In the post of today, I will be looking at the top 10 privacy coins and which of them is the best.

Privacy coins are cryptocurrencies that hide information about their users such as the amount of cryptocurrency traded, IP(Internet Protocol) address, etc.

This way, user information remains shielded from third-party scrutiny.

At the end of today’s post, you would have understood what privacy coins are, how they work, and the top best 10 to use.

I know you’re itching to find out all about these coins already… And I am so ready to unleash the facts!

So, why wait? Let’s get at it right away!

Post Overview

The post will be discussed under the following concise subheadings:

• Privacy Coins: Why Do They Matter?
• 10 Best Privacy Coins
• Privacy Coin Race: And The Winner Is…
• Conclusion

As usual, a click on any of the subheadings will take you directly to its details.

Right from the next section, we will be going into the business of the day proper. I ask that you keep your jotter and pen close by to put down points and questions(if any).

Enjoy reading this post!

Privacy Coins: Why Do They Matter?

I thought all cryptocurrency transactions were supposed to be anonymous. Why then do we have privacy coins?

While your name may not appear on your transactions in many blockchains, such as Bitcoin, various details like the funds you transfer or receive, your account balance, and even your IP address can be monitored.

Some persons will prefer their transactions — how they spend their money, where they spend their money, to whom they receive money from, and their net worth and account balance to remain completely private and inaccessible to any third parties.

You may not see the need for financial privacy, maybe because you feel you have nothing to hide.

But, really, will you want anyone to keep track of stuff like your salary, account balance or purchases?

I guess not! This is where Privacy Coins come in.

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Continue below!

Privacy coins are anonymous, decentralized digital money that mimics the property of physical cash.

When you take out cash from the ATM, nobody knows how or where you spend your money. You can decide to buy a bottle of soft drink and biscuits from the side store with the cash withdrawn.

Unlike with a credit card, there is no record of this transaction anywhere online.

This implies that information about any trade involving privacy coins can only be accessed by the users themselves and not by any third party, such as the government, business partner, online trolls, etc.

This is achieved by employing techniques such as I2P technology, Ring signatures, Stealth addresses, Kovri technology, etc., to obfuscate the address of the sender and receiver, IP address, the amount of crypto sent or received, and other information.

Some privacy coins include Monero, Zcash, Dash, Verge, Navcoin, Beam, BitcoinPrivate, PIVX, Bytecoin, etc.

In the next section, I will be listing the best 10 privacy coins in the crypto-verse.

Just scroll down to read.

 10 Best Privacy Coins and Where to Buy Them

The best of the best privacy coins in the crypto-verse include:

1. Monero(XMR)
2. Verge(XVG)
3. Dash(DASH)
4. Zcash(ZEC)
5. Bytecoin(BCN)
6. Bitcoin Private(BTCP)
7. Private Instant Verified Transaction(PIVX)
8. NavCoin(NAV)
9. Horizen(ZEN)
10. ZCoins(XZC)

Find the details below.

1. Monero

Monero is considered by many to be the number 1 privacy coin and it is not hard to see why.

It is a Bytecoin fork, keeps its users’ wallets anonymous and ensures their transactions stay private.

Monero uses four different privacy technologies:

• ring signatures
• ring confidential transactions (RingCT)
• stealth addresses
• Kovri

These hide the sender, amount, receiver, and IP address in the transaction, respectively.

The exchanges where you can buy XMR include Binance, Changelly, Coinbase, etc.

Read further:

• Monero Review: Is It Still The #1 Privacy Coin? 
• Blockvila Review: Why It is Nigeria’s #1 Broker Exchange
• Coinbase Trading Platform: How Safe Is It?

2. Verge (XVG)

Verge has gained prominence from its romance with Pornhub. Many call it the “Pornhub coin”.

Its history can be traced back to 2014 when DogecoinDark, which later rebranded as Verge, was launched.

