Bitcoin White Paper Hidden in macOS

In a surprising discovery, technology blogger Andy Baio has found that a copy of the groundbreaking Bitcoin white paper has been secretly included in Apple’s macOS.

Baio confirmed the presence of the file in all versions of macOS since 2018: from Mojave to Ventura. 

A device named “Virtual Scanner II” stores the Bitcoin white paper within the Image Capture utility. In order to be able to see the Bitcoin white paper, users can open a Terminal on their Mac and type a specified command. Alternatively, they can navigate through the System folder in Finder.

The inclusion of the Bitcoin white paper in macOS raises questions about Apple’s motivations. As reported by U.Today, CEO Tim Cook confirmed that he was a cryptocurrency owner back in 2021.   

It is unknown whether the decision to include the document was intentional or an oversight by a Bitcoin enthusiast within the company. The selection of the white paper could be attributed to its compact size, making it suitable for testing purposes.

Nothing new 

A post from a member of the Apple community from 2021 also highlighted the presence of the white paper, but no explanation has been provided by Apple or its employees. The mystery remains unsolved as curious users continue to explore the hidden easter egg in macOS.

All the way back in 2020, a Twitter user, Josh D, discovered the device on his Mac, which displayed a preview of a painted sign resembling a photo by Thomas Hawk.

He later found the device and noticed it also contained a PDF of the iconic Bitcoin white paper. The purpose of Virtual Scanner II remained unclear. 

A reliable source has informed Baio that the issue was reported internally almost a year ago and was assigned to the very engineer responsible for placing the PDF in the system initially. However, that individual has not taken any action yet.