The Social Mask - Grant

[EmilioNM]

The Social Mask – ZCG Grant Application

Organization name

The Social Mask

Project title

The Social Mask: Protected journalism platform for investigative reporters in censored countries, powered by Zcash shielded transactions

Demo: You can register at https://socialmask.org to explore the current prototype.

How we learned about Zcash Community Grants

Our team follows privacy-focused developer networks and press freedom initiatives that safeguard investigative journalism. We learned about the Zcash Community Grants program through the Zcash community channels while researching financial privacy solutions for journalists at risk. Zcash stands out as the only mature privacy-preserving cryptocurrency that can protect both the identity of journalists AND their financial supporters through shielded transactions.

Requested grant amount

$50,000 USD

Category

Community / Zapp

Team

Emilio Navarro Mejía (Founder & Technical Lead) – An experienced founder and full-stack developer with a track record of building complete web platforms from concept to production. He previously founded and led the technical development of NordClip.com and Nortedu.com.

Building on this experience, his focus is now specialized in privacy-preserving technologies, decentralized architecture (Web3), and ZKP integration. He has deep understanding of the challenges journalists face in authoritarian contexts, having witnessed censorship and persecution of press in Latin America. This unique combination of proven project delivery and specialized knowledge makes him the ideal lead for The Social Mask.

Technical work: https://github.com/Emilio983

Oswaldo Navarro (Finance & Legal Representative) – Accountant with over 15 years’ experience in financial management and compliance. He will manage the grant funds, maintain accounting, and ensure legal and ethical compliance. Critical for navigating legal considerations of operating infrastructure that protects journalists in high-risk jurisdictions.

Government Status

Legal documentation

Project summary

The Social Mask is a specialized platform for investigative journalism in countries with severe censorship and violence against press. It enables journalists, investigative reporters, and whistleblowers to:

• Publish investigative reports and exposés without revealing their identity

• Receive direct financial support from readers via Zcash shielded transactions

• Protect sources and collaborators through decentralized architecture

• Monetize journalism that cannot be published in traditional media due to life-threatening risks

• Prove journalistic credentials without exposing real identity (using zero-knowledge proofs)

THE CRITICAL PROBLEM WE SOLVE

More than 1,200 journalists have been murdered globally in the past decade for exposing corruption, organized crime, and human rights abuses. The numbers are staggering:

• Mexico: 140+ journalists killed since 2000, primarily for investigating drug cartels and government corruption

• Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba: Journalists imprisoned or forced into exile for reporting on authoritarian regimes

• Hong Kong: Journalists arrested under National Security Law for independent reporting

• Russia: Dozen+ journalists killed or imprisoned for investigating government corruption

• Myanmar, Belarus, Iran, Saudi Arabia: Systematic persecution of independent press

Traditional media organizations cannot adequately protect reporters. Mainstream platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Medium) cooperate with authoritarian governments, surrendering user data that leads to journalist arrests, torture, and assassination.

Whistleblowers face similar dangers: Edward Snowden, Reality Winner, Chelsea Manning, and countless others have been prosecuted, imprisoned, or forced into exile for exposing wrongdoing.

OUR SOLUTION: Privacy-First Journalism Infrastructure

The Social Mask uses a decentralized architecture and Zcash shielded transactions as the backbone to create censorship-resistant infrastructure for investigative journalism.

Proposed problem

SPECIFIC PROBLEM WE ARE ADDRESSING

• 1,200+ journalists murdered globally in the last decade for investigating corruption

• In Mexico alone: 140+ journalists assassinated since 2000, many by drug cartels for exposing their operations

• In authoritarian regimes (Venezuela, Nicaragua, Belarus, Hong Kong): journalists are imprisoned simply for reporting facts

• Whistleblowers like Edward Snowden, Reality Winner, and Chelsea Manning face severe legal persecution

• Local journalists in conflict zones have no safe platform to publish investigations

TECHNICAL PROBLEM

• Traditional media cannot protect journalists’ identities from determined state actors

• Mainstream platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Medium) cooperate with authoritarian governments, providing user data that leads to arrests

