[empath-nirvana]

The purpose of KYC laws is to replace difficult to prove and prosecute crimes like human trafficking, terrorism and drug dealing, with easy to prove and prosecute crimes like "lying on banking forms" and "money laundering" and "tax evasion."

Everyone knows that criminals lie on these forms and _that is the point_. They now have an easy to prosecute charge just waiting for them if they ever attract the attention of the authorities. They just need to look into where their money is coming from and there will be a lot of ways they can prosecute them.

https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/archive/optimal-amount-of-fra...

[voakbasda]

This was the strategy used to prosecute Al Capone. IIRC, they couldn’t get enough evidence to directly charge him for his other (violent) crimes, so they built a successful case of tax evasion. With such leverage, they started to dismantle his organization, whereupon they found the evidence to press more charges.

[hobobaggins]

So why not just throw everyone's rights out and just start searching their homes for evidence of crimes, or at least something that can be prosecuted because it might be a crime?

We'll surely get a significant amount of people who are doing or own things they shouldn't. Maybe even as high as 1%!

[voakbasda]

I never said that I approve of these tactics. Quite the opposite.

I meant it as a warning: the KYC system will be used against you. If you commit a crime (or even rock the boat too much), expect these records to be combed over and leveraged against you. At the very least, authorities will likely obtain a search warrant and systematically attempt to destroy your life.

[yieldcrv]

Al Capone would have passed KYC everywhere as a US citizen

And Al Capone could have used a non-profit as they are tax exempt, where money laundering - the crime - is not possible because there are potentially no taxes to report

that's the system

[crtasm]

You're saying being tax exempt means you don't need to report income and outgoings..?

Money laundering is possible regardless of whether an organisation needs to pay tax.

[yieldcrv]

It is possible there is just nobody to investigate it

[jcranmer]

I would also add that KYC laws basically make ignorance willful and consequently illegal.

[yieldcrv]

precisely

laundering is a crime which relies on identifying an illicit origin. so this victimless invention is actually impossible to prosecute laundering on its own, only unsuccessful laundering not just “why are you moving money how suspicious”, and it can only be a tacked on charge that might stick when the other charges wont

this further bolsters the point that the dragnet is just inconveniencing everyone else