Love the idea, why don't you take it to the clearnet, doesn't seem to be that illegal..
We were considering building a clear net portal like SilkRoad originally did, but this is still in discussions. But I think you raise a very important point, so I want to elaborate on our reasoning.
What TorATM proposes to do is illegal because we do not keep any records. We do not ever want to be in the position where we can be asked to give up transaction or user details to tax authorities or law enforcement. It is not an accident that this site suddenly appeared when US and other government regulation looms over Bitcoin.
There are no banks involved with our service, and since we don't keep records it could be argued our service is laundering money. With legitimate sites like MtGox having 2.9 million dollars confiscated and and the slightly less legitimate Liberty Reserve shut down completely we felt it would be safer for us and our community if we built it on the Tor network.
We think it is only a matter of time, if it hasn't happened already and they were gagged, that LocalBitcoins and sites like it will be pressured to give up their user records and transaction details since it has become the primary way for many SilkRoad users to convert currency. If this ever happens, and they don't keep any records like us, they will find themselves in serious legal trouble.
So in essence, if you have a reason to justify making a lot of Bitcoins, and are looking to just cash out and transfer that directly to your bank account, account for where it came from and pay the associated taxes, this site really isn't for you.
This was initially designed for people who find themselves with so many Bitcoins that if they cashed out and put them all into their bank account they would immediately get flagged and investigated by the IRS because they have no business or legitimate explanation for the source of the money. At the same time it increases access to Bitcoins by providing a way for people without bank accounts to buy Bitcoins easily at market value.
If you have any critique of our reasoning we would appreciate you sharing it, because we are trying to provide a service that is works for the community and increases access.
Good idea. Maybe it's me but I found your site to be very confusing. You should write up a tutorial on how to use it.
cb
We do recognize this issue, and while we do have a guide located at
http://toratm3dhalotm3f.onion/guide, it would be really helpful if you could let us know about any specific confusion you have with the site so we can clarify and improve those parts of the guide or UI.
Our work to improve our UI and usability is never complete. Any suggestions are appreciated and we often pay out Bitcoins for bugs reports and suggestions we end up using.
