Historically, people have been able to deposit and withdraw bitcoins on MtGox without verifying identity. So, as long as you didn't want to withdraw to a bank (to fiat) no verification was needed.
Their website always read that you needed verification to withdraw to your bank. They have a statement that reads:
"Attention Users: All withdrawals and deposits require account verification."
That was no surprise since that was understood to mean for bank withdrawals & deposits. So, I opened an anonymous account simply to trade in/out of the swings of the market. With the only intention of ever withdrawing bitcoins. And MtGox accepted my deposit without verification. So, today I wanted to withdraw bitcoin to donate to the Philippine disaster... What do you know, I see that i can't withdraw bitcoin, and amessage reads:
"Your account is currently pending review, please visit https://mtgox.com/forms/verification"
If it required verification to make a deposit, they should have never accepted my deposit. I should have received that message BEFORE being able to make a deposit. In the scammer world, this is called "bait and switch". Unless there is some misunderstanding, then because of this, I want to close my anonymous MtGox account. The stupid thing is, they may ask for my identity to close an account where I never made a bank transaction.
You have been warned. Don't deposit into MtGox to only swing or day trade bitcoin unless you are willing to jump hurdles and give up your personal info.
UPDATE:
I found this on the MtGox website [my emphasis]. So, my hope is there is some kind of misunderstanding on my part:
"TOKYO - JAPAN - May 30, 2013
Statement Regarding Account Verifications
The Bitcoin market continues to evolve, as do regulations and conditions of compliance for Mt. Gox to continue bringing secure services to our customers. It our responsibility to provide a trusted and legal exchange, and that includes making sure that we are operating within strict anti-money laundering rules and preventing other malicious activity.
As a result, beginning May 30th, 2013 all Mt. Gox user accounts are required to be verified in order to perform any currency deposits and withdrawals. Bitcoin deposits do not need verification, and at this time we are not requiring verification for Bitcoin withdrawals.
In the past two months Mt. Gox has invested in more than doubling our verification support staff, and we are currently able to process most verifications within 24~48 hours.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please visit the Security Center in your Mt. Gox account if you are not already verified, and keep in mind that being careful to submit the proper documents will result in a much faster processing time.
Regards
Mt.Gox Co. Ltd Team."
https://www.mtgox.com/press_release_20130530.html
