Daily Archives: June 6, 2020

Cryptocurrency intelligence company tracking crimes involving digital assets CipherTrace said in its latest report that crypto thefts, hacks, and frauds totaled $1.4 billion in the first five months of 2020.

Cryptocurrency exchanges are becoming more aware of illegal funds coming from crimes and are implementing successful countermeasures, the firm added.

According to the paper dubbed Spring 2020 Cryptocurrency Anti-Money Laundering and Crime Report, the most significant contributor to the massive amount is the Chinese fraudulent project Wotoken. As CryptoPotato reported recently, the Ponzi scheme resembling the notorious PlusToken stole an estimated amount of over $1 billion from 715,249 victims.

Outside of Wotoken, another major fraudulent market share went to coronavirus-related scams. The sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic harmed peoples health and world economies, but cybercriminals tried to capitalize with numerous innovative scams duping victims.

Reports on the matter indicated that during the most intense periods of the pandemic, scammers used various methods, such as impersonating popular health and charity organizations. Despite differences in terms of content and requests, the cybercriminals ultimately asked a payment done in Bitcoin.

The rapid surge of similar scams even got the FBIs attention. The Bureau issued an official warning advising people to act with more caution when receiving anything even remotely associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The combined efforts of these and a few other cryptocurrency-related frauds had totaled $1.36 billion from January to May this year and are vastly exceeding hacks in thefts. Hence, 2020 could see the second-highest value in crypto crimes ever recorded, trailing only to 2019s $4.5 billion.

The report indicated that digital asset exchanges have been more successful in implementing Anti-Money Laundering measures and more efficient KYC rules in 2020.

Thus, the paper explained that the global average of direct criminal funds received by exchanges dropped by 47%. This suggests that many criminals are finding it harder to offload their illicit funds directly to cryptocurrency exchanges.

Nevertheless, criminals are getting savvier by expanding their methods of operations. The document outlines a particular examination of one prominent darknet marketplace revealing that risk exposure to exchanges tripled for interactions two-hops out compared to one hop out.

For the third consecutive year, cryptocurrency platforms based in Finland have received the most substantial amount (12.01%) of Bitcoin funds from criminal sources. The popular Finnish peer-to-peer marketplace LocalBitcoin is responsible for 99% of that share.

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$1.4 Billion In Cryptocurrency Stolen In The Spring of 2020 Amid Coronavirus and WoToken Scams - CryptoPotato

In brief:

There's plenty of ways to earn cryptocurrency in this space; you can freelance for it, you can set up a node, you can even walk for cryptocurrency. But none of these are half as satisfying as earning crypto while maneuvering a pudgy, but altogether non-descript, yellow bird around some green pipes.

Thats right folks. Flappy Bird, the obsession-worthy mobile game that stirred up a sensation in 2014, is back. To be clear, its not the official Flappy Bird, but it does have one leg up on the original: You can play it to win cryptocurrency.

"Hello everyone! I'm ecstatic to announce a project that I've spent many, many sleepless nights on," reads the developer's post in the Nano subreddit. "I present to you, FlappyNano!"

Per the developer, the game is a simple twist on the original. Rather than the aforementioned yellow plumper, the central character is replaced by a blue ghost-like creature.

FlappyNano harnesses a multiplayer feature in which competitors ante up 0.1 nano. The player with the highest score wins the pot.

To begin, one player sends an invitation via an in-app link. Once the challenge is accepted, a third party escrow address appears as a QR code for players to deposit funds. Once the pair have deposited, it's game on.

At present, the game works on both desktop and mobile, but the developer suggests installing Natrium, a Nano-based wallet, for the best experience.

This isnt the first crypto-version of Flappy Bird. But the last one wasnt so successful.

An EOS iteration of the gamein which top-ranking players earn EOS-based tokenshas pretty much flatlined in terms of usage. According to data from DappRadar, the game hit a peak of 464 users a week after its release in 2019. Since then, there has been virtually no activity at all.

But will FlappyNano fly?

Continued here:
How to win cryptocurrency by playing Flappy Bird - Decrypt

The text below is an advertorial article that was not written by Cryptonews.com journalists.

