From: "David J. Phillips" <djphill@umich.edu>
Date: Fri, 25 Oct 1996 07:11:03 -0700 (PDT)
To: dcsb@ai.mit.edu
Subject: When did Mondex ever claim to be anonymous?
Message-ID: <199610251410.KAA17470@rodan.rs.itd.umich.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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I've been researching the ways in which new payment systems incorporate
anonymity,  traceability, or identification, and the ways in which those
properties are presented by various people to various people.

Recently I've been looking particularly at Mondex. I remember receiving the
impression several years ago, when I first heard of Mondex, that it was
purporting to be anonymous, or at least private.  Now, however, I'm
beginning a systematic analysis of their press releases and of press
accounts, and I  find very few references to privacy.  One reference is in
their web page FAQ, which says that Mondex transactions are "private, just
like cash".  Simon Davies, in his complaint to the British Trading Standards
authorities, also cites this FAQ, claiming that it used to read "anonymous,
just like cash".  Davies also refers to an anonymity claim in the Mondex
Media Pack.  But I've found very little else that suggests that Mondex ever
hyped privacy. 

Can anyone give me an idea of how I got the idea that Mondex was making
privacy one of its selling points?

David Phillips
Visiting Instructor, Department of Communication Studies, University of Michigan
Doctoral Candidate, Annenberg School for Communication, University of
Pennsylvania