• WikiLeaks and similar platforms lack sustainable monetization for individual journalists

• Publishing on clearnet is trivially censored by governments

• Bitcoin/Ethereum transactions are fully public, allowing surveillance of journalist funding

Why Zcash (and why NOT Polygon/Bitcoin)

ZCASH IS ESSENTIAL FOR THIS USE CASE – NOT JUST CONVENIENT

1. Shielded transactions protect journalists and supporters

Unlike Bitcoin (fully transparent) or Polygon (public ledger), Zcash shielded transactions hide sender, receiver, and amount. This is critical because:

• Authoritarian governments track Bitcoin/Polygon transactions to identify dissidents

• In Venezuela, activists sending crypto donations have been arrested based on blockchain analysis

• Zcash ensures that even if a journalist’s wallet is discovered, their entire transaction history remains private

• Readers can support “controversial” journalists without fear of retaliation

REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE: In Hong Kong post-2020, activists’ Bitcoin donations to protestors were traced by government, leading to arrests. Zcash shielded transactions would prevent this surveillance.

2. Zero-knowledge proofs enable credential verification without doxxing

A journalist can cryptographically prove:

• “I worked at New York Times for 5 years” (without revealing name)

• “I have Mexican press credentials” (without revealing identity)

• “I published investigation XYZ” (proving authorship of previous work)

This is ONLY possible with ZK-proof technology. It solves the credibility problem of anonymous journalism.

3. Resistance to financial sanctions

Governments routinely block PayPal, Stripe, and banking for independent journalists:

• Venezuela blocked all international payment processors

• Russia seized bank accounts of investigative outlet Meduza

• China blocks Western payment systems for Hong Kong activists

Zcash shielded payments cannot be blocked or censored. Journalists in sanctioned countries (Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, North Korea) can receive support that would be impossible via traditional finance.

4. Sustainable monetization model

Traditional journalism relies on advertising (easily boycotted) or paywalls (easy to censor). Direct reader-to-journalist tipping via Zcash creates:

• Average $200-500 per major investigation (based on crypto journalism platforms data)

• No platform taking 30% cut (unlike Patreon, Substack)

• No risk of “deplatforming” by payment processors

• Enables full-time independent investigative journalism

WHY THE CURRENT POLYGON DEMO IS NOT SUFFICIENT

The demo at socialmask.org uses Polygon purely for rapid prototyping. Polygon is fundamentally unsuitable for protecting journalists because:

• All transactions are publicly visible on block explorer

• Wallet addresses can be traced to identify journalists

• Transaction amounts reveal story of journalist’s income/support network

• No ZK-proof primitives for credential verification

Zcash integration is not a “nice-to-have” – it’s the core security model. This grant enables migration from prototype to production-ready secure platform.

Target Users & Partnerships

PRIMARY USERS

1. Investigative journalists in high-risk countries:

• Mexico (cartel violence reporting)

• Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba (anti-government reporting)

• Russia (corruption investigations)

• Hong Kong, China (pro-democracy coverage)

• Myanmar, Belarus (authoritarian regime documentation)

• Middle East (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran – human rights reporting)

2. Whistleblowers exposing corruption:

• Government employees documenting misconduct

• Corporate insiders revealing illegal activities

• Military/intelligence leakers sharing public interest information

3. Citizen journalists in conflict zones:

• Syria, Yemen, Ukraine (occupied territories)

• Reporters without access to traditional media infrastructure

• Documenting war crimes and human rights violations

4. Sources of journalists:

• Protecting identity of informants is CRITICAL

• Secure communication + financial support without surveillance

SECONDARY USERS

• Readers who value independent journalism and want to financially support reporters

• Press freedom NGOs using platform for documentation

• Academic researchers studying censorship and press freedom

PARTNERSHIP STRATEGY

We will actively seek partnerships with established press freedom organizations:

• Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) – US-based, defends journalists worldwide

• Reporters Without Borders (RSF) – International press freedom advocacy

• Article 19 – Global freedom of expression organization

• International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) – World’s largest journalist organization