Deciding on which cryptocurrency broker to invest with is one of the most important tasks in the crypto industry. You have to invest with a reliable and trustworthy broker which not only ensures the safety of your funds but also can help you make a profit. To do this, you have to consider some factors like the coin spreads, available trading platforms, regulation, minimum deposit, etc.

Here, well figure out which is the best cryptocurrency broker by comparing some of the top dogs out there.

1. Plus500

Plus500 self-described as the Worlds Trading Machine is a CFD broker for trading cryptocurrencies among other trading commodities. The broker is owned by Plus500UK Ltd and has its headquarters in London, United Kingdom. The worlds top cryptocurrencies can be traded on Plus500 and the trading platform is available 24/7. With Plus500, you can try a Free Demo Account to practice your trading skills before registering for live trading and as a CFD, you do not need to own the cryptocurrencies before you can trade them.

IQ Option is the cryptocurrency broker choice for most traders because of its quick deposit & withdrawal and short selling features. Though it is renowned majorly for Forex, Stocks, and Options trading, IQ option is still one of the leading crypto brokers in the world. The platform was founded in 2013 and boasts of close to 50 million registered users; over 1 million trades are completed daily which amounts to about $11 billion every month. You can trade cryptocurrencies normally and as CFD. A demo account is featured before trying your hands on the real deal.

eToro has been around since 2007 and has more than 10 million users worldwide. Fifteen of the most popular cryptocurrency are available to be traded on eToro; this includes Bitcoin and fourteen other altcoins. The platform is focused on copy trading services with a CopyTrader technology so you can imitate the winning trading strategies of top crypto traders. It is user-friendly and optimized for both crypto trading beginners and experts. The platform features a risk-free practice trading account with up to $100,000 virtual funds.

XTB.com was rated by Brokerchooser as the Best CFD Broker for 2020. The platform is used by about 170,000 traders across the globe. Cryptocurrency can be traded all days of the week except from 9 pm on Fridays to 3 am on Saturdays. The platform features a free demo trading account that you can use for up to 4 weeks.

From the comparison, the best cryptocurrency broker out of the lot is Plus500. The platform is well regulated by different bodies and relatively low spreads for all top 3 cryptocurrencies. However, it is important to note that since cryptocurrencies are volatile, the spreads can change at any time.

Originally posted here:
What Is The Best Cryptocurrency Broker? - Cryptonews

Personal computers are illegally hacked by cryptocurrency miners to collect Monero cryptos.

Microsoft is replacing humans with AI to select and curate news stories on the companys Edge browsers and MSN site. That move will lead to over 20 people losing their jobs.

Googles Pixel Buds 2 has a connectivity issue, according to a growing number of user reports on the companys support forum and Reddit.

Facebook is making some updates to its user verification policy. With this change, page owners with large audiences need to confirm their identity with the social network.

Lastly, Indias Department of Telecom (DoT) has issued a notice to internet service providers (ISP) to block a file-sharing platform.

Crypto-jacking

Crypto-jacking is the process of illegally using someone elses computer to mine or collect Bitcoin or other types of cryptocurrencies.

In the UK, an 18-year-olds computer was crypto-jacked by miners to collect Monero cryptocurrency, the BBC reported.

Abdelrhman Badr did not know he was crypto-jacked until he noticed unusual activities in his computer. Even after turning his PC to sleep mode, the fans kept running.

And when he opened the laptop, the main login page would open up without the usual login page.

"My computer wasn't actually going to sleep at all," he told the BBC.

Badr serendipitously found about the mining when he was going through the computers program. The device has been sending information to a website he never heard of.

That website was collecting Monero cryptocurrency. In retrospect, Badr thought that an accidental download might have installed a malware in his pc.

Badrs computer falling prey to cryptocurrency mining is not on-off. A few weeks earlier, a pan-European group claimed to have attempted mining cryptocurrencies using multiple machines.

The practice of illegally collecting crpytocurrencies is currently on rise as the price of the asset is falling, according to Palo Alto Networks.

So, to reduce costs associated with mining, hackers resort to crypto-jacking.

