Is it not potentially dangerous for Satoshi if he/she/they are identified?

Think of the legal ramifications. Although Bitcoins legal position is at least a little bit hazy in most jurisdictions, there's bound to be some jurisdiction at some point that puts responsibility on the service provider, failing that, the service creator.

There's potentially a lot of tax that has gone unpaid because of Bitcoin and I'm sure the tax people would love to have someone to at least try and blame and recoup their losses from....


I'd love to know who Satoshi is, even if it's just to buy them a beer for their work. But I think, as mentioned previously, the selfless mystery creator(s) sacrificing fame and fortune for the good of mankind adds a certain element to Bitcoin, even if it just makes for good publicity.

Whilst a Satoshi Witch Hunt maybe interesting, novel etc. it's pretty selfish. He (she/they) created something for us all and all they asked for in return is a bit of privacy, for whatever reason. Leaving their identity unknown is the least we could do for them. If he/she/they wants to be known, I'm sure he/she/they will do it in their own time and on their own terms.

(aside: "selfless mystery creator(s) sacrificing fame and fortune for the good of mankind" conjures up images of religious folk knocking on my door offering me a flier with a picture of a man nailed to a cross on the front.)