Australian businessman Craig Wright claims to have created cryptocurrency.
On May 2nd, An Australian entrepreneur named Craig Steven Wright publicly announced that he was the original founder of Bitcoin. Introduced in 2009 as a virtual asset and payment system, the platform quickly became a popular open-source software. It consists of peer-to-peer transactions that occur between users without an intermediary. Utilizing Bitcoin as its unit of account, transactions are validated by network nodes and recorded in a public distributed ledger known as the block chain. The individual mining process generates Bitcoins which could be exchanged for other currencies, products and services. Before Monday, the only information on the founder was an alias by the title, Satoshi Nakamoto. With over 100,000 vendors currently accepting Bitcoin and its net worth at nearly $7 billion, the public and tax regulators are eagerly awaiting proof from Wright to support his claims.
With the pool of cyber communication and tech resources, it became increasingly difficult to identify the company’s true founder. Until now, there was no recognized leader that would assume the responsibilities of Bitcoin’s immediate future. Expansion of this first decentralized digital currency has led to a divide among community members. While some want the network to remain under the radar, others want the name to become more commercialized. This makes Wright’s announcement imperative for decision-making policies needed to sustain Bitcoin’s operations. So far, Wright makes his intentions clear claiming that he wants to reduce uncertainty and clarify any negative myths associated with his virtual currency. In order to validate that he is indeed Satoshi Nakamoto, Wright plans on releasing a number of artifacts as evidence.
Wright posted on his Tuesday blog that he, “will be posting a series of pieces that will lay the foundations for this extraordinary claim, which will include posting independently-verifiable documents and evidence.” In particular, Wright will transfer Bitcoins from an account that can be closely linked to the early days of the platform’s inception. However, critics remain skeptical over Wright’s outspoken leadership persona.
Infosec Consultant, Nik Cubrilovic, came down hard on Wright after attempting to prove his claims with insufficient evidence. In fact, Cubrilovic wrote in his blog yesterday that Wright has had a history of deception and manipulation. The 10 private keys along with his leaked documents Wright posted on his blog are unverifiable and could be easily fabricated. In addition, Wright has had more than enough time to present adequate evidence since his initial announcement in December of 2015. Cubrilovic feels that anyone claiming to be Nakamoto would face challenges in doing so but in Wright’s case, it would be extremely difficult given his unfavorable track record.
Nevertheless, it is safe to say that Bitcoin is reaching a level of exposure unprecedented in its company’s history. The controversy surrounding its legal and ethical implications continue to be in question which is something Wright has had to manage head on. Bittersweet indeed, Wright is now the face of an industry currently facing economic and social transitions like never before.
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