2013-06-11 Financial Times - US to Crack Down on Virtual Currency Tax Fraud

[kiko]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5c7a453e-cf97-11e2-a050-00144feab7de.html

IRS Official:

“Clearly the increasing use and misuse of cyber-based currency and payment systems to anonymously transfer illicit funds as well as hide unreported income from the IRS is a threat that we are vigorously responding to,”

[flix]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

[cypherdoc]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

No.

It's about when the hell did our gubmint officials feel they have the right to presume guilt before innocence?

[stevegee58]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

It's not a race.  The only thing governments can do is regulate the exchange of cyber currencies with fiat currencies.  As long as people are exchanging BTC directly for goods and services without involving USD (or EUR or whatever) then there's nothing government can do about it.

[aigeezer]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

No.

It's about when the hell did our gubmint officials feel they have the right to presume guilt before innocence?

When?... Interesting question, even if rhetorical. It's gone on for a long time, but is always increasing. Earliest I remember would be Senator Joe McCarthy around 1950.

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

I find it hilarious that any government thinks it can make money directly or indirectly from people's hashing calculations. However, governments can make and change "the rules" to their advantage whenever they want, and I'm sure they will. This is only a beginning - massive propaganda campaign ahead, I imagine - "Every bitcoiner eats three babies raw for breakfast, an IRS official told me, on condition of anonymity."

[marcus_of_augustus]

Seems to me like USA is fast becoming one of the least free countries on the planet. Worse than that, their massive security/intelligence apparatus is exporting this crap almost as fast as they are exporting their fake paper money. They are clearly now Ground Zero for where all this rush to facism is coming from ... bullying other States into pacts of secrecy, lies, deception and illegal actions against their citizens.

[owsleybeatsbigcartel]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

It's not a race.  The only thing governments can do is regulate the exchange of cyber currencies with fiat currencies.  As long as people are exchanging BTC directly for goods and services without involving USD (or EUR or whatever) then there's nothing government can do about it.

except hack your account!~just watch and they will have fun doing it ! ;)weeeeeee

[kjlimo]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

It's not a race.  The only thing governments can do is regulate the exchange of cyber currencies with fiat currencies.  As long as people are exchanging BTC directly for goods and services without involving USD (or EUR or whatever) then there's nothing government can do about it.

I'd agree that there's nothing more they can do than monitor your spending habits.

The same activities are performed for drug dealers & other money launderers...

[mgio]

It's a race. It was always a race. If we can reach critical mass before the crackdown we win and they'll have to adapt.

It's not a race.  The only thing governments can do is regulate the exchange of cyber currencies with fiat currencies.  As long as people are exchanging BTC directly for goods and services without involving USD (or EUR or whatever) then there's nothing government can do about it.

No, you still owe tax on your gains, and they can still come after you for it.