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This is really disappointing and almost seems engineered to proliferate Bitcoin's reputation as a technology to service criminals. I also think that they misun

This is really disappointing and almost seems engineered to proliferate Bitcoin's reputation as a technology to service criminals. I also think that they misunderstand the needs of their potential customers. They are trying to introduce a public, crowd-funded service to a market for covert information without any sense of irony. In broad strokes, a third of the value of a stolen secret is in knowing it; another third is having exclusive access; and the last third is that your competition does not know they've been robbed. When they realize that you have their IP, they will pour money into R&D. Since they are already familiar with their work -- and you are not yet -- they are likely to beat you to market. For that reason I'm skeptical this venture can compete with existing black markets.

drcode 12y ago
fabulist, I kind of agree with you that this tool has a low chance of success, but... ...all I see is a tool that allows secure communication and protects people's privacy. If we want to avoid living in a future where a police state monitors everything people do and say at all times, we have to somehow allow for people to maintain privacy and communicate privately. Your attitude seems like a really slippery slope: If I write an email to someone and PGP encrypt it, as many people do today, would you similarly say that I'm being "covert" and "dark"? Where do we draw the line?
- mintplant 12y ago
  Have you read the linked page? "Trade secrets", "stolen databases", and "military intelligence relevant to real-time conflicts" are listed as examples of types of information they "expect to see on the Slur marketplace". I think "covert" and "dark" can safely be used to describe this service.
  - drcode 12y ago
    Shoot, I hate having to admit it, but I didn't see the list you're quoting from at the very end of the site- You are correct that they are explicitly targeting covert/dark applications, and I should have seen that before commenting.
    - fabulist 12y ago
      I missed it at first, too; I saw comments referencing it, and checked the article again. I'm all for having secure, private means of communication; it is essential for our liberty and a healthy democracy. Inevitably, these will be used to create black markets. Freedom is expensive, and that is just another cost.
  - pakled_engineer 12y ago
    it will end up full of carding dumps and financial fraud, secret service will likely be interested in the developers since they openly promote stolen dB's should be sold with their platform. they should have said nothing the black market would have discovered it on their own now they are complicit/conspiring

drcode 12y ago

fabulist, I kind of agree with you that this tool has a low chance of success, but... ...all I see is a tool that allows secure communication and protects people's privacy. If we want to avoid living in a future where a police state monitors everything people do and say at all times, we have to somehow allow for people to maintain privacy and communicate privately. Your attitude seems like a really slippery slope: If I write an email to someone and PGP encrypt it, as many people do today, would you similarly say that I'm being "covert" and "dark"? Where do we draw the line?

mintplant 12y ago
Have you read the linked page? "Trade secrets", "stolen databases", and "military intelligence relevant to real-time conflicts" are listed as examples of types of information they "expect to see on the Slur marketplace". I think "covert" and "dark" can safely be used to describe this service.
- drcode 12y ago
  Shoot, I hate having to admit it, but I didn't see the list you're quoting from at the very end of the site- You are correct that they are explicitly targeting covert/dark applications, and I should have seen that before commenting.
  - fabulist 12y ago
    I missed it at first, too; I saw comments referencing it, and checked the article again. I'm all for having secure, private means of communication; it is essential for our liberty and a healthy democracy. Inevitably, these will be used to create black markets. Freedom is expensive, and that is just another cost.
- pakled_engineer 12y ago
  it will end up full of carding dumps and financial fraud, secret service will likely be interested in the developers since they openly promote stolen dB's should be sold with their platform. they should have said nothing the black market would have discovered it on their own now they are complicit/conspiring