Hyphanet
Ranked 4 of 5 anonymity networks by recommenders
A free peer-to-peer network for censorship-resistant, privacy-respecting publishing and communication. Critics say its name may keep it obscure.
A free peer-to-peer network for censorship-resistant, privacy-respecting publishing and communication. Critics say its name may keep it obscure.
10 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 7
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 70%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 7 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 2.3 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Censorship-resistant, privacy-respecting publishing
“Hyphanet is peer-to-peer network for censorship-resistant and privacy-respecting publishing and communication.”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: Freenet, a peer-to-peer platform for decentralized apps” “Hyphanet is the only one that has a main use for "deviant data resistant to censorship"”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: Freenet, a peer-to-peer platform for decentralized apps”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Obscure name and little public awareness
“that name pretty much dooms the project to a slow death in obscurity”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: Freenet, a peer-to-peer platform for decentralized apps” “I never heard anything about the content on Hyphanet”
Comment from 22 May 2026 in “Show HN: Freenet, a peer-to-peer platform for decentralized apps”
Other anonymity networks people recommend
The four most recommended other anonymity networks, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 5 anonymity networks, rankedWhat people said
9 of the 11 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Hyphanet (formerly Freenet) works, people are actually using it.”
“We build a high information quality environment for us which is not easily centralize-able or lockin-able”
“they will grow into adults with the same cyber/cipherpunk mentality we '80s & '90s kids grew up with”
“Hyphanet is the only one that has a main use for "deviant data resistant to censorship"”
“The Original Freenet (Hyphanet) was quite interesting.”
“I never heard anything about the content on Hyphanet”
“Hyphanet is peer-to-peer network for censorship-resistant and privacy-respecting publishing and communication.”
“that name pretty much dooms the project to a slow death in obscurity”
“without many of the disadvantages of those”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.