Re: Treasury Department worries about ecash, anonymity

[John Kelsey]

At 09:07 PM 9/22/00 -0400, Declan McCullagh wrote:

Feds: Digital Cash Can Thwart Us
by Declan McCullagh ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
...
It says: "The development of new technologies -- such as electronic
cash, electronic purses, Internet or smartcard based electronic
payment systems, and Internet banking -- is increasing the ability of
individuals to rapidly transfer large sums of money, and could pose a
challenge for FinCEN and other law enforcement agencies combating
money laundering."

I suspect an even more interesting and scary possibility is that at some
point, electronic payment systems may be so widespread that a security flaw
in the system can have the same kind of impact as (say) the failure of a
major bank.

--John

Treasury Department worries about ecash, anonymity

[Declan McCullagh]

http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,38955,00.html

Feds: Digital Cash Can Thwart Us
by Declan McCullagh ([EMAIL PROTECTED])

3:00 a.m. Sep. 22, 2000 PDT
WASHINGTON -- A Treasury Department report warns that technologies
such as the Internet and electronic cash could thwart the federal
government's efforts to conduct surveillance of bank and credit card
transactions.

The internal strategic plan predicts that technology may help law
enforcement by allowing agents to assemble ever-growing databases of
Americans' financial activities, but it can also provide more
anonymity than ever before.

Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) prepared the
36-page document, which was obtained by Wired News.

It says: "The development of new technologies -- such as electronic
cash, electronic purses, Internet or smartcard based electronic
payment systems, and Internet banking -- is increasing the ability of
individuals to rapidly transfer large sums of money, and could pose a
challenge for FinCEN and other law enforcement agencies combating
money laundering."

[...]