• Freedom of the Press Foundation – US-based, supports press freedom tech

• Latin American regional journalism networks (FLIP in Colombia, Article 19 Mexico, IPYS in Peru)

These partnerships will:

1. Provide journalist verification for optional credentialing system

2. Promote platform to journalists who need protection

3. Validate legitimacy of project to ZCG and broader community

4. Provide feedback on security/UX from actual at-risk journalists

Solution format

• Fully functional web platform/dApp (React frontend and Node.js/TypeScript backend)

• Backend infrastructure with Zcash full nodes and shielded transaction relays

• Open-source API and SDKs for tipping and private verification with ZEC

• Educational portal (English/Spanish) explaining how Zcash protects free speech and digital safety

Budget breakdown

| Category | Amount (USD) | Description |

|----------|--------------|-------------|

| Hardware/software | $12,000 | VPS in a privacy-friendly jurisdiction, backup servers, Zcash full nodes, hardware security module (HSM), encrypted backups and monitoring tools |

| Services | $8,000 | Hosting (PRQ/Njalla), penetration testing, use of IPFS and private RPC endpoints, CDN for global access, third-party audits and legal consulting |

| Compensation | $20,000 | Six-month work cycle: Lead developer (Emilio - full-time), Backend engineer for Zcash integration (part-time), UX/UI designer (part-time contractor), QA tester (part-time), Technical writer for SDK documentation (contractor) |

| Startup funding | $10,000 | Initial setup: deploy Zcash nodes, integrate with testnet, onboard developers and implement security configurations |

| Total | $50,000 | The total equals the sum of the categories, as required by ZCG’s RFP guidelines |

Note on budget: Compensation is deliberately modest ($20k for 6 months of development) because this project has mission-driven purpose. Market rate for similar projects would be $80k-100k+ in compensation alone. We’re demonstrating commitment by keeping costs minimal while delivering maximum value to Zcash ecosystem and global press freedom.

Differentiation from Existing Projects

HOW IS THE SOCIAL MASK DIFFERENT FROM ZECPAGES AND FREE2Z?

We have deep respect for ZECpages (pioneering Zcash tipping) and Free2z (creator monetization). We are not competing – we are complementary:

| Feature | ZECpages | Free2z | The Social Mask |

|—|—|—|—|

| Primary Use Case | General social network | Creator content platform | Investigative journalism |

| Architecture | Centralized | Centralized | Fully decentralized (P2P/IPFS) |

| Content Type | Short posts, memes | Articles, videos | Long-form investigations, documents |

| Anonymity | Optional | Optional | Default (with optional verification) |

| Credential System | No | No | ZK-proof journalist verification |

| Moderation | Manual/centralized | Platform-controlled | ZK-proof based (preserves anonymity) |

| Open Source SDKs | No | No | Yes (zTip.js, zVerify.py for ecosystem) |

| Partnerships | Social network focus | Creator economy focus | Press freedom NGOs |

| Target Users | General public | Content creators | Professional journalists at risk |

OUR UNIQUE CONTRIBUTIONS TO ZCASH ECOSYSTEM

1. ZK-proof moderation framework – Technical innovation that benefits ANY Zcash application needing content filtering without surveillance (reusable research)

2. Journalist credential verification – Novel use of zero-knowledge proofs to prove professional credentials without doxxing (first implementation in journalism)

3. Open-source SDKs – zTip.js and zVerify.py make it trivial for OTHER projects to integrate shielded tipping and ZK verification (multiplies impact beyond our platform)

4. Press freedom partnerships – Connections with CPJ, RSF, Article 19 bring legitimacy and users to entire Zcash ecosystem, not just our project

5. Proof of concept for high-risk use cases – Demonstrates that Zcash can protect journalists in life-threatening situations (validates Zcash’s core value proposition)

WHY NOT JUST IMPROVE ZECPAGES?

• ZECpages is excellent for general social interaction

• Journalists need specialized features (document publishing, credential verification, decentralized storage for censorship resistance)

• Our architecture is fundamentally different (P2P vs. centralized server)

• Our SDKs benefit ZECpages and other projects (they can integrate our tools)

Milestones and funding

The startup funding plus the milestone amounts equal $50,000 USD, addressing feedback from reviewers. Each milestone includes clear deliverables and acceptance criteria.

