Why Bitcoin Needs Privacy

Why Bitcoin Needs Privacy
Trevor Griffioen

Encrypted anonymity is quickly becoming the most sought after Bitcoin implementation. Currently, Bitcoin could be described as dangerously transparent, if compared to the US Dollar. Cash is very anonymous by nature, and Bitcoin is supposed to emulate cash in a digital capacity. Unfortunately this is currently not the case, and Bitcoin has instead evolved into a digital gold. Bitcoin being digital gold would ordinarily not be such a bad thing, but because of the transparent nature of the Bitcoin Blockchain this translucency could spell disaster for Bitcoin in the long run. What do we mean by this? All Bitcoin transactions are fully traceable and could be directly correlated with an IP address. There are ways to increase Bitcoin anonymity, but these steps are not well known outside of Bitcoin Forums or websites. This is why privacy coins like Monero, Dash, and Zcash have become very popular in recent years. They are unique because they mask the identities of the people using them and have successfully created their own niche market. If Bitcoin became a true Privacy Coin, and implemented anonymity into it's platform, it would attract a large part of the Privacy Coin users.