Bitcoin Forum

Looks like there is some evidence emerging of bitcoin being used by some bad actors.

http://www.btcfeed.net/news/dark-side-bitcoin-coming-light/

All new technologies raise ethical questions because they give people the abilities to do things that have never been done before.

"uncovered hard evidence, of anonymous groups running bitcoin fundraisers for the Islamic State on the dark web”
so if they were to use gold and/or usd, they would be terrified of that ability also?

cheers

Anything you can do in bitcoin I can do in dollar but better…

Not exactly true. The whole argument that dollars are the same as bitcoin is bs. You can't send dollars with same speed and convenience as bitcoin.

$s are less tracable

There have been always a Dark side to everything and bitcoin being used for child pornography , ransom and labour is n new story , that happens all the time with fiat and with the increase in scientific area , it's getting worse .
But would things really stop for that reason???

Every dollar have a unique number which can be traced
Though in case of bitcoins , services like bitmixer or other ideas if used carefully can avoid it

Guns were invented to protect us but now bad people are using it to kill innocent people. Planes & Ships were invented to reach the farthest corners of the world but now bad people are using it to transfer illegal materials all over the world. The list can go a long way for the inventions that were made for good and are being used to do bad. Why blame bitcoin??

Bitcoin is just another good invention that's being used by some bad people also.

Yes ! I never saw a gun killing someone , it has always been the bad guys

It is their job to spot illegal usage of things.
Obviously, they aren't good at it.

It's rather unfair that the blame is placed onto bitcoin when in reality criminals also use fiat to commit illegal activities. Think on the good side. Anonymous feature will allows us to keep our personal information safe. Bitcoin is a good invention the problem here is that it has been misused.

I would have been dissapointed, if it could not be used for "bad things" ....it is a currency after all... if I could not buy drugs and illegal goods with it, it would have been good for law enforcement and bad for the Bitcoin users... that would mean, that it has no value. { A currency MUST be able to buy ANYTHING ...good and bad... if not... it would be worst than fiat/credit cards etc... }

People use all other payment methods to do illegal things, why should Bitcoin be different?

On the other side of the virtual coin. {pun intented} .... It would be great to have a currency, where you could trigger "tracing" markers for law enforcement to use, to track coins being used for these purposes. {Some people says... color coins} The trigger should only be "disabled" once the coins are cleared, rendering it useless.

There are lots of discussion, if this is the solution, but it's a step in the right direction.... The protocol can be changed to accomodate for that, but the application is a whole other ball game. {How do we stop the human factor, from doing the wrong things with this?}

How would the protocol be changed?

Bitcoin is just neutral tool. Different ppl can use it in different way, bad or better. The one who blames it is the one who don't like or is affected by it. It is not the fault of bitcoin. It just depends on who are dealing with it.

Or rather on who is using it

How many USD in BTC is used for drugs, and other illegal stuff?

And how many USD in Fiat Currency is used for Drugs and other illegal stuff.

That is the problem people see when they hear about BTC.

They never hear about all the good stuff that people donate a lot to charity and its being used for normal
purchases on the web for games and physical items.

you people dont see the main culprit, it is the internet!
ban the internet!

Have you missed the last episode of Breaking Bad? ;)

The gun was mounted in the trunk by a human.

Man! i did missed it ! am still on season 3 , i got no time to watch it! but you have caused my interest to rise again
Thanks !
Going at it :)

Ppl use lot of things for bad purposes so they sure use Bitcoin for also, but that is not Bitcoin problem and if there is no Bicoin they would use other ways to fund illegal activities. Problem are criminals and terrorists not Bitcoin.

Can you not? PayPal and other such systems seem to transfer money instantly. You can't send bitcoins without there being a paper trail as it's all recorded on the blockchain so you could argue cash in a suitcase across the border is just as easily moved. I think the point people are trying to make is any excuse you have for bitcoin being used for bad things always applies to cash too, and in far greater numbers.

You can't send large amounts of cash on PayPal without verification.

fiat is the way for criminal activities, everyone telling you something else just doesn't know better.
criminals dont use crypto, they have bankers that solve their needs.
a great example:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_of_Credit_and_Commerce_International


the new HSBC scandal would be an actual case

That can be easily faked and I'm sure there are many easier ways to send large amounts of money. Bank transfers for one. Sophisticated criminals will now how to bend or get around regulations or rules quite easily as they do and have done.

Thats what i am saying all along, criminals are using whatever they can, its not like bitcoin made them criminals,and just like they can use bitcoin, they also use fiat, you cant ban everything just because some people misuse it. What can be done, and probably will, is to regulate exchanges, making them mark accounts that are using crypto for illegal activities.

cheers

Exactly, the largest scale crimes are being committed are by banks, like HSBC.

Basically faciliating the money laundering operation of the largest drug cartel in Mexico.

$9.4 Billion is way more than any Bitcoin related crime or cybercrime.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-07-02/hsbc-judge-approves-1-9b-drug-money-laundering-accord


http://antimoneylaundering.us/JJ44wrvtDuhcorf6kFAk6NXo26ntmQkw/userfiles/Cartel%20de%20Sinaloa.jpg

http://watchdogwire.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/michigan/files/2013/08/drug_t1-630x286.jpg

http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/dangerroom/2012/11/ap081107022626.jpg

http://resources2.news.com.au/images/2013/11/13/1226758/663994-b8b5e5f0-4b3f-11e3-95c1-9e9b6c573736.jpg

You want real crime?  Look no further than the Banking system.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/outrageous-hsbc-settlement-proves-the-drug-war-is-a-joke-20121213

Bitcoin doesn't even come close, on a per capita level, too.

over 95% from BTC is used by "bad" factors like black market.

Well, that how people prefere to use it, and is how it will continue for long in the future. Specially the anonymity part.

I guess it's below 95% used by "bad" factors. Speculators must make a big percentage of use.

If true, this will be excellent news for authorities.  It should help them easily round up some of those who financially support terrorist groups.  Being truly anonymous with Bitcoin is not easy and requires extreme diligence.  I hope they are using it, and that the authorities make some arrests.  It would be nice to have this false charge of "perfect tool for evil" exposed as a lie.

Actually its easy to be anonymous if you have some basic knowledge and do your homework.

Imagine what would be the size of the stack of that amount of money, if it was in Bitcoins.  However obviously it would make the government go against it.

Bitcoin will be used by the good guys and the bad guys obviously