet  | <---------> | node A | <---> | node B | <--->  ...
  |  client   |   ONNTP     +--------+       +--------+
  +-----------+                 ^                 ^
   encrypted vault              +---- node C -----+

You connect to a node. Nodes replicate groups to each other, the way Usenet servers did. Nobody owns the network.
Every node is a Tor onion service: no public IP, no port forwarding, no DNS, and nobody needs to know where it is.
Every post is signed. Groups are owned, and their settings are signed too, so nothing can be forged.
Closed groups are end-to-end encrypted. The nodes that carry them only ever see ciphertext.
Spam is priced, not policed: every post carries a small proof-of-work.

Talk about Unseenet - on Unseenet¶

Group	For
`unseenet@ph5fc5hop5232qsz`	The project: protocol, software, ideas, questions
`unseenet.test@ph5fc5hop5232qsz`	Test posts - say hello, try replies

Test node: f6vnchi5p7ll4yn6yot6cz4ohzuxy3uhc3kztafuwn3zlyoup6tn64qd.onion