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The dark web has been pretty beneficial to different cryptocurrencies. It is how Bitcoin suddenly began gaining traction years ago. In the past twelve months, a few competing currencies have also begun gaining traction on the dark web. It seems this competition is heating up as we speak.
Monero and the Dark Web
In recent months, various dark web marketplaces have shifted away from Bitcoin. Its growing fees and lack of transparency are a big problem. As such, vendors and buyers are looking for new ways to effectively deal with payments. It seems Monero is gaining a lot of traction as of right now. It is a slow shift to this new currency, but things are seemingly falling into place.
Even so, there are some concerns over Monero’s privacy and anonymity as well. Two flaws have been discovered which may make dark web users look for a different cryptocurrency altogether. More specifically, a recent paper shows how the mixing aspect of Monero is flawed. Observes can identify some of the decoys and figure out the amount of coins being spent. This is a big problem, although its widespread repercussions have yet to be determined.
Secondly, we see the timing of transaction being addressed as another flaw. Although this flaw has been seemingly addressed, it was still a worrisome aspect. Previous timing analysis successfully identified the real coin transaction in 90% of the cases. Even so, there’s still a 45% of distinguishing the real coins from the mixins, which is far too high. Identifying transaction recipients is impossible, but it can highlight the initial sender.
The Rise of Litecoin
Rest assured the dark web community is too aware of all of these issues as well. As such, we may very well see a new currency emerges as the go-to solution. It seems Litecoin is making some inroads in this regard, which is rather surprising. Litecoin fundamentally lacks privacy and anonymity as well, similar to Bitcoin.
Even so, a lot of dark web users are convinced Litecoin can make a meaningful impact. 15.15% Of polled users seem to indicate LTC has a proper solution in this regard. This is far more overwhelming than Bitcoin or Bitcoin Cash, albeit still behind Ethereum, Dash, and Monero. Surprisingly, it seems Litecoin represents 30% of transactions right now. This is a lot higher than any other non-Bitcoin currency being used on the dark web right now.
The big question is how all of this will play out. While Litecoin is gaining popularity, it remains to be seen how long this momentum lasts. Bitcoin is slowly on the way out on the dark web, that much is rather evident. This battle between Dash, Monero, and Litecoin is certainly worth keeping an eye on.
Chris Gear 
Rob Coins 
RIAlan 
how the fuck would even know that…
What a load of bs!
Why is the matter of privacy so often cast as one of secrecy? If someone is transferring tons of money illegally (think ISIS, e.g.), or is evading taxes, or some other such thing, many (including me) will maintain that they have no “right to privacy”.
But THAT’s not likely to affect many people. OTOH, why should we reveal our total holdings to every hot dog vendor we patronize? If I have a million bucks in my Nano S, I’m happy to put fifty in my phone wallet for daily use. Let the vendor see that I have $47.50 remaining in my account — but that should be the end of it.
(In the material world, I keep a few loose dollar bills in my pocket. I grab one when I come across a panhandler, but I don’t take out a wad of bills and peel off just one for him.)
I’m waiting to hear how that’s going to be addressed. As it stands, I see no choice other than “secrecy coins”. I think that’s unfortunate, but that seems to be the way it is. Any info on this topic will be appreciated.