A Pending Payment from Bitpay??? KYC.
Spending Crypto
Seems as if most merchants have chosen "bitpay" as their choice payment gateway for crypto payments. All well and good, but what if someone sends YOU a payment through bitpay?
Logging into bitpay to make a crypto purchase, I noticed a very interesting message:
I have a pending PAYMENT? Get paid now? What's this all about? Why aren't they being more specific?
Well I better click "setup" then, right?
Receiving Crypto
Bitpay both sends and receives crypto payments - so if someone wants to send crypto to my bitpay account, I should be able to receive it.
All bitpay needs to know is where to send it, that is my private wallet address. Because I hold the keys, I hold the crypto. That is the payment's DESTINATION.
As the notice says "get paid now!"
Ok Fine, Pay Me
So I click. Can't be that big a deal, let's set up a payment destination!
Oh.
This isn't setting up a payment destination.
This is verifying my identity.
Hmmmm. Know Your Customer.
Ok fine... KYC I understand. Let's begin.
Wait, what? How did the government get involved with this? Only government issued ID's are accepted? Really?
Why not just verify I'm not a robot? Why not set up google AUTH. Or have me put a puzzle piece in, or identify seaplanes...
WHY GET THE GOVERNMENT INVOLVED?????
Urgg!
I just want to give you my crypto address so I can get paid, like you said!
LIKE YOU SAID!
Like a Dummy
Ok, fine. I'll scan my government issued drivers licence, if that'll make you happy.
Oh front and back, fine.
Oh, you want me to "take a selfie" to match my face to my ID? This is getting a little too weird... but ok. I take selfies all the time, I'm sure I'm in their database already.
I bet some of you have gone through this, scanning and verifying your identity. As if I were about to board a plane. Remember when we used to board a plane. Without having to take off our shoes and belt? Without them throwing away our pocket knives and toothpaste?
So... moving on. Get in line. Follow instructions. Do the thing. Get paid, really, there's a PENDING PAYMENT at the end of this.
PENDING PAYMENT.
It needs a DESTINATION.
"get paid now!"
We Just Need to Verify Your Address
Alright.
Now that we're through the verification, I'll just be putting in my... SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER??????????
WHAT?
They ask for my address and at the bottom, so innocent looking, there is is. Required field.
SSN.
Nope. Done. All Over
Keep your filthy payment, I don't know how much it is, I don't care!
I don't know who it's from, I don't care!
I don't know anything about it - other than I have to disclose WAAAAAY too much information to receive it.
I'm NOT revealing my SSN to any non-governmental agency.
I don't care if it's "convenient" and I don't care if there are "no restrictions or federal law precluding".
I'm not giving out my SSN to a blockchain payment gateway!
That ends my story: I walked away with the application 66% completed.
Not today Satan.
This is NOT How Blockchain Works
This is not how blockchain works. You don't need a SSN to transfer funds via blockchain. You need an address and an amount. THAT'S IT!
The whole point of blockchain is to send and receive anonymous payments. We can argue "fraud" or "identity theft" all day. We can use phrases like "only criminals" and "nothing to hide" and "it's secure" all day long - but none of that changes the incompatibility between government issued SSN and blockchain transfers.
INCOMPATIBLE.
It breaks the purpose and function of blockchain trades - receiving and sending payments.
Some Welcome Government Oversite
In theory it sounds good. I mean if we don't have "regulation" imagine all of the fraud and identity theft that will occur. Don't we need daddy gov to get involved?
I agree with the problem, but not the solution.
Crypto is the wild west. It's dangerous. There's bandits, there's robbers, there's crooks. But there's also freedom and the ability to transaction one to one, without a third party.
If blockchain was built for "trustless" transactions, why do we need to go to the government for TRUST?
Who trusts the government?
And by the way, as the wild west was tamed, we learned who "tamed" it: NEW bandits, NEW robbers and NEW crooks took over. Ones that we've been tricked into believing are fair and just.
I mean who can question the trustworthiness of an authority that has a JUSTICE DEPARTMENT?
Who trusts the "Justice" department?
KYC Breaks Crypto
The purpose of KYC is to break crypto. That's their* goal.
Crypto is competition for their* fiat and in a fair fight, their* fiat would loose spectacularly. As inflation begins, we're seeing their* fiat loosing the battle.
"Their" meaning the corrupt deepstate/banking cartel
Someday soon, the ignorant masses will realize that crypto and other assets are far superior to fiat paper. That's dangerous. Transactions outside of banks and their financial system are dangerous for them - so they have to do two things:
convince the ignorant masses that crypto is only used by criminals
convince the ignorant masses that if you (non-criminal) want to use crypto, simply complete this KYC and you're good to go
But what do they do with those who are not a part of the mass? Those who are not ignorant?
Refer back to option one.
Don't be a part of the ignorant masses. Don't follow the crowd and don't be ignorant. KYC is bad news.
If this trend continues, it WILL mean the end of crypto as a practical "trustless" transactional tool.
