Cøbra has disabled access to Bitcoin software for visitors from the United Kingdom, in addition to removing the white paper.
If you visit Bitcoin.org with a United Kingdom internet protocol (IP) address, you will no longer be able to download the Bitcoin Core software.
On the website, there is a notification that says: “This software is presently not available for download in the UK, and download links will not work if you are located within the United Kingdom.”
Attempting to download the Bitcoin (BTC) software from the site using a U.K. IP address results in a “404 error.”
Bitcoin.org’s pseudonymous owner Cøbra responded to a tweet with the following explanation for restricting access to the software download for U.K. site visitors:
“The white paper is in the blockchain and can be retrieved through the software. I’m not allowed to distribute the whitepaper on bitcoin.org, or ‘in any other way.’ We have to follow the law.”
The whitepaper is in the blockchain and can be retrieved through the software. I’m not allowed to distribute the whitepaper on https://t.co/1dtx7wYjP2, or “in any other way”. We have to follow the law.
— Cøbra (@CobraBitcoin) July 2, 2021A UK court found in favour of self-proclaimed Bitcoin creator Craig Wright in a copyright infringement complaint against Cøbra and Bitcoin.org for hosting the Bitcoin white paper, as reported earlier by Cointelegraph.
The default verdict was only entered because Cøbra chose not to defend herself. Cøbra was also ordered to pay 35,000 British pounds (about $48,600) in legal fees to Wright as part of the ruling.
This ruling is the latest shot in Wright’s campaign against those who question his claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of Bitcoin. In January, Wright asked that copies of the Bitcoin white paper be removed from the websites of Bitcoin.org, Bitcoin.com, and Bitcoincore.org.
The Bitcoin white paper, according to Wright, is his intellectual property. Meanwhile, he remains a supporter of Bitcoin SV (BSV), a forked version of Bitcoin Cash (BCH), which is itself a fork of Bitcoin.
As of this writing, the Bitcoin software download is still available on Bitcoincore.org, even for visitors with U.K. IP addresses.
Given the numerous workarounds available, such as virtual private networks and other websites that host the software, geofencing the download URL on Bitcoin.org is unlikely to have an influence on anyone interested in operating Bitcoin Core in the country.
