There’s a huge new threat to privacy, and most people aren’t aware of it: the rise of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). These are digital currencies issued by central banks, rather than by a commercial bank or company. Around 100 countries are looking at the idea, and several – such as China and Nigeria – … Continue reading “The Latest Threat to Privacy: CBDCs – Central Bank Digital Currencies”
Government attempts to weaken cryptography to allow general surveillance are not new: they date back at least to the 1993 Clipper chip. Similarly, claims that children will be harmed by strong cryptography also go back many years. When Apple strengthened encryption on its phone in 2014, the chief of detectives for Chicago’s police department said: … Continue reading “#NoPlaceToHide…for Stupid Ideas Like Backdooring End-To-End Encryption and Undermining Privacy”
Freedom of expression is not doing well in Brazil. A new law approved last Thursday by the Brazilian Congress allows political parties and candidates to force social media companies to remove any content they feel is defamatory or offensive and posted by an anonymous account. Social media companies would need to provide the full name … Continue reading “Brazilian politician: “Freedom of expression is guaranteed, but it cannot be anonymous””
The ‘creator’ of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto, has been identified. That, at least, is the claim in a recent article by Alexander Muse on Medium. But don’t get too excited. The article not only fails to name him/her/them, Muse admits he doesn’t know, either. All he will say is that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) … Continue reading “Another threat to your privacy: the way you write”
If CISPA or other privacy-busting legislations pass, every detail of our personal lives will be at risk – and you’ll want to buy Bitcoins for safety. Although many of our foundations are rooted in anonymity, everything we see, do and buy may soon be exposed. However, technology always evolves, and anonymity is no exception. As many already … Continue reading “How to Buy Bitcoins Anonymously in the US, Instantly”
Step 1 – Hack a computer. Step 2 – ? Step 3 – Profit. In the past, step 2 generally consisted of several intricate steps that required a significant amount of effort and skill. Even if a system was filled with valuable data, it was highly unlikely that any of said data was actually valuable … Continue reading “Pullin’ a Rabbit out of a Black Hat”
Anonymity has proven itself a vital property of society. Dating back to the beginnings of time, anonymous writings have been found in many great literary works, including but not limited to Cave Paintings, Hieroglyphs, The Bible, Tom Sawyer, as well as the same Federalist Papers that helped in the ratification of the US Constitution. The … Continue reading “Cloak and Swagger: A Brief History of Anonymous Identity Protection on the Internet”