Twister (software)
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Twister running on GNU/Linux
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| Original author(s) | Miguel Freitas |
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| Developer(s) | Open Source on Github, Miguel Freitas, Lucas Leal |
| Initial release | December 30, 2013 |
| Development status | Active Alpha |
| Operating system | FreeBSD,Linux,Mac OS X,Microsoft Windows, and Android |
| Size | 1 MB |
| Available in | English, Russian |
| Type | Social network service, microblogging |
| License | MIT and BSD licenses |
| Website | twister |
Twister is free software for experimental peer-to-peer microblogging. Being completely decentralized means that no one is able to shut it down, as there is no single point to attack. The system uses end-to-end encryption to safeguard communications. It is based on both BitTorrent and Bitcoin-like protocols and is considered a (distributed) Twitter clone.
Twister is a Twitter-like microblogging platform that utilizes the same blockchain technology as Bitcoin, and the file exchange method from BitTorrent, both based on P2P technologies.
Twister is experimental software in alpha phase, implemented as a distributed file sharing system. User registration and authentication is provided by a Bitcoin-like network, so it is completely distributed and does not depend on any central authority. Distribution of posts uses Kademlia distributed hash table (DHT) network and BitTorrent-like swarms, both provided by libtorrent. Included versions of both Bitcoin and libtorrent are highly patched, and intentionally not interoperable with the already existing networks.
Miguel Freitas, aiming to build a censor-resistant public posting platform, began development on Twister in July 2013 to address the concerns of free speech and privacy. Building off the work of Bitcoin and Bittorrent, he was able to have the core working by October 2013. Lucas Leal was hired to create HTML and CSS for the user interface, with Miguel writing required JavaScript code. 2,500 user accounts were registered in the first six days of operation.
As a completely decentralized network, no one is capable of incapacitating Twister since there is not a unique point of attack to the system. Twister uses end-to-end encryption to protect the communications. Furthermore, Twister is designed to prevent other users from knowing your GSM localization, IP address, and who you are following. Users can publish public messages as with other microblogging platforms, but when they send direct messages and private messages to other users, these are protected from unsolicited access.
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Wikipedia