AI to replace humans at Microsofts news curation division

Microsoft has decided to replace humans with AI to select, edit and curate news stories on the companys news webpage and Edge browser, the Guardian reported.

The move resulted in over 27 individuals losing their jobs at PA Media, a company contracted by Microsoft to manage its news page. The employees were told that the software companys decision to terminate its contract is a result of Microsofts global shift to use AI for news.

The PA Media team managing Microsofts MSN site does not file own stories. They only select articles from other news organisations and post them on Microsofts website. For hosting these articles, both Microsoft and the news organisation share advertising revenue.

We are in the process of winding down the Microsoft team working at PA, and we are doing everything we can to support the individuals concerned, a spokesperson at PA Media said in a statement.

We are proud of the work we have done with Microsoft and know we delivered a high-quality service.

Microsoft said that the company decision to use AI is not a result of the current pandemic. It has been evaluating its businesses on a regular basis to increase investment in some functions, and reducing in others.

Facebook to verify identity of users with large audiences

Facebook said it will verify identity of users with large audiences in the US in an effort to improve user experience in its apps.

The move will be the social networks extension of its page verification process started in 2018. Back then, Facebook verified users who manage Pages with a large group of followers.

The extension in the attestation policy comes at a time when the US is warming up for 2020 Presidential election. And the addition to the ID confirmation process may limit the spread of viral posts if the social network spots inauthentic behaviour.

The social media company wants to ensure that real people, and not bots, use its network. The move will also help users to know who is the actual person behind the content they see on Facebook. The messengers identity is important given their message reaches a large number of people.

If someone does not verify their identity or provides an ID that does not match a linked Facebook account, the speed of the viral post will be reduce so fewer users will see it.

And if the person posting the content is a Page admin, that person will need to complete a Page Publishing Authorization. Without completing it, their account wont be verified, and they cant post any content on the page.

The ID shared for verification will be stored securely and will not be shared on a persons profile.

Internet service providers in India asked to block WeTransfer

WeTransfer, a Netherlands-based file sharing platform, has been blocked in India on instruction from Department of Telecom (DoT) to internet service providers (ISP), Reuters reported.

The DoT had issued an order on May 18 to ISPs without giving a reason for blocking the site. The order invokes a clause from conditions laid out for granting licences to ISPs, Reuters said on reviewing the note.

Per the clause invoked by DoT, all ISPs must block websites in the interest of national security or public interest.

At this moment in time, WeTransfer seems to be blocked and unavailable in India, WeTransfer said in a blog post.

We are working hard to understand the reasoning behind this block, as well as how to get it reverted as soon as possible.

WeTransfer allows users to share and upload files of up to 2GB for free in one transfer. Paid users can transfer 20GB per upload.

Pixel Buds 2 users report issues

A growing number of Pixel Buds 2 report Bluetooth connectivity issues, 9to5 Google reported.

Several threads on Google support forums and some on Reddit show many users facing issues related to random audio cutouts, leading to brief pauses while connected to the buds.

The issues have been coming up since the first pieces were shipped, and Googles updates arent solving the connection problem.

Unfortunately, even with the latest version 295 update, the problem is not fixed, based on reports by users.

In one of the cases, even a replacement pair did not solve the issue.

A review on Reddit said: I was really excited to get these in today, but have had nothing but issues with them. While sitting at my computer they seemed to work fine, but I noticed that if I touched the left ear bud or moved my head too much, it would cut out.

Read more here:
Todays cache | Crypto-jacking, and more - The Hindu

The global cryptocurrency market to gain from increasing Internet penetration worldwide. Recently Fortune Business Insights has announced a report titled, CryptocurrencyMarket Size, Share and Global Trend by Component (Software, Services), Process (Transaction, Mining), Type (Bitcoin, Etherum, Litecoin, Ripple, Dashcoin), End User, and Geography Forecast till 2025. As per the report North America was leading the global cryptocurrency market in 2017. The growth witnessed is attributable to high adoption of digital currency in the region. The trend is unlikely to change and North America may lead the global cryptocurrency market through the forecast period.

