In another unfortunate turn of events for anyone hoping their right to privacy to be protected as guaranteed by the US Constitution, the UN Declaration of Human Rights, or applicable state and federal law, the US government has argued that the disclosure of proprietary Chainalysis heuristics information in the case US vs. Sterlingov would “jeopardize numerous law enforcement investigations and impact the effectiveness of law enforcement tracing tools” by enabling the development of “criminal countermeasures to blockchain analysis.”
The oath each and every US government employee pledges when first taking office reads: “I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”
Apparently, this oath is only applicable so long it serves the US government’s agenda.
While attempting to retain a protective order to seal the disclosure of Chainalysis heuristic information, the US government has, in essence, argued that the right to privacy does not exist when transacting on the blockchain.
In the newly released court documents, the US government defines software developed to protect individual financial privacy on the blockchain, such as coinjoins, as “adversarial”, contending that the disclosure of Chainalysis training methods and techniques bears the reasonable expectation to enable “circumvention of the law.”
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