Re: What if you bought some of those stolen Mt Gox Bitcoins?

Quote from: Vitamin on March 02, 2014, 02:17:21 AM

Quote from: Edward50 on February 28, 2014, 11:42:50 PM

Sorry if this was discussed, but in USA if you buy stolen property and you are caught with it you have to return it to the original owner at your loss.

This is utter bullshit. The person who stole it is responsible for all losses under US law.

For example, say I steal your credit card and buy a $2000 flat screen from Best Buy, but on my way home I get into an accident and the TV is destroyed. Once the the FBI catches me, it's MY responsibility to fork over the $2000 not Best Buy's.

Incorrect.

I guess you missed the relevant discussion.

Quote from: CoinCube on February 26, 2014, 01:52:36 PM

Failure to understand Bitcoin will indeed cost investors billions. 744,408 BTC stolen (nearly 7% of total mined coins to date) and some people seem to be cheering like this is a good thing because they dont like (long despised) MtGox. This is far far from over. Where did those stolen coins go? Well check your wallet because they were likely fed back to the markets. If you have been buying bitcoins on any exchange chances are you have some of the stolen loot yourself. These stolen coins can be traced back to their true owner in a direct chain of title thanks to the block chain. If you dont think this matters you dont understand the legal system and the principle of Nemo dat quod non habet .

Under both American and English law the original owner of stolen property can demand ownership be returned to him if he can prove a chain of title (something the blockchain conveniently provides). The only recourse for an innocent buyer of stolen goods (and only in some jurisdictions) is to argue the exchange it was bought from had an implied warranty and he can try to sue the exchange after returning the coins to the true owner. MtGox is insolvent good luck there. BTC-e is run by anonymous folks think they will stick around in the face of massive lawsuits?

But cheer up there is still a chance most MtGox victims will get their coins back. The threat of massive unending lawsuits targeting innocent bitcoin buyers is an existential one for bitcoin. The 10-15 early adopters stand (by far) to lose the most if bitcoin goes down in flames. They might actually decide to buy out MtGox for the 744,408 bitcoins (an amount grossly exceeding the worth of the company) not because they are altruistic people, but because the chain of lawsuits that would follow if they don't act may hurt their holdings more than the loss of 744,408 bitcoins. Its a lot of money, however, so its likely a difficult call for them. Regardless expect all future exchanges to require both rigorous identity checks prior to buying and selling as well as fine print stating that anyone who supplies coins to a market is ultimately responsible in the event those coins are determined to be black or stolen goods in the future.

Still think there is no need for truly anonymous cryptocurrency?