Request a Sample Copy of the Global Market Research Report:https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/sample/Cryptocurrency-market-100149

The rising demand for online financial services in the region is likely to contribute the growth of the market in North America. Besides this, North America holds 27% participants, 39% of wallets, 18% transactions, and 19% of cryptocurrency paymen companies. This is a primary reason behind the high demand witnessed in the region. It also facilitates the higher adoption of cryptocurrency. The cryptocurrency market in Asia pacific is anticipated to expand at a relatively higher CAGR. The growth witnessed is attributable to increasing number of cryptocurrency transactions taking place in the region. Japan is known for major investments in cryptocurrency. Rising investments cryptocurrency have resulted in the formation of new laws for legalization of cryptocurrency under financial service agency. This is a major step taken by Japan and is expected to boost the Asia Pacific cryptocurrency market.

Market Landscape and Market Scenario Includes:

Europe is also amongst the leading regions in the global cryptocurrency market. The growth witnessed is attributable to high adoption of e-financial services in the region. Moreover, Germany issued a statement to consider cryptocurrency as private currency without any payable taxes, unless held for a year or more. Tax and other benefits from cryptocurrency is expected to fuel the demand for cryptocurrency and increase the number of owners globally.

Key Market Driver

Key Market Restraint

For more information in the analysis of this report, visit:https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/Cryptocurrency-market-100149

Adoption of e-wallets to Drive Market

Government initiated awareness programs regarding cryptocurrency in developing and undeveloped nations are anticipated to enable growth in the global cryptocurrency market, said a lead analyst at Fortune Business Insights.

Some of the chief factors expected to drive the global cryptocurrency market during the forecast period 2018-2025 are rising adoption of e-wallets and consumer shift towards online platforms. Additionally, cashback, promotional, and other offers on e-currency is a factor anticipated to fuel the demand in the global market.

On the contrary, requirement of a good network connection and high cost data tariff plans are a few factors that may hamper the growth in the global cryptocurrency market

Important Features that are under Offering and Key Highlights of the Market Report:

Top Players List:

Key Industry Developments

Queries Addressed In Cryptocurrency Market Report:

Request for Customization:https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/customization/cryptocurrency-market-100149

Segmentation

1. By Components

2. By Process

3. By Type

4. By End User

5. By Geography

Key Features of Market Research Report:

Have Any Query? Speak to Analysthttps://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/speak-to-analyst/cryptocurrency-market-100149

Lastly, this report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years, the Report also brief deals with the product life cycle, comparing it to the relevant products from across industries that had already been commercialized details the potential for various applications, discussing about recent product innovations and gives an overview on potential regional market shares.

Table of Content

5.Global Cryptocurrency Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2020 2027

5.1.Key Findings / Summary

5.2.Market Size Estimates and Forecasts

5.2.1.By Component (Value)

5.2.1.1.Hardware

5.2.1.1.1.FPGA

5.2.1.1.2.ASIC

5.2.1.1.3.GPU

5.2.1.1.4.Others (Paper Wallet, Web Wallet, etc.)

5.2.1.2.Software

5.2.1.2.1.Mining Software

5.2.1.2.2.Exchanges Software

5.2.1.2.3.Wallet

5.2.1.2.4.Payment

5.2.1.2.5.Others (Vaults, Encryption, etc.)

5.2.2.By Type (Value)

5.2.2.1.Bitcoin

5.2.2.2.Ether

5.2.2.3.Litecoin

5.2.2.4.Ripple

5.2.2.5.Ether Classic

5.2.2.6.Others (Dogecoin, Moneor, Dash, etc.)

5.2.3.By End-use (Value)

5.2.3.1.Trading

5.2.3.2.E-commerce and Retail

5.2.3.3.Peer-to-Peer Payment

5.2.3.4.Remittance

5.2.4.By Region (Value)

5.2.4.1.North America

5.2.4.2.Europe

5.2.4.3.Asia Pacific

5.2.4.4.Middle East and Africa

5.2.4.5.Latin America

6.North America Cryptocurrency Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2020 2027

6.1.Key Findings / Summary

6.2.Market Size Estimates and Forecasts

6.2.1.By Component (Value)

6.2.1.1.Hardware

6.2.1.1.1.FPGA

6.2.1.1.2.ASIC

6.2.1.1.3.GPU

6.2.1.1.4.Others (Paper Wallet, Web Wallet, etc.)

