Sentinel dVPN

Network / Mesh

A live, open-source decentralised VPN (dVPN) network on Cosmos: 1,500+ independent nodes across 70+ countries, paid in the $DVPN token. A protocol and marketplace, not a single provider.

sentinel.co/ ↗

Not scored

Jurisdiction: Decentralised (Cosmos, global nodes)
Founded: 2018
Owner: Sentinel dVPN Foundation, on-chain validator governance
Best price: n/a
Devices: n/a
Free tier: No

Network / Mesh. A decentralised anonymity network you route through (Tor onion routing, HOPR mixnet) or a private device mesh (Tailscale-style), rather than a commercial VPN provider. Listed but not scored head-to-head.

Sentinel dVPN is in the Network / Meshcategory, so we don't give it a head-to-head score. It is a decentralised anonymity network or device mesh rather than a commercial VPN, so there's no provider no-logs policy, jurisdiction, or server network to rate on the conventional rubric. The data sheet below shows what it does offer.

Best for

· Crypto-native users who want a censorship-resistant, decentralised VPN
· Avoiding a single provider you have to trust (no central servers to seize)
· Developers building their own branded dVPN app on the protocol

Not ideal for

· People who want one accountable operator with an audited no-logs policy
· Non-crypto users (payment and identity are wallet-based)
· Anyone who needs connection metadata kept fully private (session records are on a public blockchain)
· Streaming or plug-and-play simplicity (node quality varies)

Strengths

✓Fully open source: node, client, protocol, and SDK
✓Decentralised marketplace of 1,500+ independent nodes across 70+ countries
✓No central servers to seize; censorship-resistant by design
✓Live on Cosmos mainnet since 2021, with 1.4M+ users
✓Pay per bandwidth in crypto ($DVPN); no account or email required

Weaknesses

✗Not a single accountable provider: trust and logging vary by node operator
✗Session records (wallet, node, timestamp) are written to a public blockchain
✗Payment and identity are crypto/wallet-based, not for everyone
✗Different architecture from a commercial VPN, so we list it but don't score it

Protocols & encryption

The tunnelling protocols this service offers and the cryptography behind them.

WireGuard

Modern

A modern, lean protocol (~4,000 lines of code) that is fast and easy to audit. Its cryptography is fixed and state-of-the-art, with no weak options to misconfigure.

Data cipher: ChaCha20-Poly1305
Key exchange: Curve25519 (ECDH)
Integrity: BLAKE2s

In-house protocol. Sentinel dVPN protocol on Cosmos (on-chain session authorisation); nodes run WireGuard (Curve25519) or V2Ray (VLess/VMess)

This provider's setup

Stated data cipher: ChaCha20 (WireGuard) / V2Ray
Stated handshake: Curve25519 (WireGuard)
Perfect forward secrecy: Yes
Post-quantum resistant: No
RAM-only servers: Unknown
Kill switch: Unknown
First-party DNS (leak protection): Unknown
IPv6: Unknown

Full data sheet

Every attribute we track, coloured by whether it helps or hurts your privacy.

Company & jurisdiction

Based in	Decentralised (Cosmos, global nodes)
Eyes alliance	Unknown
Enemy of the Internet	No
Owner	Sentinel dVPN Foundation, on-chain validator governance
Conglomerate	n/a
Founded	2018

Logging

Traffic / activity	Unknown
DNS requests	Unknown
Timestamps	Unknown
Bandwidth	Unknown
Source IP address	Unknown

Decentralised: no central operator, and traffic is end-to-end encrypted between you and an independent exit node. But trust varies by node (anyone can run one), and session records (your wallet address, the node, and a timestamp) are written to the public Cosmos blockchain, so connection metadata is pseudonymous rather than fully private.

Payment & anonymity

Anonymous signup	Yes
Accepts cash	No
Accepts crypto	Yes
PGP key	Unknown

Protocols & features

OpenVPN	No
WireGuard	Yes
Proprietary protocol	Sentinel dVPN protocol on Cosmos (on-chain session authorisation); nodes run WireGuard (Curve25519) or V2Ray (VLess/VMess)
Multi-hop	Unknown
Obfuscation	Yes
Kill switch	Unknown
First-party DNS	Unknown
RAM-only servers	Unknown
Port forwarding	Unknown
P2P / torrenting	Yes
IPv6	Unknown

Encryption

Data cipher	ChaCha20 (WireGuard) / V2Ray
Handshake	Curve25519 (WireGuard)

Transparency

Open-source clients	Yes, all apps
Independent audits	None
Transparency report	Unknown
Court / seizure-tested	Untested

Censorship-resistant by design: zero bootstrap nodes and no central servers to seize. There is no single operator to subpoena, but equally no audited no-logs policy, and session metadata lives on a public blockchain.

Infrastructure

Simultaneous devices	n/a
Countries	70
Servers	1500
Linux support	CLI / config

Pricing

Month-to-month	n/a
Best $/mo	n/a
On plan	n/a
Free trial	n/a
Refund window	n/a
Free tier	No

Ethics

Logging policy	Consistent
Marketing honesty	No overclaiming

Sentinel is an open-source decentralised VPN (dVPN) protocol and bandwidth marketplace on the Cosmos blockchain. Independent operators run WireGuard or V2Ray exit nodes (1,500+ across 70+ countries) and are paid in the $DVPN token; sessions are authorised on-chain. Consumer apps such as Cosmo dVPN, Sentinel Shield and Independent VPN are built on it. Live on mainnet since March 2021. Listed as a decentralised network rather than scored against conventional providers.

Sources

Last verified 2026-07-06. Point-in-time data, so always confirm on the provider's own site.