What happens in the aftermath of a Bitcoin funded terrorist attack?

[traderman]

I hope something like this never happens, but I am pretty sure it is only a matter of time.

http://www.btcfeed.net/uncategorized/bitcoin-used-terrorists-matter-time/

[BillyBobZorton]

We'll get bad press and they'll try to ban it, meanwhile cash funded terrorist happens everywhere and they dont try to ban cash.

[Possum577]

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

[bearbear]

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

+1

Good to see correct reading of those "easy to write, rushed; quick and dirty; randomly generated article with some appealing titles ...

[arklan]

yea, cause of the whole blockchain - every transaction being traceable and known - built in to bitcoin, the second the government got wind of any organization they wanted to monitor having a bitcoin address, or even considering such, they'd track every transaction of every coin to that address back to the minting of the coins. wouldn't even be hard, once they had an address to start from.

[traderman]

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

[arklan]

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

dude, local bitcoins still needs currency... but yea, theft/hacking is of course an option too. except the theft of any significant amount (like the bter hack today) is readily known, and the addresses involved are then known and can be tracked.

[Elwar]

It probably would only be a blip on the news but there would be about 3 or 4 threads on bitcointalk about it constantly bumped into infinity.


And they would find out that the bitcoins weren't actually used in the attack, just that one guy in the organization got some bitcoin donations and that same organization conducted a terrorist attack. The bitcoins used to buy drugs for the opium they bought to get high the night before the attack.

[traderman]

Traced?? Tumblers, using intermediary cryptos like Darkcoin? using multiple exchange acc and shuffling the amounts. Lots of options to make blockchain analysis nearly impossible.

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

dude, local bitcoins still needs currency... but yea, theft/hacking is of course an option too. except the theft of any significant amount (like the bter hack today) is readily known, and the addresses involved are then known and can be tracked.

[steveturk]

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

i think you might find that when you rock up with your $1m at a coffee shop wanting to meet  the "local bitcoin" trader that answered your add on local bitcoins, that you wont leave as free as you walked in.

[Bit_Happy]

"Bitcoin and other offshoot digital currencies have been allowed to flourish in the Western world largely free from any significant government oversight, but that may change very quickly. Should a significant terrorist incident financed with Bitcoin, occur on US soil, it is within the realm of possibility that digital currencies will be outlawed very swiftly. For those of you who think that governments would never be this ignorant and short sighted, let me remind you about the futile “War on Drugs” still being waged by the US authorities! "

Sounds like he knows too much about the big picture, are "they" going to hit the USA soon?

[traderman]

And who would be stupid enough to do that?

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

i think you might find that when you rock up with your $1m at a coffee shop wanting to meet  the "local bitcoin" trader that answered your add on local bitcoins, that you wont leave as free as you walked in.

[steveturk]

And who would be stupid enough to do that?

So you believe that the only way terrorist organization can acquire bitcoin is to buy it with us currency? very short sighted, no? LocalBitcoins? hacking? use your imagination.

I don't think it's a matter of time.

You don't summarize the article so I will, the article identifies the concern that since governments can put monitoring control over large transactions they can keep tabs on the financial moves of terrorist organizations. The article also states that these monitoring controls don't exist for bitcoin, so bitcoin enables terrorist organizations to move and use money unseen from government.

What the article DOESN'T mention or acknowledge is that the only way for a terrorist organization to acquire bitcoin in large quantities is to us government controlled fiat to buy bitcoin. That transaction would be the trigger to the government that a terrorist organization is making some financial moves. It may force governments to act on suspected terrorist organizations earlier than usual, but I don't think bitcoin will enable terrorism any more than using dollars does. It's possible to counterfeit fiat...not bitcoin, which makes doing business (for a terrorist) more expensive.

i think you might find that when you rock up with your $1m at a coffee shop wanting to meet  the "local bitcoin" trader that answered your add on local bitcoins, that you wont leave as free as you walked in.

wooow, easy, i thought it was your suggestion....

[Elwar]

btw...ISIS stole over $400 million from an Iraqi central bank.

They can use that much easier than Bitcoin among their non-technical brethren.

[steveturk]

btw...ISIS stole over $400 million from an Iraqi central bank.

They can use that much easier than Bitcoin among their non-technical brethren.

there you have it, chances are they would much more likely be buying rolex and cartier to launder their cash than bitcoin....

[Kazimir]

I guess the same as what happens in the aftermath of a Dollar or Euro funded terrorist attack: nothing. Terrorists will be terrorists.

[Elwar]

I guess the same as what happens in the aftermath of a Dollar or Euro funded terrorist attack: nothing. Terrorists will be terrorists.

And CIA funded terrorist attacks.

CIA hasn't been made illegal yet.

[orsotheysaid]

In things like this I agree with Bill Gates that we need more regulation. But we cant have everything I guess.

[Klestin]

Arms dealers are now accepting Bitcoin? No? Then they exchanged their Bitcoin donations for cash and purchased the weapons with cash. Cash funded, not Bitcoin funded.

[pitham1]

The government will press for more regulation only if it is unable to trace the origin of the funds.
If terrorists have used mixing services, expect a crackdown on them.