New Delhi: The Supreme Court has sought the response of the Centre and the Reserve Bank of India on a PIL seeking to regulate the flow of Bitcoin (crypto money) and to ensure that the same be made accountable to exchequer.
Bitcoin is a digital currency that allows people to buy goods and services and exchange money without involving banks, credit card issuers or other third parties.
A three-judge bench issued notice on the petition filed by activist, Dwaipayan Bhowmick highlighting the dangers of the use of Bitcoin without any regulation. He said in recent cyber-attacks, ‘Ransomware’ hackers held victims hostage by encrypting their data and demanding them to send payments in bitcoins to regain access to their computers. He said despite the RBI’s call for caution against the use of virtual currencies, domestic Bitcoin exchange have been adding over 2,500 users a day and had reached five lakh downloads.