Verge uses the following privacy techniques which serve to hide the IP address:

• Tor(The Onions network)
• I2P technology
• Wraith protocol

Best exchanges to buy XVG include Binance, Changelly, HitBTC, etc.

Read more:

• Verge(XVG) Review: Is It Still Secure and Anonymous?
• My Amazing Binance Review: All You Need to Know in One Place

3. Dash (DASH)

Dash (formerly known as XCoin and DarkCoin) was created with Bitcoin’s source code and is packed with a variety of Bitcoin’s features and technology.

Unlike Monero and a couple of other coins on this list, Dash is not overly focused on privacy.

But however, it has a kickass privacy feature called PrivateSend that ensures that the coins you send are kept anonymous and untraceable.

It does this by mixing your coins with other coins in the Dash Masternodes during the transfer process on the Dash network. When that is done, your coins become indistinguishable from other coins.

You can buy DASH from the following exchanges:

• Quidax
• Binance
• CEX.IO
• Changelly
• CoinCola

Further reading:

• All About Dash(DASH), the Digital Cash
• 5 Best Exchanges to Buy and Sell Dash
• Quidax Review and Comparison: 7 Vital Facts To Know About  This Exchange
• CoinCola Exchange Review: Buy Bitcoin with Gift Cards

4. Zcash (ZEC)

ZEC is the token of the Zcash blockchain that enables people to send and receive funds without any third party knowing about their transaction/account details.

Zcash uses zero-knowledge proof constructions called Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge(zk-SNARKs) which allow two users to exchange information without revealing their identities

Like Dash, Zcash is not primarily focused on privacy; it only leaves it as an option for users.

ZEC can be purchased at the following exchanges:

• Binance
• Changelly
• CEX.IO

Read more:

• Zcash Review: Is It Truly Anonymous?
• CEX.IO Reviewed: What You Should Know?

5. Bytecoin (BCN)

Bytecoin was created back in 2012 and is considered by many to be the original privacy coin.

As mentioned earlier, Monero was forked from Bytecoin and has similar features to Bytecoin.

Bytecoin uses the CryptoNote technology which is a combination of one-time stealth addresses and ring signatures.

All transactions on the Bytecoin network use one-time public keys which makes their addresses impossible to recycle and ensures coins are untraceable to their parent addresses.

Exchanges to buy BCN include Binance, HitBTC, etc.

6. Bitcoin Private(BTCP)

Bitcoin Private was derived from the fork-merge of Bitcoin and Zclassic. That is, both Bitcoin and Zclassic were forked to create Bitcoin Private.

The team behind Bitcoin Private had the goal of creating a currency with Bitcoin’s security features and popularity and the privacy functionality of Zclassic.

If you held Bitcoin or Zclassic prior to the creation of Bitcoin Private, you may have received free Bitcoin Private according to the amount of Bitcoin or Zclassic you held (in the proportion of 1:1 in this case).

We all know about Bitcoin but not many know about Zclassic; permit me to explain a bit.

Zclassic is a fork of Zcash; the major difference between Zclassic and Zcash is the removal of the founder’s reward Zcash charges its miners.

So, while Zcash charges a founder’s reward for each coin mined, Zclassic does not.

BTCP can be bought on exchanges such as Binance, BarterDEX, etc.

7. PIVX (PIVX)

PIVX, a fork of Dash, was created to facilitate everyday use through its proof-of-stake algorithm

All wallet addresses used for transactions on the PIVX network are hidden and completely anonymous through the use of the ZeroCoin Protocol.

Unlike a majority of other coins, PIVX blockchain cannot be analyzed as it is totally resilient to blockchain analysis – hence keeps the addresses of senders and receivers secret and private at all times.

However, to use the anonymous feature to send PIVX, you must first convert the amount you wish to send into zPIV coins, and when you send the zPIV coins the receiver will receive regular PIVX coins in their wallet.

During the transaction process, the Zerocoin Protocol makes sure the transaction is verified on the blockchain while ensuring that the anonymity of both the sender and receiver is maintained.

