Hacker News Reader

Comment by koolba | Hacker News Reader

If you replace bitcoin with cash, by your logic I'd be arrested for selling a thief an apple if he paid for it with stolen cash.

That's the distinction. Is it money or is it a fenced good?

If I'm receiving currency (be it real money or bitcoin), I'm not going to think about where it came from. It's fungible.

View on HN

> I'd be arrested for selling a thief an apple if he paid for it with stolen cash

Welcome to anti-money laundering law. KYC regulations basically mean, for anyone handling large volumes of money, it's the vendor's business, and liability, to know where customers' money comes from.

> by your logic I'd be arrested for selling a thief an apple if he paid for it with stolen cash.

Yes, this can happen. Especially for higher valued items

Unless he's reaching into a giant purple spattered bag that says "bank vault" and the name of a bank you know was robbed.

Physical dollars each have a unique serial number - aren't these sometimes used to track criminals as they spend stolen funds? Or is that just a Hollywood exaggeration?

Re: currency tracking, you might like this:

https://www.wheresgeorge.com

I think it's only useful if you know which serial numbers were stolen, for example if you give specific range of serial numbers as a ransom payment.

When I worked as a bank teller briefly, we had this planned out. There was a stack of bills (usually 10s, but it was kind of random) that we were only to give out if we were actively being robbed. They were indistinguishable from regular currency to avoid suspicion, but the serial numbers were recorded for tracking purposes.

This was in a small town bank, and I'm sure that larger banks have more sophisticated policies. I'm curious to know if ATMs have any similar features.

Unfortunately, under the US drug laws, this is allowed. You're a drug dealer and rent an apartment? The landlord could now be at risk, regardless of whether they know how you make money to pay them. It's how the Feds have compelled completely law abiding citizens to work with law enforcement and/or threaten to take everything.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handling_stolen_goods

Then you will be asked to cooperate and reveal the identity of the thief. If you don't, then yes you are in "potential" trouble.

I see no issue with cooperating. If they want to see my security footage then let them get a subpoena. If they want to see the IP logs and customer data for a potential money launderer, it's the same bar.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com