Once, drug dealers and money launderers saw cryptocurrency as perfectly untraceable.

A story about Sarah Meiklejohn, and how she started to analyze the blockchain back in 2013.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/8623167

Once, drug dealers and money launderers saw cryptocurrency as perfectly untraceable.

  • Autonomous User@lemmy.world
    135·
    10 months ago

    False, the Bitcoin white paper has always shown it is intentionally public. Report this disinformation article. Thank you OP for warning us about this source.

    • deafboy@lemmy.worldOP
      61·
      10 months ago

      The whitepaper shows it, but people would need to read it first before making shit up, so there certainly WAS a myth about bitcoins anonymity. It was deeply embedded in the popculture for some time. Various CSI TV shows had a blast with it.

      I’ve decided to crosspost it here despite the clickbait headline, because the process of doing the coin analysis by actually buying stuff online and sending money to and from the exchanges back and forth is pretty interesting.

    • s38b35M5@lemmy.worldEnglish
      52·
      10 months ago

      And yet, Silk Road existed, showing that some people perhaps didn’t read or understand the white paper.

      This researcher proved the lack of anonymity.

      Worth mentioning this was ten years ago, when the privacy hype on BTC was very strong.

      Disinformation? My eyes hurt from the roll…