Crowdsourced Threat Detector PolySwarm Goes Live on Mainnet

The network uses PolySwarm’s NCT token for transactions.

By Will Canny

Dec 15, 2021 at 9:53 p.m. UTC

Updated Dec 15, 2021 at 9:55 p.m. UTC

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Secure Your Seat

Will Canny

Will Canny is CoinDesk's finance reporter.

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Crowdsourced threat detection firm PolySwarm went live with its mainnet, the company announced Wednesday in a tweet. Mainnet refers to a blockchain in production whose products, services and tokens are live in the wild.

The threat detection marketplace will use PolySwarm’s nectar (NCT) token, which operates on the Ethereum blockchain.
Here’s how it works: Users submit their URLs or files to PolySwarm to check for malicious code that could be embedded within such files. An automated engine then runs a search against several other “safe” codes, following which the user-submitted file is either deemed malicious or safe. Transactions for this service are done via nectar tokens, which are additionally rewarded to software partners and customers using PolySwarm.
In the marketplace, security experts will compete with each other to identify and protect users against threats. Those that can correctly identify threats, will be rewarded with nectar tokens. All suppliers and consumers will also need nectar tokens to use the marketplace.
PolySwarm has over 55 engines operating in its marketplace and these include Crowdstrike, Sentinel One and Kaspersky. Some of the company’s largest customers include Microsoft and Verizon, PolySwarm CEO Steve Bassi told CoinDesk.

M&A uptick

The M&A activity in the sector has picked up recently. One of the most notable deals in the sector was the $8 billion acquisition of Avast by NortonLifeLock in August 2021.
Special purpose acquisition company CYBA has signed letters of intent with Narf Industries and PolySwarm. In March 2021, CYBA was listed on the London Stock Exchange to acquire and then act as the holding company for a number of target cyber security businesses.

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Will Canny

Will Canny is CoinDesk's finance reporter.

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Will Canny

Will Canny is CoinDesk's finance reporter.