There is no way around it: everyone who thinks for themselves will become a criminal. Once thought becomes crime, there is no avoiding it.
Handing The Mic Over to You
I've said enough. What are your thoughts? Am I off my rocker? Am I over-reacting? Is this KYC a good thing? Should overseers act as a third-party?
I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
Bless the Most High!
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The people doing V2K with remote neural monitoring want me to believe this lady @battleaxe is an operator. She is involved deeply with her group and @fyrstikken . Her discord is Battleaxe#1003. I cant prove she is the one directly doing the V2K and RNM. Doing it requires more than one person at the least. It cant be done alone. She cant prove she is not one of the ones doing it. I was drugged in my home covertly, it ended badly. They have tried to kill me and are still trying to kill me. I bet nobody does anything at all. Ask @battleaxe to prove it. I bet she wont. They want me to believe the V2K and RNM in me is being broadcast from her location. And what the fuck is "HOMELAND SECURITY" doing about this shit? I think stumbling over their own dicks maybe? Just like they did and are doing with the Havana Syndrome.
They are reckless and should have shown the proper media what they had before taking me hostage for 5 years.
What would you say while having a gun pointed at your head from an undisclosed location? Have people find it? My hands are tied while they play like children with a gun to my head. Its a terrorist act on American soil while some yawn and say its not real or Im a mental case. Many know its real. This is an ignored detrimental to humanity domestic threat. Ask informed soldiers in the American military what their oath is and tell them about the day you asked me why. Nobody has I guess. Maybe someone told ill informed soldiers they cant protect America from military leaders in control with ill intent. How do we protect locked up soldiers from telling the truth? https://ecency.com/fyrstikken/@fairandbalanced/i-am-the-only-motherfucker-on-the-internet-pointing-to-a-direct-source-for-voice-to-skull-electronic-terrorism
That's what happened trying to use an ATM to withdraw, I canceled it too!
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
Oh man, even ATMS! Arrrg.
!WINE
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I could not agree with you more, @ironshield!
!HBIT
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Thank you.
Thanks for the info. It does seem that they went too far.
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They'll go as far as they think they can go.
!ALIVE !WINE
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I never used bitpay, but good to know!
I have to admit, I enjoyed your writing even though the frustration that made you write it was not a nice reason ;)
Thanks for sharing!
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
I was hoping to share my frustration, but not make everyone else frustrated! If we don't see a little humor in all of this, we'll have a hard time. !ALIVE
Well, that's how I experienced it, I had to laugh a little even though the reason was not pleasant for you :)
I also use bitpay in other ways, I remember booking a private flight to Beverly hills with this, everything was done with simple clicks of a button and I never received issues with them.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
Yes, I've bought with bitpay, no problem. But receiving money from them is overbearing.
i basically send the money into theirs.
their KYC can't be completed in my country
Well said. It's interesting that politician's are constantly fear mongering about crypto fraud and the need for regulation when regulation has never stopped money laundering and counterfeiting from happening with fiat. It's a play for control as far as I'm concerned.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
There is much more laundering with fiat than with crypto - the politicians don't realize the technology, it's all transparent!
Awesome post my friend
@ironshield i would have backed out too
They are going to restrict the hell out of peoples crypto till they get it all if they can.
Silly games we must play
!ALIVE
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Everytime you can be tracked, it's a bad thing. Everytime. KYC bad. Big Brother looking over your shoulder. Forget it.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
Yeah, that is a bit excessive especially since you are already signed up with them. Everyone wants to know your business.
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I think I will avoid this site as well because I don't want to give them my SSN. It's kind of crazy how much information each organization wants and people give it without thinking.
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I only ever KYC'd one time and that was with Coinbase back in the early days of Steem. I really don't know any other way to get USD into the system without KYC. I know there must be ways to buy crypto without KYC but they elude me, I must not be criminal enough !LOLZ
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Now I have all Kenny logins
Credit: reddit
@ironshield, I sent you an $LOLZ on behalf of @hhayweaver
Use the !LOL or !LOLZ command to share a joke and an $LOLZ. (1/6)
I am with you. I have an Uphold account for my BAT, but other than that my crypto is...well...cryptic! If crypto became just another thing regulated by the SEC and the IRS, it would no longer be special. It is the paradigm change, and the moochers/politicians will just have to learn to live with/without it.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
Agree with you I hate those KYC and i avoid them as much as I can.
The KYC informations are often stored by a third party and it is not 100% safe, so your identity may be stolen.
Stay safe and !ALIVE
Mail upvoted on Listnerd
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@ironshield! You Are Alive so I just staked 0.1 $ALIVE to your account on behalf of @chapelle. (6/20)
The tip has been paid for by the We Are Alive Tribe through the earnings on @alive.chat, feel free to swing by our daily chat any time you want.
As you have mentioned about identity theft. I have been reading many different kind of websites about protecting my privacy online, and I was hoping they could give me some ideas about how to increase my personal security.