Features of Freenet
Highly survivableUnlike other systems, there are no single points of failure in Freenet. The system has no central servers and is not subject to the control of any one individual or organization, leading to increased reliability and security against attack, and a democratization of power. Even the designers of Freenet will not have any control over the overall system.
Information stored in the system is encrypted and replicated across a
large number of continuously-changing anonymized computers around the
world. It is extremely difficult for an attacker to find out which
participants are hosting a given file -- even the participants
themselves don't know what they are storing. Consequently,
information in Freenet is virtually
immune to attack. (By contrast, information on the web, e.g.
Scientology texts, can be and is easily destroyed through
intimidation, denial-of-service attacks, or even physical violence.)
Private
As a Freenet information consumer, your privacy is protected by making it extremely difficult for anyone spying on you to find out what information you are viewing. As an information publisher, you can build up a reputation using pseudonyms (e.g. Watergate's "Deep Throat") without external agents being able to discover your real-life identity.
These safeguards protect true freedom of speech, which
is reliant on the ability of individuals to speak and hear opinions
without fearing for their personal safety or economic position. They
also protect individuals against unwanted exposure of their personal
lives; for example, an impotent man searching for information on
treatment. (By contrast, information flows on the web are routinely
monitored and built up into intrusive and detailed personal profiles.)
Secure
Information stored in Freenet is encrypted and digitally signed to prevent data from being tampered with or counterfeited. Only the original publisher of a file has the power to modify it. (By contrast, web pages can be easily spoofed or hacked.)
Efficient
Freenet adaptively replicates and relocates information in response to demand -- if the popularity of a file increases, it is automatically mirrored in more locations, maintaining availability and countering the Slashdot effect. When a file becomes less popular, the number of mirrors is likewise automatically reduced. These processes also act to shift files from one place to another as the location of demand changes. (By contrast, web servers are often either overwhelmed by sudden spikes in demand, or inefficiently underused if demand drops.)
Freenet also provides high scalability and minimal bandwidth usage by avoiding any use of wasteful broadcast searches.