Proof of Usefulness Report

Gravel Road

Analysis completed on 2/26/2026

+582
Proof of Usefulness Score
Industry Mainstay

Gravel Road (Harpoon Security/Encrypt1) appears to be a legitimate B2G cybersecurity project with significant external validation, including a listing on Carahsoft and a stated relationship with the DoD (Cyber National Mission Force). The technology targets high-value problems like ransomware and quantum-resistant encryption. However, the submission itself contains major discrepancies and hyperbole: claiming 'everyone' as the audience and stating 'most people have used my product' is demonstrably false for a niche government security tool. Additionally, the reported financial metric ('marketcap: 500000') is incoherent for a 125-person company established in 2013, suggesting either data entry errors or that this is a smaller initiative within a larger agency. The score reflects the high utility and verifiable partnerships, heavily penalized for inaccurate traction claims and poor submission quality.

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Score Breakdown

Real World Utility+21.25
Audience Reach Impact+3.00
Technical Innovation+14.40
Evidence Of Traction+12.00
Market Timing Relevance+9.00
Functional Completeness+1.00
Subtotal+60.65
Usefulness Multiplierx0.96
Final Score+582

Project Details

Project URL
Description
Gravel Road is a software development company that specializes in developing cyber security applications to provide best of breed capabilities in the endpoint anti-malware solution space (HARPOON) , as well solving for quantum resistant encryption via the ENCRYPT1 SDK. Harpoon Security is the only endpoint anti-malware/ransomware application that blocks 100% of reflective DLL and process injection attacks, while producing 0 false positive events and also supporting existing antivirus and SIEM solutions. Version 1.0 of Harpoon is available for $9 U.S. per each Windows device. www.buyharpoon.com The Encrypt1 platform provides an advanced level of perfect forward secrecy by using an incredibly lightweight, fast and extensible key rotation method, eliminating the need for cumbersome PKI infrastructure. Encrypt1 invokes the rapid key rotation method to securely encrypt protocols like SSLX, VPN, IPSec VPN, Mobile, and Unified Communications. The key rotation process is complete in 5 microseconds- fast enough to mutually authenticate and encrypt every packet in protocols like TPC, UDP, SIP, IP, etc. Encrypt1 ingests a secret key and using the proprietary algorithm, generates a new secret key authenticating every transmission, and a second key that is used as a ‘message key’ with a cipher to encrypt the message. The Encrypt1 platform will deliver the critical point-to-point encryption for the IoT and advanced sensor marketplace. www.encrypt1.com

Algorithm Insights

Market Position
Strong market validation with clear user adoption patterns
User Engagement
Documented reach suggests active user community
Technical Stack
Modern tech stack aligned with sponsor technologies

Recommendations to Increase Usefulness Score

Document User Growth

Provide specific metrics on user acquisition and retention rates

Showcase Revenue Model

Detail sustainable monetization strategy and current revenue streams

Expand Evidence Base

Include testimonials, case studies, and third-party validation

Technical Roadmap

Share development milestones and feature completion timeline