Metadata Privacy
To protect the privacy of your communications, metadata privacy is complementary to end-to-end encryption (E2EE). Even if others can’t read my messages, can they tell who I’m talking to and when? Metadata privacy is a challenging, layered problem that informs the design of our transport architecture. In this post we describe the metadata protections that are in place today, and how our architecture lays the groundwork for structural improvements in metadata privacy.
Germ Theory: Why We Chose a Provocative Name for a Safer Messenger
Our company name Germ Network emerged from a brainstorm off of the word “grassroots.” Embracing complex systems and autonomous coordination, it names a network that will grow from the ground up, rather than be delegated from the top down. As germination, it evokes the root systems, mushrooms, and rhizhomes that quietly connect our world.
Germ’s First Merch Drop!
We’re celebrating a big year with our first merch — baseball caps in slime green and classic black!
Germ Network raises pre-seed funding from K5 Global, Mozilla Ventures
Former Apple privacy engineer Mark Xue teams up with ex-Stanford social media scholar Tessa Brown to put people in control of what they share online
Decentralized Pairwise MLS
This is the second of two technical posts explaining Germ's technology. Previously, I introduced the Autonomous Communicator(AC) Protocol, built around Messaging Layer Security (MLS). In this post I’ll explain in further detail how we use MLS for 1:1 messaging within the AC Protocol.
Autonomous Communicator (AC) Protocol
“Hi, I’m Mark, here’s how you can send a message to me.”
In our last post I announced our incorporation of MLS into Germ, and how MLS underwrites our ability to innovate in identity. Today, I’ll introduce that innovation, our Autonomous Communicator (AC) Protocol. The AC Protocol empowers people to autonomously define identities which they can exchange with others to form relationships for communicating over end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) messaging channels. We designed it to use cryptography to support the ways we naturally form, grow, and dissolve relationships.
Germ DM is now on Messaging Layer Security!
We’re thrilled to announce the release of Germ DM 2.1, featuring Messaging Layer Security (MLS). Germ empowers people to form effortless digital connections without oversharing, now with best-in-class end-to-end encryption.
Building for boundaries
Over the next weeks and months, we’ll be pushing features and technical updates that bring Germ out of beta, empowering you to use Germ in more contexts for more kinds of conversations. Before we get into the technical details, it’s worth taking a moment to refocus on our values and goals.
Allow us to reintroduce ourselves…
After a summer deep in the backend, we’re excited this fall to start shipping features again, building our community, and helping you control what you share online.
Germ DM is live in Mexico and Europe!
¡Hola! Bonjour! Hallo! Germ is now available in Mexico and Europe!
