"I may have committed some light treason" - Tornado Cash Founder
TL;DR
Tornado Cash allowed users to mix their coins with a whole bunch of other folks' coins, muddying their origins to the point of complete obscurity.
While this was perfect for law abiding citizens that wanted to retain their financial privacy - it was also a great solution for not-so-savory characters looking to launder money.
Roman Semenov and Roman Storm (R-squared, if you will) have been charged with three conspiracy counts in an indictment unsealed last week.
From now on, regulatory pressure is going to be placed on any 'black box' privacy enforcing features within the crypto world, while under US jurisdiction.
Full Story
You know how Google Maps logs your location every 5 mins? No? Oh.
Well, if you go to the 'Location History' section of your Google Account, you're in for a rude surprise.
Thankfully, there's a way to turn it off.
...but imagine if there wasn't!
In the crypto world, pretty much all of your transactions are public and traceable by anyone.
ICYMI: Tornado Cash aimed to solve that problem, by allowing users to mix their coins with a whole bunch of other folks' coins, muddying their origins to the point of complete obscurity.
...only problem with the whole system was:
While this was perfect for law abiding citizens that wanted to retain their financial privacy - it was also a great solution for not-so-savory characters looking to launder money.
As a result, the use of Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the US Department of Justice. That's the story so far...
The latest headline is this:
Roman Semenov and Roman Storm (R-squared, if you will) have been charged with three conspiracy counts in an indictment unsealed last week.
These aren't light charges! In the indictment, it's alleged that Tornado Cash was used by North Korea’s 'Lazarus' hacking group to launder hundreds of millions of dollars.
So, what does this mean for the future? Our guess:
Much like the aftermath of that huge house party you threw in high school that lead to your parents enforcing strict rules while living under their roof...
Regulatory pressure is going to be placed on any 'black box' privacy enforcing features within the crypto world, while under US jurisdiction.
Meaning, if there isn't an option that allows law enforcement or government agencies to access your financial data (e.g. via a warrant or tax audit) - there's going to be trouble.
Regardless, it makes sense that there needs to be a happy-medium struck, where privacy options are offered.
Otherwise the crypto world is going to continue to feel very 'Google Location History without an off button.'