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Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

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Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#381

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How do you stop harassers sending unwanted money? idk, but this sounds like a great problem to have.

I wouldn’t want to be barraged with messages from spammers because they’re sending me $.0001

So if these folks can make an address or wallet or however it works, auto-reject everything under X...

I myself will take all the spam you can send at 50 cents per message. ( I already sort about $200 worth of free spam daily at that rate)

I can imagine some other folks could set them at min 5 dollars per attached message and get use of such a thing.

Now wonders if an email layer can be added to transactions with this coin and a reply that can serve other digital assets..

patreon without the fees? onlyfans without the (insert their cut plus visa/mc cut here) - email with little to no spam..

I'm ready to help make this a thing.

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#382
post #2

Hi! I'm the CEO of MobileCoin. If anyone has any questions please feel free to ask here. We've been working on this project for four years and it has been a labor of love. There's a lot of new technology here. We exist in a highly regulated space so it's possible some questions will require reaching out to lawyers to make sure we answer them in a way that's compliant so please don't feel offended if a response takes…

[deleted]

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#383

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> How do you stop harassers sending unwanted money? idk, but this sounds like a great problem to have.

Not really. Someone steals money, sends them to you, your are having lots of trouble proving you are not an accomplice. If you are a government official, you can be framed as receiving a bribe. In russia government can send your organisation money from abroad via an agent and then shut you down as a 'foreign agent'.

MobileCoin transactions and balances are private and untraceable. This problem doesn't exist here.

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#384
My question to Signal is: there are a lot of cryptocurrencies that already have significant traction - why not integrate with them rather than a brand new one that has to start from scratch building an infrastructure?

MobileCoin uses a fork of the Stellar Consensus Protocol, which is a consensus protocol that by design, relies on a small set of trusted third parties to establish consensus.

This does not give it highly credible censorship resistance, yet MobileCoin was chosen as the sole cryptocurrency that Signal is integrated with. Why?

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#385

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The slashdot effect triggered Cloudflare’s DDoS protection and is returning errors for that page.

No, this is just what happens when you try to hit the page from a US IP address.

Why are you blocking the US?

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#386

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Moxie Marlinspike is listed as an advisor for MobileCoin, was this not a paid position?

Moxie != Signal. Moxie, as an individual, is a paid technical advisor to MobileCoin but the reality is that we could never pay Moxie what his time is worth. I am thankful that he has chosen to help make this project a reality.

Cult of personality holds more value than MobileCoin unfortunately.

I wish there was a way to decentralize that value :-P

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#387
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think Signal has any plans to scan your driver's license. What they've built is a non-custodial wallet (IE, they can't help you if you lose your keys, and they have no ability to authorize or deny a payment on your behalf).

In my opinion a lot of the spicy regulatory issues around coins with private transactions are still not fully realized because none of them have mainstream adoption. The problem here is that Signal's goal to succeed as a mainstream encrypted messaging client could have the unpleasant side effect of bringing this technology under regulatory scrutiny. Hopefully things won't come to that, of course...

This is probably why they done sell (MobileCoin) to anyone in or from the US...

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#388
post #367
post #302

Long-time Signal user here, with a number of technical and non-technical friends, colleagues and acquaintances who also use it. I don't know who was asking for this. And I think it really dilutes Signal's message. I believe that everyone has a fundamental right to secure, private communication. Some people may hold the same belief for the right to transfer funds. I don't agree and I suspect many others feel the same.…

> I believe that everyone has a fundamental right to secure, private communication. Some people may hold the same belief for the right to transfer funds. I don't agree and I suspect many others feel the same. What are the arguments? Don't you think that as data becomes more and more valuable, "freedom of transaction" is a natural evolution of "freedom of communication"? In an environment where only "legally valueless…

My view is that the public in general has a right to universal services that can realistically only be delivered through taxation. That right needs to be balanced against the right to transaction privacy. It's one thing to say that friends should be able to send money to each other privately; it's another to think about bank settlements and international flows of large sums of money not being visible or auditable.

The whole issue is a real minefield and I don't have a firm stance. And obviously the fiat money system has gaps and flaws there too. I'm sure much of the HN audience would disagree with me here from a libertarian point of view. But I think it's safe to say that the issue of transaction privacy & freedom is not as straightforward as that of speech (which itself is really not that simple).

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#389
post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tried going to https://buymobilecoin.com/ as referenced in https://www.mobilecoin.com/terms-of-sale.html but get a Cloudflare "Error 1020" page. What's up with that?

This occurs when you try to access it from a US-IP.

Why do you feel the need to geofence it outside of the US? Where is the foundation based/registered? Where is the for-profit that you are the CEO of registered? How much is Signal getting for this?

Re: Signal adds a payments feature with a privacy-focused cryptocurrency

#390

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Moxie != Signal. Moxie, as an individual, is a paid technical advisor to MobileCoin but the reality is that we could never pay Moxie what his time is worth. I am thankful that he has chosen to help make this project a reality.

Cult of personality holds more value than MobileCoin unfortunately. I wish there was a way to decentralize that value :-P

That's what NFT is.
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