Speaking at the 2024 Bitcoin conference, Edward Snowden warned Bitcoiners to vote but cautioned them against joining “cults.” He asked the attendees to beware of politicians appearing to be crypto-friendly. Snowden also joked that Senator Elizabeth Warren was the only person who still thought Bitcoin was money for criminals.
The former National Security Agency employee pointed out that while Bitcoin transactions appeared anonymous, many were “doxed” and not private in the general sense. Snowden implied that governments and “the systems that be” could potentially leverage AI to mine any blockchain user’s private data. He believed that such endeavors were already in practice and that it would be a fantasy to think otherwise.
Edward Snowden begs Bitcoiners to cast votes wisely
At the #Bitcoin 2024 conference, Edward #Snowden warned attendees about politicians trying to gain the favor of the Bitcoin community, advising them to vote but not to blindly follow these figures.
He emphasized that lawmakers have their own interests and should not be viewed… pic.twitter.com/mkjUHBkqGn
— TOBTC (@_TOBTC) July 27, 2024
Speaking through a mega screen on the main stage, Edward Snowden warned Bitcoiners about politicians trying to gain the crypto community’s favor ahead of the November elections. He advised crypto enthusiasts to be critical of their votes and not follow political figures blindly. Snowden emphasized that lawmakers were not part of the Bitcoin “tribe” since they served their own interests.
Snowden’s message at the Nashville conference was clear: voting was important, but so was critical thinking. He asserted that voters needed to see beyond superficial changes, as recent electoral processes had been mere reshuffling of political figures. To explain the current political situation, he used the analogy of the same cop being in different clothes.
The whistleblower turned crypto champion advised that people should always try to get whatever they need from politicians without giving themselves to them.
Snowden encouraged political participation and the exercising of democratic rights without getting too attached to specific parties or individuals. He affirmed that the poor majority worked to satisfy the rich minority in an unfair system where huge resources were placed in the hands of a few people, including political elites.
The looming threat of AI surveillance by corporations and governments
According to Snowden, corporations and governments are systematically manipulating citizens for selfish gains. Notably, he argued that the global technological and financial systems were fundamentally unfair in their design to benefit the powerful few at the expense of the common citizens at the bottom.
Snowden expressed concerns over the potential misuse of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze personal data and financial transactions. He explained that these unfair practices could potentially lead to increased control and surveillance.
As a Bitcoin supporter, Edward Snowden suggested the need to secure Bitcoin transactions on the network had been ignored for a long time. In his speech, Snowden said, “We’re running out of time to fix this, and the consequences of ignoring it are a whole lot worse.”
The outspoken former NSA employee criticized the lack of basic privacy laws in the U.S., noting the ease with which government agencies could bypass constitutional protections to track and link “doxed” (identifiable) blockchain transactions.
