Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious NFT

 As best as I understand things, an NFT - "non-fungible token", is a string put into the blockchain.

Art NFTs are URL strings which point to the JPEG (or whatever).

The URL might break - what you really "own" is the string.  Actually putting the JPEG picture into the blockchain is very expensive because of the size.

I thought … why not put words or phrases into the blockchain?  Then you own that actual string.

My first choice for a word:  supercalifragilisticexpialidocious .

Ideally Disney issues the NFT for supercalifragilisticexpialidocious so it has a valuable origin.  (Anyone can issue a token for a word, but the whole point is to own the "official" token issued by the IP owner; as far as I can tell [I am not a lawyer] there is no trademark on supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.)  Fans would love it!  Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious has the benefit of being unique in Disney lore and instantly recognizable, so it's a good one to start with.  Other obvious choices would be "hakuna matata" and "The code is more what you’d call ‘guidelines’ than actual rules."

I thought this ideas was genius, and I hope someone at Disney agrees.  So far all of the computer savvy people I've bounced this off were unimpressed.  

But maybe they just aren't Disney fans.

  

The battle lines have been drawn

Recently there was a story in the news about takedown of the plunder obtained by a ransomware hooligan:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/colonial-pipeline-ransom-payments-hackers-seized-united-states/

Washington — The federal government has recovered millions of dollars in cryptocurrency paid in ransom to cybercriminals whose attack prompted the shutdown of the country's largest fuel pipeline and gas shortages across the southeastern U.S. last month, the Department of Justice announced Monday.

And I thought ... how hard would it be to make a "tainted BTC address list"?  Certainly the people paying a ransom know where it is going, so the first address in the money laundering chain is known, even if the owner is not.  And then one can follow transactions via the immutable blockchain and see where this money ends up.  I'm sure the FBI already does this.

But then ... I read about a service coming at the problem from the other side!  How do you make sure your money laundering is going well?

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2021/08/new-anti-anti-money-laundering-services-for-crooks/

A new dark web service is marketing to cybercriminals who are curious to see how their various cryptocurrency holdings and transactions may be linked to known criminal activity. Dubbed “Antinalysis,” the service purports to offer a glimpse into how one’s payment activity might be flagged by law enforcement agencies and private companies that try to link suspicious cryptocurrency transactions to real people.

I think in the early days cryptocurrencies were probably pretty useful for money laundering, but I think those days are ending.  Which is probably a good thing, as ransomware has done a lot of damage to real people.

Update:  I just read this from Bruce Schneier:

In a chain swap, the criminal transfers the bitcoin to a shady offshore cryptocurrency exchange. These exchanges are notoriously weak about enforcing money laundering laws and — for the most part — don’t have access to the banking system. Once on this alternate exchange, the criminal sells his bitcoin and buys some other cryptocurrency like Ethereum, Dogecoin, Tether, Monero, or one of dozens of others. They then transfer it to another shady offshore exchange and transfer it back into bitcoin. Voila­ — they now have “clean” bitcoin.