Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation

[Sarad AV]

I was checking and Wikipedia has deleted its Bitcoin entry. how strange!did they say why?

Sarad.


--- On Mon, 11/15/10, Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org> wrote:

> From: Eugen Leitl <eugen at leitl.org>
> Subject: Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation
> To: tt at postbiota.org, info at postbiota.org, cypherpunks at al-qaeda.net, or-talk at freehaven.net
> Date: Monday, November 15, 2010, 6:39 PM
> http://www.bitcoinblogger.com/2010/11/bitcoin-gains-legal-protection-through.html
> 
> SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2010
> 
> Bitcoin And The Electronic Frontier Foundation
> 
> 
> There are many legal implications when utilizing Bitcoin.
> Users of Bitcoin
> who conduct business with the wrong people could face
> charges of money
> laundering, identity theft, and/or fraud. Honest Bitcoin
> users could be
> implicated in crimes by criminals engaging in phishing or
> malware and
> stealing identities. The Bitcoin economy resembles that of
> the wild, wild,
> west with inherently little or no regulation. Because of
> the barbaric nature
> of this new currency it is highly susceptible to legal
> attacks by law
> enforcement. Bitcoin has recently, however, gained some
> legal protection by
> the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). In another
> significant milestone
> for P2P cryptocurrency the EFF has agreed to accept Bitcoin
> donations! The
> EFF is known for legal cases involving high profile tech
> companies such as
> Apple, Google, Craigslist, and Facebook. The simple fact
> that the EFF is
> welcoming anonymous donations is a small but significant
> step towards Bitcoin
> societal acceptance.
> 
> Accepting anonymous donations is not a light decision by
> the EFF, and the
> implications are monumental. For example, selling or buying
> Bitcoins with an
> anonymous user could mean unintentionally aiding terrorism
> or helping North
> Korea build nuclear weapons. Or, political groups accepting
> Bitcoins could be
> accepting funds by enemies of the state. The United States
> recently placed
> sanctions on Iran for its nuclear programs, and if Bitcoins
> are adopted
> universally then sanctions would no longer work as a tool
> to change the
> behaviors of government. In essence, the globalization of
> Bitcoins will
> affect international political policy.
> 
> The disruptive nature of Bitcoin can cause unease with
> existing institutions
> and the war against Bitcoin will be waged through a legal
> front. The
> endorsement of the EFF could set up a legal battle in the
> future, "Bitcoin
> vs. Entity X". What courts could fail to realize, however,
> is the
> non-centralized aspect of Bitcoin, which makes shutting
> down the service next
> to impossible. Most likely, that is why Bitcoin will
> succeed no matter what
> trials and tribulations it may have to face. Nevertheless,
> the EFF's
> willingness to accept Bitcoins will further the
> cryptocurrency's cause, and
> will encourage the recognition of Bitcoin as a currency to
> be "official".
> 
> Several members of bitcoin.org have been involved in making
> the endorsement
> of the EFF happen which you can read at this forum thread.
> Feel free to
> donate to the EFF at their donation page.