Day: April 12, 2018

Bithumb is a powerful cryptocurrency entity in South Korea as of right now. The company has made a lot of positive headlines, and they will continue to expand their reach as well. A new venture has been announced which involves a P2P payment platform for social media. It’s an interesting concept well worth paying attention to.

Bithumb Continues to Evolve

Getting cryptocurrencies into the hands of more people will always be a big challenge. This is the case in part because so many people hold ill will toward cryptocurrencies. Addressing that situation requires innovative measures by industry-leading companies. Bithumb seemingly has the right idea, as their new venture sounds pretty appealing.

South Korean sources report that Bithumb plans to launch a peer-to-peer payments platform for social media. This venture will seemingly relate to both social networks as well as blogs, which should get a lot more people excited about Bitcoin and altcoins moving forward. We haven’t seen cryptocurrency make the best impact when it comes to social media.

In fact, most social media giants are taking an aggressive stance toward cryptocurrencies. Both Facebook and Twitter made this pretty clear by banning crypto-related advertisements on their platforms. Even so, there are still plenty of options left to explore, as companies such as Pinterest and Instagram are still open-minded as of right now. 

With the new P2P payment platform, Bithumb is heading in an interesting direction. The South Korean company acknowledges cryptocurrencies need to continue making inroads, even though doing so will not be all that easy. How their new platform will try to tackle this area without getting banned in short order remains to be seen.

The company also announced another interesting piece of news. It appears Bithumb has signed a strategic partnership with Wincube. Although that company is not necessarily well-known outside of South Korea, they offer mobile vouchers from hundreds of brands. Bithumb will now help them sell these vouchers in exchange for cryptocurrency payments, which brings a new use case to Bitcoin and other currencies.

Whether or not either of these plans will bring more positive attention to cryptocurrency remains to be determined. It is certainly a positive development for the industry as a whole, although these efforts will most likely remain limited to South Korea for the time being. On an international level, we need more of these efforts, but they will not necessarily come about anytime soon.

An Australian tech company recommissioned an old coal power plant to provide cheap energy for cryptocurrency mining.

“In the cybersecurity industry, there’s always a new shiny ‘tech toy’ or novel approach around the corner, so it’s important to not be myopic that blockchain for cybersecurity will be akin to finding the cure for the common cold. As promising as blockchain may be, the industry is far from universal adoption,” warns Peter Tran, Vice President and Head of Global Cyber Defense & Security Strategy at Worldpay.

As cybersecurity experts around the globe prepare for next week’s all-important RSA Conference, where discussion topics will include the latest threats and developments in the security industry, Tran remains skeptical about blockchain technology as being the answer to the industry’s woes.

The Biggest Challenge for the Cybersecurity Industry

The cybersecurity industry is currently experiencing a lot of headaches – from a shortage of talent, to finding new ways of keeping up with whack-a-mole attacks from increasingly innovative hackers. As security technology advances, so does the sophistication of cybercriminals, and, in many cases, slow detection of attacks is what leads to the greatest devastation.

“By far the biggest challenge in cybersecurity today,” says Tran, “is the lack of visibility and early detection into cyber threats that are targeting and/or have established themselves within networks undetected for weeks, months, and often years before a breach occurs.” This undetected presence is called “dwell time,” and refers to the average time from which an assailant enters a network until he or she is detected.

Many hackers simply enter undetected and observe their surroundings, finding a way to obtain the information they want without anyone noticing. “You won’t ever know if you’re off course until the unthinkable happens,” says Tran.

In fact, according to a report by Ponemon, dwell times for malicious attacks average 229 days. In reality, they can be much longer. “That is why high-profile breaches have been catastrophic with unpredictable downstream consequences.” Think Equifax, Yahoo, eBay, or JP Morgan.

How Cybersecurity Professionals are Working to Combat these Problems

“Gone are the days,” says Tran, “of relying on perimeter-based or even endpoint security ‘blocking and tackling’ defenses… Build a higher firewall? The attacker will just use a longer ladder to get over or around it.”

Information security professionals are having to turn to more creative methods of stopping hackers in their tracks. Many professionals in the industry are adopting data science and the use of analytics to determine what good versus malicious behaviors within networks look like. One of the advantages of doing so is that it shows results in real time. “No one wants to wait for a fire alarm to alert you to a fire that’s already in a full blaze,” says Tran.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are also becoming front runners in the cyber defender’s arsenal. With the rising sophistication and ingenuity of the types of attacks we’re seeing, non-traditional methods like AI can uncover malicious blind spots more efficiently than traditional security methods and tools can. “It’s the next generation of neural networks to make security decisions based on patterns and predictive forecasting much like how financial markets and data are analyzed,” Tran explains.

What about Blockchain for Cybersecurity?

