2012-09-05 scpr.org - Mitt Romney's tax returns being held hostage for $1 milli

[julz]

Mitt Romney's tax returns being held hostage for $1 million in...Bitcoin?!

Matthew DeBord
2012-09-05

http://www.scpr.org/blogs/economy/2012/09/05/9735/mitt-romneys-tax-returns-being-held-hostage-1-mill/

Apparently, this is legitimate enough to invite the attention of the Secret Service.
...
I've written quite a bit about Bitcoin and this is the first time I've ever heard of the cybercurrency being involved with blackmail.
...
But holding the world's most coveted tax returns hostage for...one million dollars? This is new territory for the cybercurrency. Obviously, it could all be a publicity stunt of some sort.
...

[nimda]

Obviously, it is all publicity stunt; the "hackers" have released no actual proof; the secret service is idiotic for going after a pastebin post.

[deadserious]

20k BTC were just purchased on Mt. Gox causing the price to jump over $11.  If that happens a few more times, it could be Romney paying them off!

lol

[Stephen Gornick]

This is the first time I've ever heard of the cybercurrency being involved with blackmail.

TIL: The difference between blackmail and extortion.

 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackmail

Incidentally, the author (Matthew DeBord) gave a talk on Bitcoin this past summer which I had attended (at the Karl Hess supper club/agorism meetup group in L.A.).  Matthew has written previously about bitcoin, including trading it (as experiment):
 - http://www.scpr.org/blogs/economy/tagged/bitcoin/