6.2.1.2.Software

6.2.1.2.1.Mining Software

6.2.1.2.2.Exchanges Software

6.2.1.2.3.Wallet

6.2.1.2.4.Payment

6.2.1.2.5.Others (Vaults, Encryption, etc.)

6.2.2.By Type (Value)

6.2.2.1.Bitcoin

6.2.2.2.Ether

6.2.2.3.Litecoin

6.2.2.4.Ripple

6.2.2.5.Ether Classic

6.2.2.6.Others (Dogecoin, Moneor, Dash, etc.)

6.2.3.By End-use (Value)

6.2.3.1.Trading

6.2.3.2.E-commerce and Retail

6.2.3.3.Peer-to-Peer Payment

6.2.3.4.Remittance

6.2.4.By Country (Value)

6.2.4.1.The U.S.

6.2.4.2.Canada

7.Europe Cryptocurrency Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2020 2027

7.1.Key Findings / Summary

7.2.Market Size Estimates and Forecasts

7.2.1.By Component (Value)

7.2.1.1.Hardware

7.2.1.1.1.FPGA

7.2.1.1.2.ASIC

7.2.1.1.3.GPU

7.2.1.1.4.Others (Paper Wallet, Web Wallet, etc.)

7.2.1.2.Software

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Who are the distributors, traders and dealers of Cryptocurrency Market? - Fresno Observer

Cryptocurrency exchange OKEx announced the eighth round of buyback for its platforms proprietary OKB token.

In a June 5 announcement, OKEx announced the start of the eighth and largest buyback of OKB tokens. From March 1 until May 31, the exchange bought and burned over 3.5 million OKB tokens, which at its current price of $5.35, translates to a total value of over $18.7 million.

OKExs OKB buyback initiative was launched in early May 2019, when there were still 300 million of the tokens in circulation. After this last burn, a total of over 20.67 million OKB tokens were burned.

All the burns result in a current total number of tokens in circulation under 280 million OKB, for a market cap just short of $321 million. The burned tokens are sent to what OKEx fittingly calls a black-hole address.

Per the announcement, the purpose of the burns is not to influence the tokens price, but to instead encourage the development of an ecosystem based on OKB. In February 2020 OKEx also burned 700 million of unissued OKB tokens and promised to not issue any more tokens. The firm claims:

This [decision] converted the OKB token into a fully deflationary token as well as the world's first fully circulating platform token.

In the future, OKEx promises that the tokens will be moved to their native blockchain, OKChain, but so far theres just a test network. According to a March 2019 announcement, the firm is developing the blockchain and plans to also launch a decentralized exchange on it.

Since March, OKEx has been the worlds top Bitcoin (BTC) futures exchange by volume and is continuing to aggressively push to expand further.

Just yesterday, the exchange launched Ether (ETH) options contracts on its trading platform and announced that EOS options will be launched on June 18. The firms CEO, Jay Hao, told Cointelegraph that he believes derivatives are important for the crypto ecosystem:

Derivatives are fundamental for the development of the crypto ecosystem and for attracting institutional funds. When you look at traditional markets, derivatives typically account for more than four times the trade volumes of the underlying asset. Yet, in crypto, spot trading is still much larger. That won't be the case for much longer.

Hao also told Cointelegraph that the firms derivatives market is three to four times bigger than its spot market. He also said that he expects that derivatives will soon become four or five times larger than spot markets in the whole crypto market. He concluded:

Crypto has grown exponentially in the last few years yet compared to traditional markets and asset classes, it's still tiny. We need a sophisticated, interesting, robust, and varied derivatives market to take crypto to the next level.

