Why You Should Start Using a VPN • Hacker News Board

Re: Why You Should Start Using a VPN

#131

Post by ramblerman » Sun, Sep 09, 2012, 5:49 AM UTC

Firehed wrote: post #120

muyuu wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use it daily. - I mine - you can buy them to your name, and then after a few transfers/transactions it would take the collaboration of an army of disparate users worldwide to determine where did the coins come from - #bitcoin-otc in freenode Although I do agree that's not easy to grasp for outsiders. It takes some time to get familiar with the best options. There's no way in hell they can connect your id with your…

> you can buy them to your name, and then after a few transfers/transactions it would take the collaboration of an army of disparate users worldwide to determine where did the coins come from Sounds exactly like money laundering to me, even if there isn't malicious intent. I'm genuinely surprised the government hasn't done much to try killing off bitcoin, even with it being (relatively speaking) a tiny fringe movemen…

Money laundering is used to get the books to add up, it's more to do with accounting. The actual medium of cash is irrelevant.

What muyuu is talking about is akin to wiping your dollar notes, to remove any dna evidence that you ever touched them

Re: Why You Should Start Using a VPN

#132

Post by ramblerman » Sun, Sep 09, 2012, 5:52 AM UTC

moe wrote: post #64

muyuu wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Simple, pay with bitcoin. https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Trade#Connectivity

Sounds like you have never tried. Buying bitcoins anonymously is very difficult due to money laundering laws. Spending them anonymously is not "simple" either. Your best bet would be to mine them yourself and then pay over a public wifi with a throw-away laptop. But really, cash in an envelope is less error-prone. Just don't leave your DNA-sample on it.

I thought anonimity was a big point of bitcoin, I'm a little stunned. So you're saying if I buy bitcoins off Mt Grox or somewhere else, each coin contains some data linking back to me?

Re: Why You Should Start Using a VPN

#133

Post by coinabul » Sun, Sep 09, 2012, 9:45 AM UTC

ramblerman wrote: post #132

moe wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds like you have never tried. Buying bitcoins anonymously is very difficult due to money laundering laws. Spending them anonymously is not "simple" either. Your best bet would be to mine them yourself and then pay over a public wifi with a throw-away laptop. But really, cash in an envelope is less error-prone. Just don't leave your DNA-sample on it.

I thought anonimity was a big point of bitcoin, I'm a little stunned. So you're saying if I buy bitcoins off Mt Grox or somewhere else, each coin contains some data linking back to me?

The way you track down someone using Bitcoin is complicated. Let me explain the way the Bitcoin network works.

Conventional banking assigns each new identity that enters through the door an account, to access that account you prove your identity. All transactions are kept confidential and in-house.

Bitcoin works by giving everyone an account and forgoing any identification. If you own the private key to the account you are the account holder. Next, all transactions are publicized. Since no one has ID information tied to their Bitcoin wallet, it doesn't matter if transactions are publicized.

Now here is how you get found out. If you use a service such as Mt. Gox which requires you to tie your identification to your Mt. Gox account, any bitcoins you send from Mt. Gox can be traced. So, when you corrupt bitcoins by using a site that has id on you, you lose your anonymity.