The Bank of England’s claims of "privacy, not anonymity" ring hollow in the face of the massive data collection that will be enabled by the digital pound. According to the BoE-MIT paper, "Enhancing the Privacy of a Digital Pound," the digital currency will still allow for the collection and accessibility of payment and identity data by law enforcement and other authorities. The government's assurance that this data will be regulated under legislation is little solace, given the potential for abuse and data breaches.
The implementation of privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) like pseudonymization and zero-knowledge proofs may provide some semblance of security, but these measures are fraught with their own set of risks.
The UK government’s intention to continue the design phase for the digital pound is not just a technical endeavor but a deliberate move to build a society where independent financial transactions are increasingly monitored and restricted. The very idea that individuals would have more control over their data is absurd, given the central bank's direct access and the inevitable dependencies on government-mandated systems...<<<Read More>>>...