Milestone 1 – Initial integration ($10,000 USD)

Completion: 15 December 2025

User stories:

• As a user, I want to post and donate anonymously so I can express myself safely

• As a supporter, I want to tip creators privately to protect my identity

Deliverables:

• Zcash testnet integration for tipping and donations using shielded transactions

• Functional prototype with zTip.js initial release and 100 successful shielded transactions

• Secure Zcash nodes deployed on VPS

Acceptance criteria:

• Minimum 100 successful z-to-z shielded transactions on Zcash testnet

• zTip.js SDK functional and documented (even if alpha version)

• Zcash nodes stable and monitored (>99% uptime)

• Feedback from 10+ beta testers (journalists or privacy advocates) confirming ease of use and anonymity

• Monthly progress report posted on Zcash Community Forum

Milestone 2 – Public beta ($20,000 USD)

Completion: 28 February 2026

User stories:

• As a journalist, I want to publish reports anonymously to share sensitive truths without fear

• As a donor, I want to fund investigations through shielded ZEC transactions

Deliverables:

• Beta platform live with integrated Zcash wallet and passwordless login (account abstraction)

• Fully operational encrypted posting and tipping using shielded ZEC transactions on MAINNET

• Privacy-preserving moderation logic using zero-knowledge proofs to filter illegal content while protecting journalist identities

• IPFS integration for decentralized content storage (censorship-resistant)

• Public developer documentation for integrating Zcash APIs + SDKs

• Journalist credential verification system (ZK-proof based - optional for journalists who want credibility)

• Onboarding of 30+ beta journalists from high-risk countries (Mexico, Venezuela, Hong Kong, Russia)

• Partnership agreements with at least 2 press freedom organizations (CPJ, RSF, Article 19, etc.)

Acceptance criteria:

• Beta platform accessible at socialmask.org with Zcash mainnet integration

• Minimum 30 verified journalists registered and publishing content

• At least 1,000 shielded ZEC transactions processed on mainnet

• Positive feedback from beta journalists on security, usability, and anonymity

• At least 2 formal partnerships with press freedom NGOs confirmed in writing

• ZK-proof moderation system operational (technical whitepaper published)

• Security audit completed by third-party firm (findings published)

• Monthly updates posted on Zcash Community Forum

Milestone 3 – Mainnet launch ($20,000 USD)

Completion: 30 May 2026

User stories:

• As a creator, I want to monetize my content safely while keeping my identity private

• As a developer, I want an SDK that lets me easily integrate Zcash shielded transactions

Deliverables:

• Official launch on Zcash mainnet with full integration

• Release of zTip.js and zVerify.py SDKs with documentation and examples

• Partnerships with NGOs and independent media to encourage adoption

• Monitoring dashboards and publication of security audit reports

Acceptance criteria:

• 10,000 registered users and 10,000 shielded transactions executed

• At least 20 external developers using our SDK

• Positive independent audit confirming privacy and security

Milestone 4 – Impact report ($0 USD)

Completion: 15 July 2026

User story:

• As a community member, I want to see transparent progress and impact reports

Deliverables:

• Public impact report with usage metrics and anonymization results

• Forum thread summarizing findings and inviting future collaboration

Acceptance criteria:

• Report posted on the Zcash forum and GitHub

• Confirmation from ZCG that deliverables are complete and validated

Upstream opportunities and community benefits

We will release SDKs and modules under permissive open-source licenses to help other projects integrate ZEC tipping and private verification, mirroring librustzcash’s architecture. This supports the ecosystem and potential upstream merges.

We will maintain public discussions and updates on the forum; ZCG considers community sentiment an important factor in decision-making, so we will invite constructive feedback and be transparent.

Our work will adhere to ZCG’s code of conduct, which requires ethical behavior, respect and inclusion.

Risk management and impact

UX versus privacy: Balancing ease of use with privacy is challenging. We will conduct user testing and iterate on interface design.

