Bitcoin anonymity is just a big myth - and using it to launder dirty money is stupid, a crypto ATM chief says
Many people think bitcoin transactions can be anonymous or untraceable, but they’re misunderstanding how the process works, Ben Weiss, CEO of crypto ATM operator CoinFlip, said at a webinar on digital assets this week.
“It’s not anonymous. It’s pseudo-anonymous. You can’t buy any large amount of bitcoin without KYC or ID or driver’s licenses,” he said, referring to “know your customer” and similar identification checks.
“Bitcoin is actually more transparent in many ways than typical things in the financial system,” he added.
The perception is that because the digital currency is often associated with illegal activity, then it must shield the identity of the user. But that is not true, Weiss said.
The bitcoin addresses may not have names registered to them, but in practice, they can be linked to real-world identities, he noted. That’s because every investor is required to log their personal information before they buy the cryptocurrency.
Yup when KYCs first started coming out, I knew the anonymity part was gone. I suppose unless you use bitcoin ATMs? I’ve seen those and they dont use KYCs. It’s just that sometimes it won’t let you withdraw your cash lol. So your money is just gone haha.
you do not need a drivers license to purchase bitcoin.
A bitcoin, at the most basic level, is a PRIVATE KEY.
a bitcoin private key is simply 256 zero’s and one’s… that is what a bitcoin is.
a bitcoin is simply a 256 digit binary number.
it has been a few years since i studied the btc, but basically the bitcoin private key goes thru a couple of stages to be converted to an public address.
the private key could be sold in person, for cash or whatever other commodity you prefer, and it is the private key that you would use with the bitcoin core to move or spend the btc.
a drivers license is not required.
a wallet service is not required.
my details may be a bit rusty, it has been about three years since i spent a few months tinkering with the bitcoin core and studying the btc issues.
just like in the trading business, people sometimes say things about bitcoin and the darkweb that are simply not correct.
for example, like we just finished mentioning, some think that you need a drivers license or other identification to buy or sell bitcoin, when this is not correct…
it is true for the common person that wants to establish a wallet service, etc, that yes he will be required to identify himself.
but, if i were to have a piece of paper that had two hundred and fifty six one’s and zero’s on it, for all practical purposes that is a bitcoin and i could sell to another person that piece of paper FOR CASH and no IDENTIFICATION IS REQUIRED. It would then be the buyer’s responsibility to use the bitcoin core to secure those bitcoins properly.
also, another issue that people get wrong is that the TOR NETWORK IS SECURE and that the TOR CONNECTIONS ARE AUTOMATICALLY ENCRYPTED FROM END TO END EVEN IF YOU DONT USE HTTPS.
this is not true and i KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT TRUE because i am in the process of developing a custom webserver in C language that serves up dot onion pages AND I CAN PROMISE YOU THAT THERE AINT NO ENCRYPTION IN PLAY WHEN A REQUEST GETS TO MY WEB SERVER.
my suggestion is that maybe you shouldnt get in the game if you dont have your shoes laced up tight.
also, whoever owns exit nodes has the opportunity to gather bits of information that can be used to figure out where nefarious dot onion server services are located at and what is their true ip address.
the tor network may not be as anonymous as some might think.
You can’t buy any large amount of bitcoin without KYC or ID or driver’s licenses,"
of course you can buy large amounts of bitcoin and you can also buy small amounts WITHOUT USING ANY IDENTIFICATION.
if i sell to you a piece of paper that contains 256 zeros and ones and you give to me something in exchange for that piece of paper, then you have purchased a bitcoin without using id.