While many cybersecurity experts are lauding the blockchain and the wonders of its decentralized nature as a cure for cyber threats, Tran isn’t jumping for joy just yet. After all, the technology is still very new, and new technology usually comes with teething trouble.

“Although blockchain research has been conducted over nearly the last decade, typically a technology won’t truly be put through its paces to expose any hidden flaws until it reaches a certain critical mass of adoption, and the industry just isn’t there yet today.”

Furthermore, the issue may not be with blockchain technology itself, but rather with the way in which it is executed. We know by now that blockchain is the most secure technology we have. But that doesn’t stop attacks from happening on secondary software, like wallets and exchanges. “Like any technology,” says Tran, “the devil is in the details of its execution. A poorly designed or applied technology, no matter how good it is, can fall short, particularly in security.”

Finally, there remains the very real issue of how economically viable replacing current security infrastructure with blockchain – and finding enough blockchain security experts to oversee it – will be.

Final Thoughts

It’s not all bad for blockchain and cybersecurity. Tran admits to having seen some effective use cases for the security industry, namely within authentication, identity and access control. REMME’s blockchain solution, for example, is built on blockchain’s decentralized design and successfully authenticates users and devices with multi-factor authentication. “Blockchain in this instance stands to eliminate the lowest hanging fruit for cyber attackers… crackable passwords.”

Just like the bearish and bullish crypto markets, blockchain technology has its advocates and those who have yet to be sold. But ultimately, any technology that could bring the number of cyber threats down to zero would be welcomed with open arms by all.

In February, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced the release of the Petro, a controversial digital currency backed by the country’s oil reserves. This week, according to Venezuela’s Official Gazette, it has been ordered that the token must be accepted as legal tender for all transactions involving government institutions — from ministries to airports, to taxes, fees, and other public needs — within 120 days.

The country’s Cryptocurrency Treasury will be in charge of overseeing all aspects of the plan, from the tokens release to trading, according to the gazette published on April 9th. The government named Abrahan Landaeta to head up the Cryptocurrency Treasury and Anthoni Camilo Torres as head of virtual exchanges.

Petro: State-Sponsored Digital Currency

The decree is meant to help bring the Petro into everyday use, but a host of challenges may make it difficult to put the crypto policy into practice, as many aspects of the token still remaining a mystery. In fact, some crypto-rating websites have already judged it to be a scam: Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex recently refused to list the Petro, arguing that the digital currency offers “limited utility” and that listing the first ever state-issued digital currency “could be construed as an attempt to circumvent legitimate sanctions against the government.”

With the Petro, Venezuela is seeking to take advantage of global enthusiasm for blockchain-based assets and help lift its economy out of one of the world’s deepest recessions amid a crippling shortage of hard currency. The International Monetary Fund forecasts inflation will hit 13,000% by the end of the year, while the economy is set to contract 15%.

As part of the nationwide effort to boost the Petro, a national virtual miner registry was opened, and “Petro zones,” where the tokens will be accepted, were created in popular tourist destinations along the country’s western border. In a speech last week, Maduro said the country had purchased 30 ambulances using the digital coin.

Despite the apprehension in the crypto-space, last month Maduro said Venezuela had received offers of as much as $5 billion from countries including China, Russia, and Mexico for the tokens. As of yet, there’s little evidence to support this.

Skirting Sanctions

According to Time Magazine, there is evidence to suggest that the Petro was ushered into existance by Russian officials, bankers, and businessmen. The theory is that Russia and Venezuela want to use the digital currency as an experiment in dodging U.S. sanctions placed against both countries.

President Donald Trump, believing the Petro to be simply an extension of credit to the Venezuelan government, issued an order prohibiting U.S. citizens from engaging in transactions using the token. The Treasury Department called it:

“Another attempt to prop up the Maduro regime, while further looting the resources of the Venezuelan people.” 

Despite the launch of Petro as its own national cryptocurrency, there is growing demand for Bitcoin in Venezuela. In March, a new record was set for Bitcoin trading in the country, with a total value of over 1 trillion Bolivares worth of BTC changing hands. The country is plagued by massive inflation, which forces the Venezuelan people to find alternate ways of storing value.

Image Courtesy of Shutterstock

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Bitcoin is not inherently criminal, it can just be used in criminal activities, emphasizes former US federal crypto task force lead Kathryn Haun #NEWS

Bitcoin has surged! Following yesterday’s new “high” of $6,900, bitcoin has jumped by over $700 and is now trading at just under $7,700. It’s a massive step forward following what has been a relatively “rough-and-tumble” week.

The news marks a near 10 percent jump for the father of cryptocurrencies, though bitcoin was trading on Luxembourg exchange Bitstamp for a price of nearly 17 percent higher during the early morning hours. Bitcoin is also joined by other major cryptocurrencies such as ether and Ripple’s XRP, which have both enjoyed 10 percent jumps.

