Bitcoin, Whatsapp, & Free Speech - The War for Privacy & Decentralized P...
What does Bitcoin have to do with free speech? Crypto's regulatory challenge is exactly the same as the one WhatsApp has been facing for many years. It is called the 'Going Dark' problem. Communications used to go through centralized entities like Airtel/Vodafone, that could be tracked. The internet gave us many end-to-end encrypted options, like WhatsApp. Regulators then want the right to request messages to be decrypted by the communications provider, ie write a code with a back door. The same thing is happening with crypto, with financial intermediaries replaced by direct peer-to-peer transactions through smart contracts. Regulators want a code with a back door, such that these transactions can be controlled. Hence cryptocurrency networks have become the front for the so-called Crypto Wars (show Wiki article). Here's the manifesto of EFF, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, "New technology offers the promise of speech with minimal barriers and without borders. ...