Secret is the native coin of Secret Network, a blockchain with data privacy for smart contracts by default, allowing you to build and use applications that are both permissionless and privacy-preserving. This functionality protects users, secures applications, and unlocks hundreds of never-before-possible use cases for Web3.

With blockchain technology, we have the potential to create a more empowering and inclusive internet - what is often referred to as Web3. But current blockchains are public by default, exposing all data to everyone and putting users at risk. In order to enable meaningful use cases and achieve global adoption, users and organizations need control over how their data is used and shared - a concept referred to as "programmable privacy."

Nodes on Secret (known as secret nodes) can perform generalizable computations over encrypted data, which allows smart contracts (known as secret contracts) to use private and sensitive data as inputs. Secret Network's focus is on computational privacy, not just transactional privacy. This privacy functionality of Secret is critical for many fields, including decentralized finance, Web3, machine learning, access control, and many more.

Secret Network is an open-source, permissionless blockchain based on original privacy research and papers first written at MIT in 2015, including “Decentralizing Privacy,” now one of the most influential papers in the blockchain space with 2,000 academic citations.

Secret is supported by many independent development teams and entities, including Enigma, Secret Foundation, Secretnodes.org, Chain of Secrets, and more.