Cryptopia Hacked Again / Litecoin Changes / Spongebob / Gambling

Subscribe | View in browser $BTC (1:08 p.m. EST): $3,489.15 (1.08%) // 90-day high: $6,860.85 // 90-day low: $3,286.14 / / More… $BCH ABC (1:08 p.m. EST): $118.82 (6.29%) // 90-day high: $632.22// 90-day low: $80.95 // More… $ETH (1:08 p.m. EST): $109.08 (2.83%) // 90-day high: $229.12 // 90-day low: $85.11 // More… $LTC (1:09 p.m. EST): $31.98 (2.58%) // 90-day high: $54.64 // 90-day low: $22.09 // More… $XRP (1:09 p.m. EST): $0.31 (10.35%) // 90-day high: $0.53 // 90-day low: $0.28 // More… Here are the 10 most important stories about bitcoin and cryptocurrencies today       1. Cryptopia was hacked … again, and by the same thief no less. For the second time in two weeks, hackers broke into the New Zealand-based exchange and stole about $180,000 of ethereum. Elementus, a next-generation blockchain analysis company, said hackers drained more than 17,000 user wallets. To make things worse, more than 5,000 of those wallets were hacked during the first attack on Cryptopia, which saw more than $16 million in cryptocurrency taken on January 15. –AMB CRYPTO       2. Litecoin creator Charlie Lee plans to make his coin more fungible by adding confidential transactions, according to his announcement on Twitter.​​​​​ He said that "fungibility is the only property of sound money that is missing from Bitcoin & Litecoin," adding that "the next battleground will be on fungibility and privacy." Lee said that confidential transactions could be added threat a soft fork in the cryptocurrency's code. Lee did not give an exact time frame for the changes, just saying it would happen "sometime in 2019." –COIN TELEGRAPH       Ad Intelligence is creating stronger connections. Today's world generates 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every day. Sifting through that much available information is hard. Micron is helping analyze that data to create stronger connections between AI, organizations, and most importantly, people.​​ Learn More. 3. The Lightning Network has turned to Spongebob Squarepants for inspiration. Developers have named a new technology coming to the network "wumbo," which in the Spongebob universe is a real word, according to Patrick the starfish. Despite the odd name, wumbo will have real utility on the Lightning Network. It describes a change to the hard-coded limit on how much money can be locked up in a lightning channel at a given time. The term was first chosen at a summit in November held in Australia. "Please blame one of the persons attending the summit for this term. Unfortunately, due to rules imposed, non-attendees can only learn who to blame if that person admits this," wrote developer ZmnSCPxj. –COINDESK       4. Online gamblers have started to use the EOS and Tron networks, opposed to ethereum. A new report shows that 70 percent of the EOS network is used for gambling transactions, while more than 95 percent of Tron traffic is gambling-related. Gamers traditionally used the ethereum network for gaming, but have gradually moved to the other platforms in the past year. The report did not give a specific reason for this move, but noted that both EOS and Tron have seen an increase in decentralized gaming apps, although some have had come with security concerns. –THE NEXT WEB       Ad Build Proficiency with IoT while Exploring Azure IoT Tools and Technologies Developing applications for the Internet of Things is a balancing act. From avoiding business interruptions to factoring in security, there's a lot to consider. Find the resources you need to work through technical challenges in one, convenient place.   5. John McAfee, the notorious cryptocurrency investor and promotor, announced plans to run for President in 2020 with an unusual slogan: "Don't vote for me." –CCN 6. The school system in Kazakhstan has turned to blockchain to manage a complicated waitlist system for kindergartners. –COIN TELEGRAPH 7. Fidelity plans to launch its bitcoin custody service in March, according to reports. The service is aimed at helping institutional investors ease into the cryptocurrency space. –BLOOMBERG 8. Swift, the financial messaging service, has partnered with start-up R3 on a new payments standard framework that incorporates blockchain. –CNBC 9. Washington State lawmakers have introduced a bill that calls for the increased use of blockchain-related technologies, especially in the area of identity verification. –ETHEREUM WORLD NEWS 10. More than 49 percent of the entire bitcoin trading volume for the past 24 hours has been exchanged against the Japanese Yen, surpassing the USD, which typically dominates the market. –BITCOINIST       Written and curated by David Stegon. He has been a reporter for 15 years, the past 10 focused on technology. Follow him @davidstegon. Editing team: Lon Harris (editor-in-chief at Inside.com, game-master at Screen Junkies) and Susmita Baral (editor at Inside, recent bylines in NatGeo, Teen Vogue, and Quartz. Runs the biggest mac and cheese account on Instagram).       Ad Owl Labs is the creator of the Meeting Owl, the first 360-degree smart conference camera. Learn more.

