Transaction

j"1LAnZuoQdcKCkpDBKQMCgziGMoPC4VQUckM5<div class="post"><div class="quoteheader"><a href="https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=721.msg7928#msg7928">Quote from: gridecon on August 06, 2010, 06:23:42 PM</a></div><div class="quote">I see three additional replies written while I was typing this, so I'll try to refocus:<br/><br/>I understand the system, and appreciate its strengths. I am actually happy to participate in the bitcoin economy, sending coins around as tips for forum posts and the like is enjoyable as a "game" and the cost of entry is currently pretty low. My personal concern is not over botnets taking over with forged currency, but with botnets taking over the issuance of genuine coins. That is why I think the "security through wasting energy" concept is flawed - not because it isn't secure, but because it has the potential to create incentives for harmful behaviors, which in turn diminishes the likelihood of building social trust in the currency.<br/></div><br/>Ah I understand then, the answer is botnets can't forge currency because the swarm would not accept it. The only thing they can do is produce "real" currency at the expense of the stolen CPU time. Just like forcing slaves to mine gold will still net you real gold, just at no cost.<br/><br/>The only known *practical* attack to bitcoin from a botnet would be to have more CPU than the swarm at your command and to use that CPU power to double-speed currency. So while that could possible fall in into the "forged currency" category, it's not so much to make fake currency as it is spending valid currency twice before anyone notices.</div> text/html