Read the rest here:
OKEx Continues Their Ongoing OKB Token Buyback - Cointelegraph

Overview:

Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that utilizes cryptography techniques to make the transactions secure and to limit the creation of additional units of currency. Cryptocurrency is decentralized and there is no third-party/central body/governing body involved in producing new currency, verifying transactions, and protecting the currency supply. The blockchain acts as a ledger that shows the transaction activities between the peers. Cryptocurrency opts as a future revenue stream in the digital finance world. Furthermore, cryptocurrency is not bound by any rules or regulations of any specific government or exchange rates, interest rates, and country to country transaction fee, which makes international transactions faster. The prime drivers of the cryptocurrency market include proper security, authentication and ease of transactions. The Cryptocurrency and Blockchain technology allows the users to send exactly what they want without involvement of third party.Globally, more than 70% of the mobile phone users prefer transactions over their phones, which is one of the major drivers for the cryptocurrency market growth.

Request for Report Sample:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/9796

Market Analysis:

The Worldwide Crypto-currency and Blockchain Technology Market is estimated to witness a CAGR of 35.2% during the forecast period 20162022. The crypto-currency market is analyzed based on two segments verticals and regions. The increasing online transaction, less transaction fees, easy and faster transaction, changing consumer and business landscape have led the demand for the market growth.

Regional Analysis:

The regions covered in the report are Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific and Middle East & Africa; along with the analysis of major countries in each region. The Americas is set to be the leading region for the cryptocurrency market growth followed by Europe. The Asia Pacific and MEA are set to be the emerging regions. India is set to be the most attractive destination and in Africa, the popularity and the usage of various cryptocurrencies are expected to increase in the coming years. The MEA market revenue is expected to reach $3.02 billion by 2022. The major countries covered in this report are the US, Canada, Argentina, the UK, Germany, Italy, France, Poland, China, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam, GCC Countries, Africa and Others.

Vertical Analysis:

Day-to-day, the consumers demands are changing and they are looking for the best and less time-consuming services to make their life easier. With these changes, the industry players have started moving towards the online business services and are adopting mobile based technology in their business units to reach their customer demands. In the current market scenario, the rise of online transactions has led the demand for the cryptocurrency and blockchain technology market. The major verticals covered are BFSI, retail, media & entertainment, gaming industry, healthcare, travel & tourism, transportation & logistics and education. Globally, the industry players are showing interest towards the blockchain and crypto-currency acceptance and making a partnership and discussing with value chain players in order to understand the benefits of blockchain technology. Additionally, few of the verticals have already started the acceptance of crypto-currencies (e.g. Bitcoin) as a payment option. Especially, the retail industry is set to be the leading vertical after BFSI for the crypto-currencies acceptance and the retail market revenue is expected to reach $10,447.2 million by 2022.

Key Players:

Zebpay, Coinsecure, Coinbase, Bitstamp Ltd., Litecoin, Poloniex Inc., Bitfury Group Limited, Unocoin, Ripple, Bitfinex, Global Area Holding Inc., BTL Group Ltd., Digital Limited, IBM Corp., Microsoft Corp. and other predominate and niche players.

Competitive Analysis:

In the current market scenario, the crypto-currency and blockchain technology market is at a nascent stage. But, a lot of new players are entering the market as it holds huge business opportunities. Especially, new start-ups are coming with new products/services in the market and they are expecting to see a double-digit growth in the upcoming years. In this space, venture funding in this market is expected to grow and collaborations, merger & acquisition activities are expected to continue.

Benefits:

The report provides complete details about the usage and adoption rate of crypto-currency and blockchain technology in various industry verticals and regions. With that, key stakeholders can know about the major trends, drivers, investments, vertical players initiatives, government initiatives towards the crypto-currency market adoption in the upcoming years. In other end, the report provides details about the major challenges that are going to impact on the market growth. Furthermore, the report gives the complete details about the key business opportunities to key stakeholders to expand their business and capture the revenue in the specific verticals. In addition, each vertical provides the key reason for the crypto-currency adoption, key opportunities, and government bodies information. This will help the key stakeholders to analyze before investing or expanding the business in this market.

More Info of Impact [emailprotected]https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/covid-19-analysis/9796

Read more here:
Cryptocurrency And Blockchain Technology Market size Reap Excessive Revenues size COVID-19 2022 - Cole of Duty