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Crypto criminal's 2018 salary 💸

January 30, 2019

ARCHIVE

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"You could say coins are issued by the majority. They are issued in a limited, predetermined amount."

- Satoshi

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MARKET

COIN	PRICE	24H
BTC	$3,478.29	+ 0.78%
XRP	$0.315423	+ 8.02%
ETH	$108.64	+ 2.27%
EOS	$2.33	+ 1.55%
BCH	$118.05	+ 4.80%

*Information as of 10:00 AM EST

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RESEARCH

Crypto Criminals Grabbed $1.7 Billion From Theft and Scams in 2018

In a new report released Tuesday, crypto analytics company CipherTrace estimated that over $1.7 billion in cryptocurrency had been obtained illegally in 2018.

CipherTrace broke down the number into two categories:

• $950 million coming from exchange hacks - 3.6x higher than 2017
• $725 million coming from various scams like fake initial coin offerings, Ponzi schemes, and exit scams

Interestingly, despite sharp falling prices, the total dollar amount of crypto obtained illegally in 2018 still surpassed 2017 - showcasing a growing need for stronger security.

The threats you should know

Also included in the report, CipherTrace listed the top security threats in crypto right now.

Here are their top 5:

1. Sim swapping
2. Crypto dusting
3. Sanction evasion
4. Next-generation crypto mixers
5. Shadow money service businesses

Other notable threats include large-scale crypto hacking malware and even email extortion.

Regulation to the rescue

While these threats continued to be an issue in 2018, CipherTrace CEO Dave Jevans believes new regulation will crack down on crypto criminals quickly.

Jevans explained:

"Cryptocurrency criminal activity continues to evolve and accelerate. Fortunately, pending global legislation will hamstring many criminals, global gangs, and terrorist groups by greatly reducing their opportunities to launder."

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INSTITUTION

Fidelity's Crypto Custody is Coming in March

First revealed on a Bloomberg terminal, it seems that financial giant Fidelity is looking to launch its crypto custody solution in March.

Initially, the custody will be centered around storing just Bitcoin. Soon after, the systems will begin to store other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum.

Instilling trust

Previously, an executive in charge of digital assets at Fidelity explained that many clients want to jump into crypto, but "needed a trusted platform provider" first.

According to a statement released Tuesday, Fidelity is already serving a small group of customers who trust its new service.

The statement continued:

"Over the next several months, we will thoughtfully engage with and prioritize prospective clients based on needs, jurisdiction and other factors."

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LITECOIN

Litecoin Could Become a Privacy Coin

Litecoin, commonly considered the silver to Bitcoin's gold, could be looking to introduce private transactions - and make a new name for itself.

It all started when Litecoin founder Charlie Lee tweeted:

"Fungibility is the only property of sound money that is missing from Bitcoin and Litecoin. Now that the scaling debate is behind us, the next battleground will be on fungibility and privacy."

He then continued:

"I am now focused on making Litecoin more fungible by adding Confidential Transactions. "

The consequences of privacy

The move to make Litecoin private will bring more with it than just dark transactions - mostly from a regulatory perspective.

Exchanges that work closely with regulators may see some pushback since private transactions open the flood gates for money laundering.

Still, the change would give Litecoin a new edge in its pitch after being in Bitcoin's shadow all these years.

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BITS

But wait, there's more...

• 🚀 SWIFT CEO reveals plans to launch new gateway with the help of blockchain software firm R3.
• 👎 AMD estimates an "absence" of GPU sales due to crypto miners in the first quarter.
• 👀 Crypto lender Genesis Capital processed nearly $1.1 billion in 2018.

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