<p>If someone purporting to be 'Satoshi Nakamoto' wanted to prove it, he/she could do so by signing a message using one of the same signing keys that 'Satoshi Nakamoto' used to sign one of his early messages during the release of bitcoin.  Or, he/she could announce that they will make a bitcoin payment from an address believed to belong to 'Satoshi Nakamoto' to some other address, then actually do so.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-10T02:03:50.707Z
AFAIK Satoshi never signed any message with his key.
Murch
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-10T15:02:03.987Z
There appears to be conflicting information about this.  See the following Reuters article (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-bitcoin-stakes-idUSKBN0TS1FQ20151209), where it says, "...or signing a message with one of the encryption keys used in emails known to have been written by Nakamoto ...".  On the other hand, https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Satoshi_Nakamoto states that he has a PGP key which was never used.  Either way, he could confirm his identitiy, if he wanted to, by signing a message using his PGP key, whether that key was used previously or not.
mti2935
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-11T17:08:42.933Z
AFAIK SN had a pgp key on one of his profiles, but never encrypted any of his correspondence. Not sure what Reuter's source would be as they don't elaborate that point in the linked article.
Murch
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-09T20:13:56.427Z
2015-12-09T21:08:07.137Z
2015-12-09T21:08:07.137Z
mti2935
<p>I'm literally just reading the <a href="http://gizmodo.com/this-australian-says-he-and-his-dead-friend-invented-bi-1746958692" rel="nofollow">Gizmodo piece</a> as well. This piece is based off of a month long investigation where they've done some really good journalistic reporting. Highly recommended.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-12T13:23:12.670Z
Bitcoin.SE. is not a place for discussion, but a question and answer site. Please use answers to address the question post. If you want to discuss Bitcoin, you may join us in [Chat] once you gain a little more reputation, or perhaps want to prefer other platforms.
Murch
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-09T16:32:11.020Z
2015-12-09T16:32:11.020Z
Luc
<p>So far I can't tell what's true about all this.  It also seems like it'd be easy for someone to claim to be the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin.  I've only seen information about this from main stream sources.  Does anyone know anything beyond the current main-stream narrative?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-09T11:53:38.167Z
Proof that (at least part of) the story doesn't check out:  https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/3w027x/dr_craig_steven_wright_alleged_satoshi_by_wired/cxslii7
Jannes
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-09T12:07:24.603Z
I read that his home and office were searched by the Australian Tax Office, where did you read that he was arrested?
Murch
<satoshi-nakamoto>
Supposedly 'Satoshi' was found in Australia… is there any way to verify this?
Solidfaith
# Supposedly 'Satoshi' was found in Australia… is there any way to verify this?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-12-09)

So far I can't tell what's true about all this. It also seems like it'd be easy for someone to claim to be the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin. I've only seen information about this from main stream sources. Does anyone know anything beyond the current main-stream narrative?

**Tags:** satoshi-nakamoto

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Proof that (at least part of) the story doesn't check out:  https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/3w027x/dr_craig_steven_wright_alleged_satoshi_by_wired/cxslii7  
> **username_2**: I read that his home and office were searched by the Australian Tax Office, where did you read that he was arrested?  

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2015-12-09. Score: 0

If someone purporting to be 'Satoshi Nakamoto' wanted to prove it, he/she could do so by signing a message using one of the same signing keys that 'Satoshi Nakamoto' used to sign one of his early messages during the release of bitcoin. Or, he/she could announce that they will make a bitcoin payment from an address believed to belong to 'Satoshi Nakamoto' to some other address, then actually do so.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: AFAIK Satoshi never signed any message with his key.  
> **username_3**: There appears to be conflicting information about this.  See the following Reuters article (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-bitcoin-stakes-idUSKBN0TS1FQ20151209), where it says, "...or signing a message with one of the encryption keys used in emails known to have been written by Nakamoto ...".  On the other hand, https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Satoshi_Nakamoto states that he has a PGP key which was never used.  Either way, he could confirm his identitiy, if he wanted to, by signing a message using his PGP key, whether that key was used previously or not.  
> **username_2**: AFAIK SN had a pgp key on one of his profiles, but never encrypted any of his correspondence. Not sure what Reuter's source would be as they don't elaborate that point in the linked article.  

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### Answer by username_4 on 2015-12-09. Score: -2

I'm literally just reading the [Gizmodo piece](http://gizmodo.com/this-australian-says-he-and-his-dead-friend-invented-bi-1746958692) as well. This piece is based off of a month long investigation where they've done some really good journalistic reporting. Highly recommended.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: Bitcoin.SE. is not a place for discussion, but a question and answer site. Please use answers to address the question post. If you want to discuss Bitcoin, you may join us in [Chat] once you gain a little more reputation, or perhaps want to prefer other platforms.  

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