Protests in Hong Kong, Lebanon, Iran show bitcoin's limitations, as governments cut off internet, disrupting access to global exchanges and limiting liquidity
Protests in Hong Kong, Lebanon, and Iran have forced cypherpunks to test censorship resistant technologies in the wild. Tweets: @coindesk , @hugohanoi , @la__cuen , @patestevao , @globalmeshlabs , @paulharwood01 , @randybrito , @mayazi , and @edadoun Tweets: @coindesk : IN DEPTH: Protesters across the globe are testing out bitcoin and other decentralized technologies - then promptly discovering their limitations. http://ow.ly/... @La__Cuen reports Hugo Nguyen / @hugohanoi : “censorship-resistant technology can still be censored as long as it remains too niche.” Great article by @La__Cuen. We have a long way to go. BTC might work great prior to a crisis but not (yet) robust enough during a crisis. https://twitter.com/... Leigh Cuen / @la__cuen : “We're locked up in a prison that the U.S. and Iranian governments have built for us,” the Iranian bitcoiner said. This is the most important piece I've written this year. Technologists should consider this user feedback as they work on design choices, products & services. https://twitter.com/... Patrcia Estevo / @patestevao : There's no better UX research than one in the real context. Let's not miss the opportunity of listening to real feedback from a legitimate adversarial use case that can translate to many other similar situations. Great piece from @La__Cuen. https://twitter.com/... @globalmeshlabs : Decentralized technology is being tested by innovators in totalitarian countries, but not yet even in the ‘early adopter’ phase of uptake. We are focused on using bitcoin incentives to bootstrap decentralized bottom-up communication networks so they will be in place when needed. https://twitter.com/... Paul Harwood / @paulharwood01 : Good journalism re the limited role of mesh tech, the limited reach to the unbanked and non-expert, govt infiltration and the need for larger networks based on in-person and longstanding relations. #Bitcoin in the field vs Bitcoin in space. End mile use vs accessible deep stack. https://twitter.com/... @randybrito : “We need a simple way to connect our devices together” “We need secure & accessible communication for people” #LochaMeshFixesThis w/ open-source software & hardware for real censorship-resistant #mesh, an alternative to the Internet #LochaMesh @Locha_io https://www.coindesk.com/... Maya Zehavi / @mayazi : the market need for dissident tech in real time from @La__Cuen : ✳️ mesh networks for when authoritarians shut down the internet ✳️ private cash so payments aren't a surveillance tool ✳️ private co-ordination apps we need to build for these ppl https://www.coindesk.com/... Eric Dadoun / @edadoun : BTC cant be stopped? What if those who wish it wasnt true admitted it? Maybe limitations can be solved but then the debate is who will achieve their goals first? My bet is government. “Digital” is coming but gov will as always control the levers. Sober article. Worth the read. https://twitter.com/...