Two analysts claim that large moves which occurred via Bitfinex may have prompted the sudden change. In the past, major trading maneuvers through the exchange have spread to other trading platforms, inherently causing the price to jump suddenly.

Others claim that the news behind the Rockefeller family and Soros Fund Management are the main “culprits” behind the surge. Bitcoin has been known to benefit greatly from vast Wall Street support; this was further witnessed after senior market analyst Matt Greenspan claimed investors were prepared to “drive new liquidity” into the crypto arena, and that they weren’t bothered or worried by bitcoin’s December plunge.

Greenspan explained:

“As far as percentages go, if we are looking at it historically, we have seen these types of pullbacks before. Wall Street is certainly getting involved, and they are building the bridges [to cryptocurrency] as we speak… The important thing is that they’re ready to take on and to inject new liquidity into this market, which at least should even things out and stabilize the price.”

With its newfound support, one could probably expect to see further investor involvement coming from some of the nation’s toughest (and biggest) Wall Street figures as a means of occupying the space before another major bull run occurs.

However, one of the biggest reasons behind bitcoin’s sudden hike could allegedly be the burst in advocates it’s purported to receive. Sharia adviser and compliance officer at Blossom Finance in Jakarta Mufti Muhammad Abu Bakar recently published a document stating that in certain cases, bitcoin falls into “Halal,” and is thereby acceptable according to Muslim law.

One section of the paper reads as follows:

“In Germany, bitcoin is recognized as a legal currency, and therefore qualifies as Islamic money in Germany. In countries such as the U.S., bitcoin lacks official legal monetary status, but is accepted for payment at a variety of merchants, and therefore qualifies as Islamic customary money.”

Halal stands for permitted, while Haram signifies any behavior that is forbidden. With bitcoin’s newfound status per the document, Muslim investors now have a wide and valid opening to the cryptocurrency market. Up until this point, they have largely stayed away due to uncertainty surrounding Sharia guidelines.

Muslims account for 23 percent of the world’s population; overall, there are nearly two billion throughout the globe.

What’s interesting is that the current bitcoin price of $7,600 appears to be a “settled” price. Several outlets and media sources originally discussed a full hike to $8,000 during the early hours – a new high for April. While the coin has fallen somewhat from that mark, further bull behavior is predicted, with prices reaching beyond $8,000 by the end of the week.

Russian police have arrested two illegal cryptocurrency miners after a police raid on Thursday.

According to Russian media reports, more than 6,000 pieces of mining equipment were found at the site, an abandoned rubber factory in Orenburg, 1,478 kilometers southeast of Moscow near the Russian border with Kazakhstan.

Russian ministry of internal affairs spokesperson, Irina Volk, stated that the miners, two former factory employees, had stolen 8 million kW/h of electricity estimated to cost 60 million Russian rubles (RUB, approximately USD 968,000 at time of writing). Media reports suggest that despite rumors of the mining farm’s existence since March, police declined to comment if they had any knowledge of illegal activities taking place.

Earlier this year, Russian security officers arrested scientists at a top-secret warhead facility in Sarov, 240 miles east of Moscow. Several scientists had tried to use one of Russia’s most powerful supercomputers to mine Bitcoin. In mining, computers are used to solve mathematical problems to verify transactions and are rewarded in cryptocurrency.

The clandestine misappropriation of resources to mine cryptocurrency is a growing problem. Australian ABC News reported recently that the country’s bureau of meteorology was under investigation, with two of its IT employees suspected of using the bureau’s resources to mine cryptocurrencies, although no charges were laid.

Other examples are New York’s department of education and Louisiana’s Attorney General’s office allegedly misappropriating resources to mine cryptocurrencies. In December 2017, a former employee of the Federal Board of Directors was fined USD 5,000 after mining Bitcoin on a US Central Bank computer.

The Russian government is considering a new bill, currently circulating through Russia’s lower house, designed to amend tax codes to accommodate cryptocurrency miners. It labels mining as an “entrepreneurial activity”. Miners must register with the government, either as an individual entrepreneur or as a legal entity. Depending on how they register, miners could be subject to a 24% corporate tax rate if they register as a legal entity.

The post Illegal Russian Miners Charged With $1M Power Theft appeared first on BitcoinNews.com.

For many startups in the blockchain space, the ICO has delivered access to first-round funding that otherwise would never have been available from traditional venture investors. At the same time, a parallel trend for traditional VC-backed startups has emerged as they too explore how to tokenize and ‘blockchain’ their businesses and raise non-dilutive capital through an ICO.

