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Not GP, but the first term you can search for in an article like these is "anonymous". If the writer claims Bitcoin allows anonymous transactions, then they hav
by jimmydorry 5y ago
Not GP, but the first term you can search for in an article like these is "anonymous". If the writer claims Bitcoin allows anonymous transactions, then they have failed the first and most basic test of crypto literacy.
From the article:
>Because [BTC] transactions are anonymous and (generally) irreversible, crypto assets are also a prime target for thieves.
Unless you are talking about a privacy coin, most crypto is pseudononymous. A record of every transaction is kept in perpetuity and can later be linked to a given person by following the trail of records when someone in the chain eventually provides a service that has to implement KYC (Know Your Client) protocols (e.g. an exchange, a bank, or a typical e-commerce merchant).
- ethanbond 5y ago> … someone in the chain eventually provides a service that has to implement KYC (Know Your Client) protocols (e.g. an exchange, a bank, or a typical e-commerce merchant). This doesn’t have to exist for a given transaction. This bitcoin is effectively public for the vast majority of people and it is effectively anonymous for those who are highly motivated to remain so.
- jimmydorry 5y agoThe proper word is pseudonymous. Even if the chain of transactions does not lead to a hard identity, the mere act of trading by public key is to transact pseudonymously. An anonymous transaction would have concealed senders and receivers. So no, the two words are not interchangable.
- ethanbond 5y agoYes, and the distinction is not meaningful to the argument being made.