Freedom is your ability to sing in the shower without restraint. It is an intimate moment shared between loved ones. Freedom is the security you feel when transacting with another person without fear you’ll be robbed. These freedoms are only possible with privacy, and these freedoms are worth protecting.
Some regulators are concerned that criminals will abuse freedom to wreak havoc and hurt others. Their argument is that restricting the freedom of privacy for everyone is necessary for protection against the actions of a few people. But this rationale doesn’t logically hold up. Criminals use the internet, mobile phones, the US dollar, automobiles, closed drapes and all manner of things to conduct and hide crimes.
Since cryptocurrencies are relatively new, some regulators are concerned that bad actors have a new tool that is not yet well understood. They are uncertain about whether cryptocurrencies are being used for economic freedom, as intended, or to abuse freedom. And because good research hasn’t been readily available, they were unsure about whether bad actors were using Zcash any more than other technologies.
In an effort to address their questions, we (Electric Coin Co.) commissioned not-for-profit research institute RAND – comprising both RAND Europe and the US-based RAND Corporation — to conduct deep quantitative and qualitative research into whether Zcash was being used to abuse freedom. Their research revealed that while Zcash is highly-used and well-supported around the world, bad actors do not use Zcash. One of the reasons RAND interviewees conjectured that Zcash isn’t being used to abuse freedom is that Zcash wasn’t built for that purpose. But the conjecturers really don’t know why. It’s all just guesses.
What we do know is that Zcash is being used for all kinds of things for which it is intended. Zcash is being used to buy movie tickets and ice cream, for sharing personal notes between friends, and for donations to dozens of charities around the world. We know that Zcash is being used to protect people’s savings from theft, and it is used for protecting people’s voices from censorship in oppressed countries. We know these things because people are engaging and sharing their stories with us. Zcash exists for these freedoms, and they are worth protecting.
So please continue to sing in the shower, share with loved ones, and transact securely.
We’ll keep building and supporting Zcash in support of your economic freedom.
You be you.
Josh Swihart is VP of Growth for Electric Coin Co.