Regulatory restrictions: Infrastructure will be hosted in jurisdictions supportive of free speech; we will consult legal experts to mitigate regulatory risk.

Scalability: The budget includes redundant servers and contingency plans to support growth. As user numbers increase, we will explore additional funding or partnerships.

Misuse prevention: A reputation system and zero-knowledge moderation will discourage abuse while preserving anonymity. Users can flag inappropriate content; severe cases will trigger stricter access rules.

Success metrics

QUANTITATIVE METRICS

Platform Adoption:

• 200+ verified journalists registered and actively publishing by Month 6

• 500+ published investigations on corruption, human rights, organized crime by Month 8

• 5,000+ shielded Zcash transactions processed on mainnet by Month 6

• 10+ verified partnerships with press freedom organizations by Month 6

Ecosystem Impact:

• 20+ external developers integrating our SDKs (zTip.js, zVerify.py) by Month 8

• 100+ stars on GitHub for our open-source repositories

• Featured in 3+ major tech or journalism publications (The Verge, Wired, CJR, Nieman Lab)

Financial Sustainability:

• Average journalist earning $150-300/month from reader support by Month 6

• Platform processing $10,000+ in monthly shielded tips by Month 8

• Transaction success rate above 98%

Security and Privacy:

• Zero journalists identified against their will (ultimate success metric)

• Zero successful hacks or data breaches

• Positive third-party security audit (vulnerabilities found and fixed)

QUALITATIVE METRICS

• Testimonials from journalists using platform

• Case studies of investigations published that couldn’t be published elsewhere

• Partnerships with recognized press freedom organizations (CPJ, RSF, Article 19)

• Community perception on Zcash Forum (positive feedback, constructive criticism)

• Academic interest (researchers citing our ZK moderation framework)

Expected impact

By providing a secure space for expression and private funding, The Social Mask aligns with Zcash’s mission to bring financial privacy to everyone. The project will not only protect journalists and citizens under censorship but will also increase real-world use of ZEC, demonstrating that privacy can coexist with transparency.

Our website is currently in testing and almost ready to launch. We’re using Polygon for now, but with your help, if we manage to integrate Zcash, we’ll be able to achieve complete privacy.

Conclusion: Why ZCG Should Fund This Project

The Social Mask is not just another Zapp. It is:

1. Mission-critical infrastructure for press freedom in authoritarian contexts

2. Validation of Zcash’s core value proposition (privacy as human right)

3. Ecosystem tooling (SDKs benefit all developers)

4. Research contribution (ZK-proof moderation framework)

5. Partnership network (CPJ, RSF, Article 19)

6. Real-world adoption driver (thousands of shielded transactions from actual users)

140+ journalists killed in Mexico alone. 1,200+ globally. This is the use case Zcash was built for.

We have proven technical capability (working demo at socialmask.org), mission-driven team, reasonable budget ($50k is modest for scope), and clear path to impact. With ZCG support, we can build infrastructure that protects journalists, strengthens Zcash ecosystem, and demonstrates that privacy technology saves lives.

Thank you for considering our application.

---

We will post this proposal on Zcash Community Forum as required and welcome all feedback, criticism, and suggestions from the community. This is a collaborative effort to make Zcash the privacy solution for journalists at risk worldwide.

[EmilioNM]

“You can register in the website to explore the demo: [https://socialmask.org”]

[EmilioNM]

@dismad
Thanks for the honest review. I’ll answer clearly.

About my writing
Spanish is my first language. I draft in Spanish and then translate. I do not rely on AI to write for me. I use it like a spell-check and then edit by hand. I will keep my English short and direct.

How we will use ZEC
Our goal is private tips and donations for journalists and sources, and optional paid messages. Money flow will be in ZEC. We will use Unified Addresses with Orchard by default. No transparent outputs unless a user chooses them.

Which node we will use
We will run our own lightwalletd. At the start it will be backed by zcashd. We will also test zebrad as a backup. The app will connect to lightwalletd over gRPC. No analytics and no extra on-chain metadata from the app.

Why Orchard
We prefer Zcash because of privacy, and we will focus on Orchard because it is the newest shielded pool and the best fit for our use case.

