1. Why this page exists
Gao DePIN is a distributed network that many parties run. This page tells you what can go wrong before you rely on it. It adds to the Terms of Service and does not limit them.
2. An early network
The network and its software are early and change often. Features can be incomplete, limited, paused or withdrawn. Software releases can be published before they are runtime-tested, and say so when they are. Audits and measurements shown in the console can lag behind the network.
3. No guaranteed availability
There is no service level. Serving nodes, the relay control plane, the node registry, Gao ID and this website can each be unavailable, slow or wrong, independently of each other. Data sent through the network can be delayed, lost or not delivered.
4. Independent node operators
Serving nodes are run by node operators on their own infrastructure, in many places, under many laws. Unless the directory labels a node "Gao First Party", treat it as run by an independent third party. A node operator can turn a node off, misconfigure it, or be compromised.
5. Encryption and metadata
Only the mailbox.v2 and group-object.v1 profiles are end-to-end encrypted, and only if the application encrypts correctly. queue.v1 payloads are readable by the node operator. In every profile, nodes see IP addresses, timing and routing identifiers. End-to-end encryption protects content, not the fact that communication happens.
6. Deletion has limits
Deliveries are deleted when acknowledged or when they expire, but undelivered data is lost when it expires, and a node operator's computer is outside our control. Signed public data and node ownership history are kept. The Privacy Policy gives the details.
7. Keys
A node's key is made on the node and never leaves it. If it is lost, the node's identity is lost; if it is stolen, someone else can act as the node. Your wallet and your Gao ID are your responsibility.
8. No token, investment or earnings
Gao DePIN has no live token, reward, payment, staking, bonding or validator earning. Pages that describe validators or contracts say those features are not available: they describe plans, not offers, and nothing on this website is an offer or a solicitation of any investment. Do not acquire anything, or run a node, expecting a financial return.
9. Security limits
We sign releases and the network directory and design the network to limit what any one party can see. No system is perfectly secure, and software can contain defects. Report a vulnerability to security@gao.global.
10. Law where you are
Laws on encryption, data, telecommunications and running servers differ by country. You are responsible for whether you may use the network, or run a node, where you are.
11. Contact
Legal: legal@gao.global · Security: security@gao.global · Support: support@gao.global