Dean Sutton, CEO of BlockTech Ventures

I can tell you right now, if you were to give me a topic in the cryptocurrency space, I could send you a very compelling whitepaper, in 72 hours. It has nothing to do with my experience in the industry or any ability to build a team that could build a platform or business that has revenue and adoption.

–Dean Sutton, CEO of BlockTech Ventures

When it comes to whitepapers, put your guard up

There are hundreds of whitepapers out there on new cryptocurrency ventures and new businesses that are coming out of the woodwork, all promising that they have the next decentralization solution. The problem is that people consider whitepapers to be actual legal documents, instead of a preliminary mission statement. “It’s an interesting theory to read about,” says Dean Sutton, the CEO of BlockTech Ventures. But execution is a completely different topic, and industry validation is a third, separate conversation.

But at the end of the day, a whitepaper is just a promise to consumers about a given venture. It’s one thing to learn about a concept through a document or an ICO, but it’s another thing entirely to understand the difference between a conceptual theory and an actual, validated business proposition.

Sutton emphasizes that this has no bearing on whether the individual(s) involved can build an incredible business.

Asking The Right Questions

During my conversation with Sutton, I realized that even when talking with influencers in the industry, it’s all about knowing which questions to ask and where to place emphasis. Sutton told me that when an investor or business is looking to enter the crypto space and invest in a particular coin, token, or venture as a whole, they need to ask themselves certain fundamental questions.

Why You, and Why Does It Matter?

Most companies can never answer this question, because you’re asking them to make a promise to deliver on what seems to be valuable and useful information. Understanding that, you need to look to the utility of the company and why this company, which may have no credibility or track record, is apparently better than a company which has been successful with a largely constructed business. Sutton told me that he’s been in the crypto space since he was 19 years old, working on ventures that helped analyze various industries and determine what was lacking.

Armed with knowledge from experienced influencers like Sutton, you then have to ask others in the space why they have the distribution, token economy, and distribution of scale that makes their currency better than others in the market. Yes, anyone with a wallet can invest in cryptocurrencies, but at the end of the day, we are all rockstars when the markets rise. It’s the volatility of the markets that changes the game; those instances where people thought they’d be in one financial position, but ended up in a much different one.

When it comes to ICOs, any company can conduct one. Sutton compares ICOs to a casino—you put money in, believing that speculation and interest from people wanting to make money will rise, and drive the price of that market. But, he cautions, this has nothing to do with fundamentals; it’s fear, greed, and perception that drives these types of markets.

What Kind of Exposure Are You Looking For?

Before investing your time, energy, and wallet into this space, it’s important to ask yourself what level of exposure you’re looking for.

• Do you want to try and learn the space, and invest a few bucks?
• Are you trying to put money away long-term, and come back in time to see the gains?

By learning about what cryptocurrency is, how blockchain technology comes into play, and understanding research protocols and platforms, an individual can become a more sophisticated investor in this new space. That starts by identifying how one can generate revenue by creating a token, and its digital representation, whether a utility or security.

At the end of the day, you’re not investing in ICOs—you’re investing in protocols.

Why Are You Investing In The Company?

What does this company have that is unique? Do they have an established platform with millions of users, that will allow the token to thrive with a new business model?

More importantly, do you or those involved understand token economics, game theory, et cetera?

• Who’s behind the company?
• Do you understand what the business is built on?
• How is this venture different from mainstream currencies off of which it is built?

Taking a Holistic Approach

Like they would with any investment portfolio, investors need to look at their assets as a whole to understand the risk and return in this space. “Remove the blockchain aspect from your business, and pretend this is a venture investment,” explains Sutton. Then ask yourself, Why am I giving this company money when they haven’t done anything yet to warrant it?

At this point, whether it’s a pre-sale or ICO, there is no fiduciary responsibility to deliver on any promises or statements contained in a whitepaper. There’s no recourse if nothing’s done, no confirmation that the venture is real; yet people invest anyway.

A Sustainable Business Model

Sutton’s company, BlockTech Ventures, which recently partnered with IBM, is centered around industry growth, focusing primarily on healthcare at the moment. Sutton’s goal is to build a company that has sustainability and can always adapt to the market, creating a strong, fundamental solution which is open to working with enterprises around the world.

“Through healthcare, we have been trying to develop a solution around data,” explains Sutton. Similar to crypto wallets, they are applying this to medical data and electronic medical records. The issue in this space is that it’s almost impossible to tie into EMR, where you can have one central location with all this information.

In many instances, these companies develop a half-baked solution, raise money based on an opportunity, possess an illusive team, throw faces on a page, call it a whitepaper, and advertise their new venture.

Asking the right questions to completely disqualify these companies could save you money, and reveal that most of the companies out there are anything but investment-worthy ventures. “It’s a reverse method of building full-heart capital,” explains Sutton.

A newly released Bank of America patent application proposes securing health records on a permissioned blockchain.