“Compared to privacy coins Wasabi is just a temporary hack. I think without Confidential Transactions, as the transaction fees grow, privacy will be priced out of Bitcoin's main chain.”
In the specific context of coinjoin confidential transactions has the benefit of at most halving the amount of transactions needed to get privacy by eliminating the need to match values. I think that comment is overstating the limitations there.
its 'private' and 'anonymous' as long as no one can trace back the transactions to your wallet, hence the need for bitcoin mixers for 'unsafe' purchases
Solo-mining a block is basically impossible these days. Also I would assume all remaining Bitcoin mixers are honeypots. You can get some degree of privacy in Bitcoin with coinjoin but it is slow, cumbersome, has high fees and is not a proper solution for decentralised cash. There is also the possibility of ending up with tainted Bitcoins.
I also disagree that you only need privacy for “unsafe” transactions. Everyone has a right to privacy in their day to day life.
I know someone who bought a few hundred bucks worth of bitcoin a couple years ago out of curiosity, trying to maintain anonymity the whole time. He was able to set up an account on an exchange through TOR with no personal info, but in order to transfer cash his only real option was to deposit it into the bitcoin seller's account at a bank he'd never been to before (where he was still, of course, on security cameras).
His conclusion was that the only reason people aren't being prosecuted across the board for dark web purchases is because it benefits the authorities to let them think they can get away with smaller transactions so they'll be tempted to make larger ones.
> His conclusion was that the only reason people aren't being prosecuted across the board for dark web purchases is because it benefits the authorities to let them think they can get away with smaller transactions so they'll be tempted to make larger ones.
Possible, but that negates the fact this tech can and should be mainly be used P2P. There are still options for good OPSEC outside if you're willing to step away from your keyboard.
It most certainly won't be cheap, or convenient (most times) that much is clear, but its totally do-able even now to remain entirely untied to your tx.
> It most certainly won’t be cheap, or convenient (most times) that much is clear, but its totally do-able even now to remain entirely united to your tx.
If I needed to get you $10,000 and remain entirely untied to the transaction, how would you suggest I proceed?
> If I needed to get you $10,000 and remain entirely untied to the transaction, how would you suggest I proceed?
What's the saying: Buy my book?
No, but seriously, after this whole COVID thing and how certain Industries are still denied banking and financial services, yet equally deemed 'essential' has made me re-visit the idea of re-launching my fintech startup with a vetted and specialized Team.