Source: Cointelegraph Original: "{title}"

Updated on April 8 at 9:01: This article has been updated to include James Murphy's responses to two questions from Cointelegraph.

A cryptocurrency lawyer has sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, claiming the agency may know who created Bitcoin—demanding that the department share what it knows.

The Freedom of Information Act lawsuit was filed by James Murphy, whose allegations are based on comments made by Homeland Security agent Rana Saoud during a meeting in April 2019, where she stated that several of her colleagues had previously met with four individuals involved in the creation of Bitcoin.

"My Freedom of Information Act lawsuit simply requests notes, emails, and other documents related to this so-called interview," Murphy posted on the X platform after filing the lawsuit on April 7.

"If this interview occurred as the Homeland Security agent claimed, then there should be documented records of the meeting," Murphy, who goes by MetaLawMan on the X platform, added.

Source: James Murphy

Saoud stated during the North American OffshoreAlert conference in Miami in April 2019 that Homeland Security agents met with four individuals they believed created Bitcoin to inquire about their motivations and the "ultimate goal" of Bitcoin.

"The agents flew to California, and they realized he wasn't the only one who created this; there were three others, and they sat down to talk with them to understand how this actually worked and why it was created," Saoud said in a speech available on YouTube.

If Homeland Security refuses to disclose, Murphy stated he would "pursue the matter" to unravel the mystery.

However, Murphy noted that Saoud and other Homeland Security agents may have been mistaken and did not interview the real Satoshi Nakamoto.

The purpose of the Freedom of Information Act is to promote transparency and accountability by granting the public the right to access information held by the government.

Cointelegraph posed two questions to Murphy regarding the Homeland Security lawsuit. Here are his complete responses.

Question 1: Based on your intuition, do you think Homeland Security really interviewed the real Satoshi Nakamoto?

Answer: I think what that Homeland Security agent said at the meeting is likely mistaken. I believe the Homeland Security agents may have met with Bitcoin code maintainers or someone impersonating Satoshi Nakamoto. But who knows? That Homeland Security agent is a fairly senior official, and she is qualified to know what she is talking about. In any case, I think finding out the answer and hoping to resolve this issue would be productive. Homeland Security could voluntarily disclose this information without needing to go through a lengthy lawsuit.

Question 2: If the agency did indeed speak with these four creators—who may be ordinary American citizens—why do you think disclosing their identities is in the public interest, even if it might jeopardize their safety or privacy?

Answer: I don't understand this question. The identities of the creators of all the major blockchain projects, like Charles Hoskinson and Vitalik Buterin, are well known in the cryptocurrency community. There are also many prominent figures, like Michael Saylor and Tim Draper, who have amassed significant wealth through Bitcoin investments, and their identities are also well known.

There are hundreds of documentaries on YouTube where amateur detectives try to identify Satoshi Nakamoto. I am not one of them. I haven't hired investigators to track down Satoshi Nakamoto; I am simply seeking government records based on current U.S. transparency laws. If Homeland Security does know the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, then I don't understand why dozens of government employees can have this information but choose to conceal it from the public.

Our government must remain transparent and cannot keep secrets from citizens unless there are legitimate national security concerns or other limited exemptions. We believe this is a fundamental aspect of our freedom in the United States. That is why we have the so-called "Freedom of Information Act." Transparency is good, and government concealment of information from citizens is generally bad.

I have publicly stated my support for Bitcoin and have been a Bitcoin investor and miner since 2017. I explain Bitcoin to corporate executives and policymakers and advocate for Bitcoin adoption. When I give these talks, I find that these audiences (who are all Bitcoin newcomers) often struggle to accept the fact that the identity of Bitcoin's founder is unknown, while the origins of other major crypto projects are (relatively) transparent.

Therefore, my goal is either to thoroughly refute the DHS agent's claim that they interviewed Satoshi Nakamoto or to achieve some level of transparency that paves the way for broader adoption of Bitcoin in the U.S. and globally. I support President Trump's initiative to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve and digital asset reserve.

Since the Bitcoin code is open source and can only be modified through the Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) process, Satoshi Nakamoto (if their identity is confirmed) would not be able to unilaterally influence changes to Bitcoin. Therefore, revealing Satoshi Nakamoto's identity is unlikely to have a negative impact on Bitcoin. This transparency is more likely to have a positive effect on promoting Bitcoin adoption. Others may have different opinions on this, and I respect their views.

This lawsuit follows a recent wave of efforts to uncover Satoshi Nakamoto's identity.

Last October, a controversial HBO documentary claimed that Bitcoin cryptopunk Peter Todd invented Bitcoin. Todd refuted this conclusion, and most industry experts also stated that HBO's evidence was weak.

Names like Nick Szabo, Adam Back, and Hal Finney have also been linked to Satoshi Nakamoto's identity. Szabo and Back frequently deny being Satoshi Nakamoto, and Finney also denied it before his death in 2013.

Meanwhile, there is a divide in the Bitcoin community over whether revealing Satoshi Nakamoto's identity would be beneficial for Bitcoin.

Some are concerned that revealing Satoshi Nakamoto's identity could undermine the decentralized spirit of Bitcoin and threaten Satoshi's safety, while others want to confirm that Bitcoin was not created by the U.S. government.

Related: As Satoshi Nakamoto turns 50, Bitcoin ascends to U.S. reserve asset status.

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