Every Mac computer is hiding a secret Bitcoin document

It is not clear why file was added to recent MacOS software

Any Mac computer that has been updated to use a version of the MacOS operating system since 2018 is hiding a copy of the “Bitcoin Whitepaper”, a technology blogger has found.

The Bitcoin Whitepaper was written in 2008, by a person or group of people calling themselves Satoshi Nakamoto and whose real identity has never been found. The document not only details how the cryptocurrency works, but also explains in detail the thinking behind why it was created in the first place.

As a result, it has become an important document to those advocating for Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general. That may be the reason that it was seemingly quietly added to the software, presumably by an engineer working on MacOS.

Anyone can open it, simply by looking inside the files for a device called “Virtual Scanner II”. The document appears to have been added as a sample file for that utility, and it may just have been a useful, short document to use as an example.

The secret document was found by Andy Baio, the blogger and technologist. He noted that despite the file being inside the software for five years, there was very little discussion of it online.

Apple has not given any information about how the file came to be added to MacOS.

Mr Baio said that he had received a tip-off that the existence was filed as an issue a year ago, and that it was assigned to the engineer who added it, but that there has not been any update since.

Officially, Apple has stayed largely separate from cryptocurrency, even as it moves into more traditional financial services such as payments and lending.

In 2021, chief executive Tim Cook said Apple was “looking at” cryptocurrencies and that he had invested in it personally. But he said that the company did not have “immediate plans” to move into it.

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