{"id":105259,"date":"2022-12-09T22:04:08","date_gmt":"2022-12-09T22:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dash.org\/?p=105259"},"modified":"2022-12-09T23:29:19","modified_gmt":"2022-12-09T23:29:19","slug":"whats-the-matter-with-infura-and-other-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dash.org\/blog\/whats-the-matter-with-infura-and-other-services\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s The Matter With Infura And Other Services?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Recently, we saw Infura and other ConsenSys-related services dominate the headlines. Long story short, ConsenSys announced that they would be collecting user IP addresses for compliance requirements. Naturally, this sparked a \u201ccentralization vs decentralization\u201d debate in the crypto community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this article, we will see how Dash Platform mitigates the need for a centralized service provider like Infura, Kaleido, etc.<\/span><\/p>\n

What exactly is Infura?<\/b><\/h2>\n

Infura is a web3 IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) product that provides a set of tools for anyone to connect their applications to the Ethereum blockchain. Infura lowers developers’ entry barriers by running nodes on their behalf. The idea is simple, right? Abstract away the complexities of the blockchain and empower developers to focus only on their product. Infura\u2019s IPFS (Interplanetary File System) API provides distributed storage to applications of all sizes. Several popular services, like MetaMask and Truffle, use Infura.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, what\u2019s the problem here?<\/b><\/h3>\n

Ever since 2018, there has been an increased concern in the Ethereum community about Infura\u2019s growing presence within the ecosystem. Afri Schoedon from Parity Technologies <\/span>said<\/a> that over-reliance on Infura will increase the centralization of the protocol.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we don\u2019t stop relying on Infura, the vision of Ethereum failed. Or build a strong network of thin and light clients. There is no point in having d-apps connecting through MetaMask to a blockchain hosted by someone else.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Plus, at the end of the day, Infura is maintained by a centralized company which makes its applications vulnerable to censorship and regulatory measures.<\/span><\/p>\n

Infura and censorship<\/b><\/h3>\n

In March 2022, ConsenSys made their services unavailable \u201cwithin the three contested regions of Ukraine.\u201d This happened after the US, European Union, and others implemented strict sanctions on Russia following their invasion of Ukraine. Plus, due to an error, Infura accidentally blocked Venezuelan users from MetaMask, as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are a few things to unpack here:<\/span><\/p>\n