Inherent
delays are exploited by creating a ring of events that chase each others'
tails, thus creating the dynamic illusion that things are different the
static case would support. Examples include check kiting schemes where
delays in processing checks causes temporary conditions where the sum of the
balances indicated in a set of accounts is far greater than the total amount
of money actually invested, techniques for avoiding payments of debts for a
long time based on legally imposed delays in and rules regarding the
collection of debts by third parties, and the use of revoked keys in key
management systems without adequate revocation protocols.
Complexity: The
complexity of kiting schemes has not been mathematically analyzed in
published literature to date, but indications from actual cases are that
substantial computing power is required to track substantial kiting schemes.
The first case where such a scheme was detected and prosecuted was detected
because the kiter's computer failed for a long enough period of time that
the set of transactions and delays could no longer be tracked - the kite fell
out of the sky.
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