Exchanges to buy/sell PIVX include Binance, Bittrex, etc.

Further reading: Bittrex Review: a Beginner’s Guide

8. NavCoin (NAV)

Like other coins in our list, Nav Coin includes an option for anonymous transactions. Anonymous transactions are carried out on the NavTech subchain.

If an outgoing transaction, for instance, is initiated, it is encrypted and sent to the subchain rather than directly to the recipient.

When the transaction reaches the subchain, the coins are deposited into a pool that involves a variety of servers and encryption layers, after which different coins are sent to the receiver.

In this case, the source of the sent coins cannot be ascertained or determined.

You can buy NAV from exchanges such as Binance, Poloniex, Changelly, etc.

Read further: Changelly Reviewed: A Non- Custodial Exchange

9. Horizen (ZEN)

The project launched in May 2017 as ZenCash but rebranded to Horizen in July 2018.

Like Bitcoin Private(BTCP), it is a fork of ZClassic which forked from Zcash.

Thus, ZEN has all the privacy features present in Zcash.

Exchanges to buy ZEN include Binance, Bittrex, OKEx, etc.

10. Zcoin (XZC)

Zcoin leverages cryptography to enhance user privacy compared to other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

It makes use of zero-knowledge proof systems such as Sigma protocol, Tor/ Dandelion ++, and Merkle Tree Proof(MTP) to ensure transactions on its blockchain stay anonymous.

In a typical Zcoin transaction, you will have to burn some of your Zcoins to create spendable Zerocoins, a process that has a 0.01 Zcoin fee attached.

Furthermore, owing to the fact that you will have to burn and mint new Zerocoins before every transaction, the new coins you create have no transaction history.

The zero-knowledge proof system ensures that the coins cannot be traced back to you.

As a receiver, you are only notified of the presence of new coins in your wallet, without being informed of the sender’s identity.

You can buy/sell XZC at the following exchanges:

• Binance
• Huobi
• Bittrex, etc

Listed above are the top 10 privacy coins and reputable exchanges where you can buy them.

Other privacy coins include Particl(PART), BEAM, DeepOnion(ONION), Beldex, Aeon, Spectrecoin, etc.

The question now is out of all these coins, which is the best?

I provided the answer in the next section; read on to find out.

Privacy Coin Race: And The Winner Is…

Regardless of the privacy feature in use, all privacy coins strive towards one goal: to keep users’ details from the prying eyes of third parties.

Now with so many coins going the private way, bringing out a top champ becomes a herculean task.

Monero is the privacy coin leader ranking number 11 (as of 7th Jan. 2020) on CMC with a market capitalization value of .$1 billion. It has a number of features that ensure that nobody can find out any details about a transaction.

Ring signatures obscure senders, stealth addresses conceal recipients, Kovri technology masks IP addresses, and Ring Confidential Transactions (RingCT) maintain the anonymity of the amount. For Monero, privacy is not optional.

For Dash, its PrivateSend option is easy to use. It allows its blockchain users to make either public or private transactions.

Zcash, on the other hand, only records the time of the transaction and no other transaction data is provided. Thanks to zk-SNARKs, Zcash is able to verify transactions without publishing information about either party.

I suggest you make your choice of the best privacy coin based on the following preferences:

1. Is increased privacy enough for you?
2. Will you prefer privacy to be on default or an option when you carry out your transactions?
3. Is anonymity of utmost importance to you?

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Conclusion

This is going to be the last and the very special section of this post.

I say ‘very special’ because after putting out all the info, here is where I get to chitchat with you a little bit.

With the traction garnered so far by the privacy coins, do you see them taking over the crypto-sphere in the near future?

From all the facts above, would you say Satoshi’s dream of anonymous transactions is coming to fruition with the privacy coins?

Which privacy feature is your fave and why?

Drop your comments and questions for me in the comment section below.

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