Wired reported that Peter Todd went into hiding due to an influx of financial requests and potential threats from those believing he possesses Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto’s many-billion-dollar fortune, highlighting the real-world dangers of such public allegations.
Todd tweeted, however, that Wired’s claim is “exaggerated,” offering as proof his appearance this week at a conference.
A recent documentary by Cullen Hoback suggested Todd might be Nakamoto (something Todd denied).
Todd, who is quoted in the piece, called its central claim “exaggerated” in a post on X Wednesday, which quote-tweeted a picture of him speaking at an Atlanta conference earlier that day.
Todd was fingered as Nakamoto in the documentary shot by Cullen Hoback, who previously identified the face behind the QAnon conspiracy. Todd, however, denied being Nakamoto in an email to CoinDesk.
Hoback’s supposed evidence for Todd, a Canadian, being Nakamoto was his interest in cryptography from a young age, his relationship with Adam Back (who actually emailed Nakamoto), his technical ability and Nakamoto’s use of British/Canadian spellings.
The documentary provided its strongest clue through a 2010 public forum exchange where Todd seemed (to Hoback) to inadvertently reply to a post as himself instead of the mysterious Bitcoin creator, suggesting a potential slip-up. Hoback posited this as evidence that Todd might be Nakamoto, although the documentary stopped short of making a definitive claim.
The Bitcoin community has largely brushed off Hoback’s findings. Hoback, however, told Wired he remains confident that Todd is indeed Nakamoto.
But the allegations have a serious real-world impact.
Todd told Wired that his email has become inundated with requests for financial help – but there’s a threat of “continued harassment by crazy people.”
Personal safety is a concern for Todd because criminals might believe he is Nakamoto: Wallets belonging to Nakamoto hold over 1 million BTC, worth more than $67 billion at recent prices. That puts the unknown persona on a list of the 25 wealthiest people in the world.
“Falsely claiming that ordinary people of ordinary wealth are extraordinarily rich exposes them to threats like robbery and kidnapping,” Todd told Wired. “Not only is the question dumb, it’s dangerous. Satoshi obviously didn’t want to be found, for good reasons, and no one should help people trying to find Satoshi.”
UPDATE (Oct 23, 2024, 22:16 UTC): Updates throughout to reflect that Todd is still speaking at conferences and called the Wired headline “exaggerated.”
