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Foreign currency can be confiscated. A brain wallet cannot

dragonwriter 9y ago
A brain wallet can be confiscated by rubber-hose cryptanalysis. It is more resistant, perhaps, to detection than cash on hand in foreign currency (though not necessarily particularly more than a foreign currency account where access information is memorized, depending on the threat profile of concern.)
- freeloop3 9y ago
  Torture may be used to find out the user has bitcoin, but you can never be sure you got it all. If they give you access to n wallets, how do you know they don't have n+1? A foreign currency account is not as easy to setup as a brain wallet.
  - dragonwriter 9y ago
    > Torture may be used to find out the user has bitcoin but you can never be sure you got it all. That's also true of caches of foreign currency in cash (not to mention remote accounts.) Of course, the difficulty of the subject proving full compliance is more of a problem for the subject than the torturer.
    - freeloop3 9y ago
      A home can be searched and caches found. A foreign account is difficult to open. It's not hard to see why bitcoin has its appeal, no?
      - dragonwriter 9y ago
        > It's not hard to see why bitcoin has its appeal, no? Since I gave the reason (added difficulty in detection, not confiscation) upthread, no, it's not hard to see why it has appeal compared to foreign currency for non-current savings (if you are spending in the domestic economy, which is observable by the authorities, the advantage of Bitcoin is mitigated) under certain threat models.
      - Retric 9y ago
        Actually yes it is. Physical currency inside a country is hardly the same things as Physical or digital currency outside a country. Having bitcoins (etc) inside a country is arguably less secure and far easier to confiscate.
        freeloop3 9y ago
        You'll have to explain digital currency "inside" vs "outside" a country... XD
        Retric 9y ago
        A bank in North Korea is under the complete control of North Korea, a bank in the Cayman Islands is not. Now if you're trying to hide from the United States government then you don't have a huge number of options. But, no government controls all banking.
Retric 9y ago
A foreign bank account is as easy to hide as a cripto wallet.
- freeloop3 9y ago
  But much more difficult to set up.
  - Retric 9y ago
    You still need to move your wealth into bitcoins just as you need to move your wealth into whatever else. So, assuming an oppressive government bitcoins become harder to secure as you still need a foreign bank account but now you need steps after that point.

A brain wallet can be confiscated by rubber-hose cryptanalysis. It is more resistant, perhaps, to detection than cash on hand in foreign currency (though not necessarily particularly more than a foreign currency account where access information is memorized, depending on the threat profile of concern.)

freeloop3 9y ago
Torture may be used to find out the user has bitcoin, but you can never be sure you got it all. If they give you access to n wallets, how do you know they don't have n+1? A foreign currency account is not as easy to setup as a brain wallet.
- dragonwriter 9y ago
  > Torture may be used to find out the user has bitcoin but you can never be sure you got it all. That's also true of caches of foreign currency in cash (not to mention remote accounts.) Of course, the difficulty of the subject proving full compliance is more of a problem for the subject than the torturer.
  - freeloop3 9y ago
    A home can be searched and caches found. A foreign account is difficult to open. It's not hard to see why bitcoin has its appeal, no?
    - dragonwriter 9y ago
      > It's not hard to see why bitcoin has its appeal, no? Since I gave the reason (added difficulty in detection, not confiscation) upthread, no, it's not hard to see why it has appeal compared to foreign currency for non-current savings (if you are spending in the domestic economy, which is observable by the authorities, the advantage of Bitcoin is mitigated) under certain threat models.
    - Retric 9y ago
      Actually yes it is. Physical currency inside a country is hardly the same things as Physical or digital currency outside a country. Having bitcoins (etc) inside a country is arguably less secure and far easier to confiscate.
      - freeloop3 9y ago
        You'll have to explain digital currency "inside" vs "outside" a country... XD
        Retric 9y ago
        A bank in North Korea is under the complete control of North Korea, a bank in the Cayman Islands is not. Now if you're trying to hide from the United States government then you don't have a huge number of options. But, no government controls all banking.

Retric 9y ago

A foreign bank account is as easy to hide as a cripto wallet.

freeloop3 9y ago
But much more difficult to set up.
- Retric 9y ago
  You still need to move your wealth into bitcoins just as you need to move your wealth into whatever else. So, assuming an oppressive government bitcoins become harder to secure as you still need a foreign bank account but now you need steps after that point.