Bruce Schneier: Blockchain And Trust
Lawrence D'Oliveiro <[email protected]>
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Another thoughtful essay
<https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2019/02/blockchain_and_.html>
from the well-known computer-security guru:
Trust is essential to society. As a species, humans are wired to
trust one another. Society can't function without trust, and the
fact that we mostly don't even think about it is a measure of how
well trust works.
....
Most blockchain enthusiasts have a unnaturally narrow definition of
trust. They're fond of catchphrases like "in code we trust," "in
math we trust," and "in crypto we trust." This is trust as
verification. But verification isn't the same as trust.
....
Any blockchain system will have to coexist with other, more
conventional systems. Modern banking, for example, is designed to
be reversible. Bitcoin is not. That makes it hard to make the two
compatible, and the result is often an insecurity. Steve Wozniak
was scammed out of $70K in bitcoin because he forgot this.
....
Honestly, cryptocurrencies are useless. They're only used by
speculators looking for quick riches, people who don't like
government-backed currencies, and criminals who want a black-market
way to exchange money.
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