Financial records – including cryptocurrency – contain a trove of sensitive information about people’s personal lives, beliefs, and affiliations. That is why law enforcement should be required to get a warrant in order to obtain financial transaction data. Courts and lawmakers have gotten this wrong in the context of traditional banks—and a June 30 ruling by a federal appeals court applied this outdated thinking to cryptocurrency. This is particularly concerning because one of the most important aspects of cryptocurrency is that it imports the privacy protections of cash into the digital world.
Link: Appeals Court Decision Fails to Protect Privacy of Cryptocurrency Exchange Users
Photo by Dmitry Demidko