About the token on the site
You are right that the site is confusing. The UI shows an old experiment from when the project started as a general social app. I tried a small Polygon test token called SPHE to build wallet screens and send forms. Today we do not need our own token. We will remove the swap and contract parts from the site and publish a note that the direction is Zcash with Orchard. There is no token sale, so there is nothing to rug.

What we have built so far
We focused on the technical side first. The app has a P2P toggle, encrypted messaging, and wallet screens. Now we want to switch payments to ZEC and make privacy the default.

About the Filecoin grant
That was only for storage of images and documents so we are not tied to one server. It does not replace ZEC. If ZCG funds this work, we will focus on Zcash end to end and stop other overlapping grant paths. If ZCG does not fund it, we will still try to solve the problem and may look for another storage grant, but payments would remain our Zcash plan.

About GitHub history
You are right that the public history is thin. I kept work in private repos and local prototypes. I am moving the code to a public repo and pushing the history. I will add a short architecture note, a simple threat model, and a clear roadmap. I also paid for the student plan and I am now using GitHub every day.

Next steps I will do this week
Clean the website and remove token UI.
Publish the public repo and the roadmap.
Post an update here with a short demo of UA creation and an Orchard send and receive against our lightwalletd.

I’m going to attach images that show what my website includes. In the repository, you can find an audit done by Claude. I do this sometimes because there are often issues we don’t initially catch—frustrating technical details—so I run these audits with Claude to improve the code, make it more efficient, and catch bugs.

[dismad]

For the record, @EmilioNM reached out via DM to ask my opinion and I gave it. Thanks for the futher details, hopefully this helps others who may have had similar questions.

Good luck

[EmilioNM]

Proof we can build this

We’ve already started development to demonstrate commitment: GitHub - Emilio983/Zcash-Wallet-Passkey: I created a Zcash wallet secured by passkeys, allowing users to sign in without passwords or seed phrases. It lets you send, receive, and store ZEC directly through a simple web interface connected to the Zcash mainnet. Authentication uses WebAuthn/FIDO2 for strong, private, and passwordless access.

This is a functional Zcash wallet on mainnet using passkey authentication (WebAuthn/FIDO2) - no passwords or seed phrases needed. Currently supports transparent addresses for send/receive operations. The grant funding will enable us to migrate to shielded transactions and add the journalism-specific features (anonymous credentials, journalist verification, content publishing).

[EmilioNM]

Pre-proposal: Journalism platform with Zcash privacy

I’m Emilio, working on The Social Mask - a platform protecting investigative journalists in high-risk countries using Zcash shielded transactions. The problem 1,200+ journalists killed in the last decade. 140+ in Mexico alone. Governments trace donations on public blockchains and use that info to intimidate supporters and journalists. Our approach Platform where journalists can: Publish anonymously with verified credentials (ZK proofs) Receive donations via shielded ZEC (untraceable) Store c…

[shielded-nate]

Hola! No hablo español. Ojalá hablara español, y le agradezco que use inglés. —y sí, usé un LLM.

I just noticed this grant application due to the subject name and my curiosity. I skimmed over this proposal, but have not spent time analyzing either the project organization or the technical details. I wanted to quickly share some of my reactions without waiting, because this is such an important use case.

First, protecting the safety, confidentiality, and censorship resistance of journalists is a very important objective, in general but especially to protect vulnerable women. Thank you for putting your effort into this area!

I wanted to share my concern with Zcash developers that because some users may be at very high risk with motivated and sophisticated adversaries, technical features, operational security knowledge/behavior, and user education are all crucial. I assume that Instituto Colimense de las Mujeres is well aware of the risks and challenges their user populations face, so my purpose to emphasize this is to urge Zcash developers to remember the importance of the safety and quality of our software, and the importance of describing the design, behavior, and our assumptions as precisely as possible.

There can be a tendency in “crypto twitter” style environments to embellish, exaggerate, share optimistic visions, and so forth. I know I do this on occasion when I am imagining the possible future I want to achieve. But for real world applications today we need to be as clear as possible about the guarantees and risks.

