I don't think that that extra security is what we're seeing priced in the exchange, though. The traditional causes of volatility in commodities like gold and si

I don't think that that extra security is what we're seeing priced in the exchange, though. The traditional causes of volatility in commodities like gold and silver are increases in supply (new mines being discovered, new techniques developed, etc.) and people hedging en masse as they lose faith in the value of fiat currencies. (There are also speculative bubbles on occasion, as with anything else.) With bitcoins, we know where the supply will peak (21 million bitcoins) and the rate the supply will grow. Since the supply is predictable, it shouldn't lead to the volatility we can see in the market. The other cause for rapid deflation in commodities - people hedging because of a weak dollar (or whatever currency) - doesn't seem to be in play right now, either. The increase in security might account for an increase in value, but not 50%+ in one day. That sort of rapid deflation tells you that this is a bubble. We don't know what the stable value of a bitcoin is right now. It may be $100, it may be $1. But since nearly everyone using bitcoins right now are using them as investment instruments, we aren't seeing anything like a real price. Merchant and consumer adoption don't matter right now. All that matters is the market of other speculators. Watching the way the price shot up and down and up and down over the past 24 hours makes me think that a few people are manipulating the market and making a killing, and a lot of other people are getting scammed.