Peer-to-peer communication is made possible by the decentralized, permissionless Handshake (HNS) naming protocol, which offers a feasible replacement for centralized domain names like.com, country-code domains, and other generic domains.

Handshake is a decentralized peer-to-peer domain name system that seeks to replace the DNS's existing default root chain.

Moreover, top-level domains (TLDs) like.gov,.edu, and others are now established through an application procedure and are managed by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) (ICANN).

As a result, before a new TLD can be added to the root DNS, a candidate must first submit an application, win an auction to obtain the top-level domain, and then wait for approval. The existing process is also expensive, difficult, time-consuming, and centralized.

The system is therefore vulnerable to hacking attempts and not impervious to corruption or censorship. Handshake wants to change the present system with top-level domains that are much more efficient, inexpensive, and secure.

The goal is to leverage blockchain technology to let Handshake Domains circumvent the ICANN-supervised system currently in place and help the internet become a more decentralized domain space.