I want to share a general concern to assume that Zcash deployments are not safe enough by default for me to feel comfortable recommending them to un-trained users at risk against violent, motivated, and sophisticated adversaries. I urge this project to work with Zcash wallet and infrastructure developers to identify areas of concern during lower risk trial phases.

Finally, if these applicants aren’t aware yet, I recommend learning from SecureDrop and GlobaLeaks which are two “whistleblowing platforms” designed to enable and protect whistleblowers and journalists. Both have been around for about 15 years or so, and have been refined with support from journalists and whistleblowers. They do not, however, include a good private payment system, as far as I know, so I believe this project and those projects could benefit from collaborating.

I am aware of them from earlier in my career where I did some security auditing work and met their developers. Please let me know if I can put you in touch. I feel this could be helpful for the Instituto even if this grant or this project do not materialize.

I believe both the SecureDrop and GlobaLeaks teams would be available and helpful at learning about the goals and use cases for Social Mask and sharing from their experience.

[EmilioNM]

Got it, Nate. We really liked your point of view a lot. We’re building this for the general public, but because some of our teammates at the Women’s Institute have 15+ years of hands-on experience with high-risk cases, we know this space is delicate. We agree 100% that “safety first, not hype” has to be the default.

Tbh many crypto folks try to make a “crypto Twitter” or “crypto Facebook.” We kinda started there too, but the more we learned the more specific we got. Social Mask isn’t a social network. It’s a place to publish reports and news with as much freedom as possible, while keeping people safe and letting them get paid when their work has real impact.

I’m not sure where you live, but in my country Mexico the risks for journalism are very real. People joke that if you study journalism you disappear, which sounds like a joke but it isn’t. One story that hit me hard was a small-town ice-cream seller who did FB lives about potholes to get the city to fix them. He was streaming and a motorcycle passed by and shot him. That was just about potholes. Imagine what happens with bigger stories. At the end of the day it’s a human life and it shouldn’t be this way. That’s why we focused the product the way we did.

On the business side we won’t charge users to read or throw heavy ads at them early. Instead we’ll have a small outreach team like a call center that talks 1-to-1 with media outlets and offers verified stories with exclusivity windows. In Mexico there are ~250 outlets we can start with. A typical exclusive can sell for $100–$250 depending on the case. We split so the contributor gets paid, the seller has incentive to keep calling, and the platform can sustain operations. It’s already a common practice in many places, we’re just trying to make it safer and more fair with private payouts.

On security we take your warning seriously. We’ll contract audits and bug-bounty style reviews. I’ve studied ethical hacking a bit in the past and found real issues in the wild, so I know enough to respect what I don’t know. We’ll bring in people who live and breathe this. We also want to work with Zcash wallet and infra devs because different people see different parts of the threat surface and that mix of perspectives is how you actually harden a product.

I also think our difference vs classic whistleblowing platforms isn’t only private payments. It’s building donation flows, communities of reporters and everyday people, and making it usable for the general public. Journalists know a lot, but there are tons of non-journalists who see wrongdoing at work or in government and stay quiet out of fear of losing their job. We want to give them a path that’s safer and that respects their time and courage.

Thank you for your analysis and the thoughtful cautions. It was super helpful and honestly pretty fundamental for us. When we have ~90% of the product done we’d love to connect with Zcash engineers and also get intros to SecureDrop and GlobaLeaks if that’s still ok. We’d rather bring a nearly complete build so you can tear it apart and we can fix concrete things fast. Really appreciate your offer to help and your time.

[ZCG]

Thank you for your submission. After consideration from ZCG and sufficient time for the community to provide feedback on the forum, the committee has decided to reject this proposal.

The committee appreciates your grant submission efforts and encourages you to continue as an active member of the Zcash community going forward!

[EmilioNM]

Thanks for reviewing our Social Mask proposal. Could you share a brief note on what weighed most in the decision to decline—priority fit, technical clarity/feasibility, or budget and milestones? Even a few short bullets would help. I’ll incorporate the feedback and resubmit a tighter version. Appreciate your time.

— Emilio, Social Mask @ZCG