At the last Surfin’ Bitcoin event, Julien Guitton, CEO of Condensat Technologies, took the floor to promote the ideology behind the Cypherpunks movement. In his speech, he emphasized the importance of privacy and the need for good digital hygiene.
Cypherpunks, fight for freedom
According to Julien Guitton, the Internet has revolutionized the way the world interacts, but it has also created many loopholes. Especially in terms of privacy. In concrete terms, giants like Google and Amazon have gained control over Internet users’ data and have long exploited it at will and for their own benefit. Furthermore, the centralization surrounding this network has opened the door to censorship by public authorities. This is a hindrance to freedom of speech.
Fortunately, the Cypherpunks, a group of crypto-anarchists, were able to formulate this reflection and offer resources to protect against this intrusion. This led to the creation of Bitcoin and, more generally, blockchain networks. Born precisely to prevent the abuses generated by the emergence of the Internet.
Crypto and privacy
The expert is convinced that the protection of privacy should be at the heart of political debates at least as much as other social issues (retirement age, etc.). For him, secrecy is a path of recovery towards freedom. That said, it does require good judgment and maintaining a certain sanity in the digital world.
To better understand this, Mr. Guitton suggests 3 readings that he believes frame the intellectual dynamics of the Cypherpunk movement:
- “The Crypto Anarchist Manifesto” from Timothy May (1992): Overall, this document is an introduction to crypto-anarchy. It announces the creation of a decentralized system that allows anonymous transactions. The author also predicts that the state will oppose it and try to monitor the exchanges under the guise of national security and crime control.
- “Cypherpunk Manifesto” by Eric Hughes (1993): This text deals with the place of privacy at a time when the Internet hosts all of our personal data. For the author, the right to privacy also means controlling what you reveal about yourself to others. For this reason, it is our duty to act intelligently so that governments and companies do not violate it.
- “Declaration of Cyberspace Independence” by John Perry Barlow (1996): This manifesto questions the legitimacy of any state intervention in online communication. This is a demand for freedom of speech in cyberspace.
Take care of your digital hygiene
Julien Guitton believes that it is necessary to generalize the practice of digital hygiene. In this case, we need to encourage people to clean up their activities on the Internet. For the expert, it is 3/4 of the way to stop using the products that GAFAM promotes.
In addition, design solutions should be considered anonymous. In this momentum, let us mention for example the NYM infrastructure network or the TOR browser. Furthermore, we must understand that, contrary to what we are led to believe, the cryptosphere is a safe space. Its sole purpose is to help establish a healthier living environment.
Finally, the speaker invited us to be toxic“. The idea is to be able to claim one’s freedom and to be able to look critically at what is there. The goal is to be heard.
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I came to blockchain out of curiosity and stayed with it out of passion. I was amazed by the possibilities it offers through its various use cases. With my pen, I hope to help democratize this technology and show how it can help make the world a better place.
