BSidesChicago 2017

The idea of a cashless society could be one of the greatest threats to freedom in human history. It carries chilling potential to create an inescapable financial panopticon of monetary surveillance and data collection with unprecedentedly granular resolution. Governments, banks and credit card companies around the world continue to wage war against the ubiquity of cash in a deliberate push towards a future cashless society. In light of its notably incoherent political dynamics, what possible roles might Bitcoin and blockchain technology play in safeguarding social interests in a future without cash? How else might we hedge against the perceived inevitability of this potential dystopian future?