Bitcoin Forum

I just ran into this video on YouTube and it was posted about a year and a half ago, so I apologize if it was posted before. (I searched and didn't find anything on it). Apparently there were some TSA agents who saw some Bitcoins when this guy went through security and they wanted to count them.

Video: TSA "saw" Bitcoin in my bag and wanted to count it. (https://youtu.be/zsLwPCRv49Y?t=4m52s)

Website: The TSA is looking for Bitcoin (http://dailyanarchist.com/2014/02/24/the-tsa-is-looking-for-bitcoin/)

....."I was about to ask for my attorney, who happens to be my wife, when the orange shirt said, “What about Bitcoin?” I was flabbergasted. This was above and beyond any scrutiny I had ever received from the TSA, and a little frightening that they were looking for Bitcoin. I said I didn’t understand the question. He continued, “We saw Bitcoin in your bag and need to check.” I was incredulous, and asked, “Do you have a superior officer because I don’t think you know what you’re talking about.” The blue shirt replied by repeating that they were “managers,” but if I didn’t answer his questions he could call law enforcement and have me taken into custody. I asked, “Aren’t you law enforcement?” and he replied, “No we’re with the TSA.”

I turned back to the orange shirt and asked “What did the Bitcoin look like?” Bill chimed in and told the agent that what he was saying was impossible because Bitcoin is digital and doesn’t have have any physical manifestation. You can’t “see” Bitcoin. The orange shirt said they looked like medallions or tokens. I said I didn’t understand what he was talking about, and he simply repeated, in a child like way, that Bitcoins are like metal tokens. I told him that I didn’t have any tokens."......

That's rather cute. They should at least do some homework before tormenting innocent travelers.

The traveling or making transactions equal to or greater than $10,000 is a threshold that banks are held to as well (having to report when a transaction of that size occurs.) But if the TSA is going to start search for that kind of currency on person it'll be a meaningless search. Anyone could just transfer value from a wallet on your phone or USB drive to an online wallet while traveling through checkpoints or transit areas.

Just one other reason, why it's better to use Bitcoin. They impose all these stupid regulations to control people's money and movement. If I want to travel the world and I want

to carry around a global currency to do that, nobody should stop me. It's my money and I am no criminal. These rules and regulations restrict law abiding citizens from using their

money to their discretion.... There are many ways to catch criminals... let them concentrate on that and stop harassing law abiding citizens like us.  ???

What's TSA? But anyway bitcoin cannot be seen or touch physically so they wont find anyin my bags ornphone. What a bad joke.

It gets even stranger if you realize that bitcoins don't exist digitally, either. They don't exist at all. There is no such thing as a "bitcoin". So it can't have a location, not in your bag or on your phone or in "the cloud" or anywhere.

There is only a public ledger, which is not stored or managed at one location, but consists of many distributed copies all over the world. This ledger contains imaginary transactions, and the sum of all transactions to and from a specific imaginary address, is what we associate with "a number of bitcoins". But it's all abstract.

So, good luck searching for bitcoins, TSA  :D

I guess he was talking about physical coins such as Casascius coins. I don't know if they still count as money, but from what I understood they hold value quite well.

Why would you carry those around on you? I wouldn't travel with those unless I was going to move somewhere permanently..

In that sense, would a piece of paper with a credit card number written on it, or a piece of paper with the login details for a rich bank account, count as 'holding value' as well? Casascius coins are the same. They hold, contain or are zero value -- they merely contain a piece of information that can give access to some particular value somewhere else.

TSA = Totally Stupid Assholes  ;D

TSA is the Federal transport security agency operating in the USA.



No, they were pin badges with an embossed bitcoin logo. Zero BTC value, or at least not inherently.

You know it's not the same thing, Bitcoin is the closest electronic mean to store cash. If you were a border patrol and saw a guy with 100's of casascius coins would you let him pass just because "they hold zero value" ?
I highly doubt it.

Yeah ok so it was a bit more stupid...
But still I understand his reation. Bitcoin is like cash (it's non-tracable, can be devided, can be transferred freely and so on).
I don't agree with this kind of law, but the guy was doing his job. This kind of badges will only be used by bitcoin users.
He has maybe no idea what he was talking about, but still he was doing his job and the guy probably had bitcoins.

"Just going my job" eh?

I'd like all people who subscribe to that philosophy to tell me where they work. I will make a point of not using businesses that employ such people.

He is paid to look for stuff like that.
Why are you mad at him because he trying to do his job ?

Not mad, just don't condone. Forcing people to submit to searches and documents checks is manifestly authoritarian.

Do you approve of authoritarianism? I do not.

Good! After well counting tell as how was counted and what have in mind to buy with those. Tell them that better spending in buying something rare and precious (as it would possible with this kind of counted coin) it would be better to put in a vault because every two years one of them procreate ten other of the same kind. So in 10-20 years they could be no one know how much rich can be.

He is looking for things that don't exist. He thought he saw bitcoins in a bag, and you cannot see bitcoins. He is inept at his job.

Even if he meant Casascius coins, he doesn't know the difference, and called them tokens. He is inept at his job.

The job itself is immoral. "Papers please"