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UK Watchdog Says It Will Not Object to Crypto ETN Listing Requests

UK Watchdog Says It Will Not Object to Crypto ETN Listing RequestsThe United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority has said it will not object to requests by recognised investment exchanges to launch crypto-backed exchange-traded notes. The exchange-traded notes will only be made available to professional investors such as regulated investment firms. ETNs Must Adhere to UK Listing Requirements The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the watchdog for the […]

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Crypto Crime Appears To Drop in 2023 As Digital Asset ‘Romance’ Scams Surge by 85x Since 2020: Chainalysis

Crypto Crime Appears To Drop in 2023 As Digital Asset ‘Romance’ Scams Surge by 85x Since 2020: Chainalysis

The amount of funds sent to illicit addresses in 2023 suggests a decline in cryptocurrency-based criminal activities, according to a new report from market intelligence platform Chainalysis. The Chainalysis 2024 Crypto Crime Report says the value received by illicit cryptocurrency addresses dropped to $24.2 billion last year, down from $39.6 billion recorded in 2022. Chainalysis […]

The post Crypto Crime Appears To Drop in 2023 As Digital Asset ‘Romance’ Scams Surge by 85x Since 2020: Chainalysis appeared first on The Daily Hodl.

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Founders of Alleged $575,000,000 Crypto Fraud To Be Extradited to US From Estonia: Report

Founders of Alleged 5,000,000 Crypto Fraud To Be Extradited to US From Estonia: Report

Estonia reportedly decided on Thursday to hand over to the United States two of its citizens for their alleged involvement in a $575 million cryptocurrency fraud and money laundering scheme. In November, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the arrest of Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin in Estonia in connection to an 18-count indictment […]

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Inferno Drainer says it’s shutting down after helping steal $70M in crypto

“We hope you can remember us as the best drainer that has ever existed,” wrote the scam-as-a-service wallet drainer.

Inferno Drainer, one of the most popular crypto wallet-draining kits for hire says it is shutting down for good after helping phishing scammers steal nearly $70 million worth of crypto this year.

In a Nov. 26 Telegram post, the team behind Inferno Drainer said it was “time for us to move on.” However, it said that the files and infrastructure needed to run the wallet drainer won’t be destroyed but instead will remain active so users can make a “smooth transition” to other services.

“It has been a long ride with all of you and we’d like to thank you from heart [sic]. Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever.”

“A big thank [sic] to everyone who has worked with us,” it added. “We hope you can remember us as the best drainer that has ever existed and that we succeeded in helping you in the quest of making money.”

Inferno Drainer’s final message to its users. Source: Telegram

Inferno Drainer gained prominence early this year and saw increased use after the popular Monkey Drainer tool shut down. Like its peers, Inferno offered its crypto wallet-draining software and took a 20% cut of what users stole.

Since February, Inferno Drainer has stolen nearly $70 million from over 100,000 victims, according to analytics from Web3 anti-scam platform Scam Sniffer. However, the Inferno Drainer team suggested the amount stolen was over $80 million.

The Inferno Drainer team has deleted the affiliate Telegram account “mr_inferno_drainer” used for arranging its service and warned its users not to trust other drainers using its name in the future.

Related: Pink, Pussy, Venom, Inferno — Drainers coming for a crypto wallet near you

Blockchain security firm CertiK told Cointelegraph that Inferno Drainer was “one of the most damaging phishing kits to the community we’ve seen.”

It added there are still “plenty of providers out there” who are active, including rival Pink Drainer and Angel Drainer, the latter of which released an update on Nov. 25 to help users drain wallets on more blockchains.

Monkey Drainer, another high-profile crypto drainer that stole millions, shut down in March, saying it was “time to move on to something better.”

Magazine: Tornado Cash 2.0 — The race to build safe and legal coin mixers

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Philippines SEC teams up with US counterpart to combat crypto fraud

The Philippine SEC is now collaborating with the U.S. SEC and the Asian Development Bank to better combat crypto-related crime.

The Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has teamed up with its United States counterpart, as well as the Asian Development Bank to crack down on criminals using cryptocurrencies to commit fraud and other financial crimes.

According to a Sept. 15 press release, the three institutions conducted an International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) Investigation and Enforcement Training workshop last month, in a bid to upskill their combined fraud and scam prevention toolkit when it came to crypto-related crimes.

Philippine SEC Chair, Emilio B. Aquino said the workshop aimed to “strengthen the capability of the SEC Philippines’ enforcement personnel in conducting investigations on securities-related crimes like insider trading, market manipulation, off-market fraud and crypto scams.”

In addition to the workshop, the Philippine SEC signed the IOSCO Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding on crypto crime. The regulator also looked to local lawmakers to bolster its enforcement powers by crafting new laws that adhere to the standards set by IOSCO.

The alliance between the organizations marks a step forward for the Philippines when it comes to the oversight of digital assets in the country.

The SEC press release on the new multilateral partnership. Source: SEC

Related: Axie Infinity’s play-to-earn ‘scheme’ alarms Philippine National Police

Earlier this year, the Philippines SEC delayed the release of its regulatory framework for crypto assets, which was initially slated for release in late-2022.

“We haven’t closed the door. We really just have to make sure people don’t get burned,” said Aquino.

Crypto remains a contentious issue in the Philippines, with the country’s central bank and the local SEC previously urging its citizens not to engage in any operations foreign crypto exchanges.

In May 2023, the Philippine SEC called Gemini Derivatives an unregistered security product under national law.

Despite this, the country remains an attractive destination for crypto and is still widely regarded as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, with over 11.6 million Filipinos owning digital assets, placing it in 10th spot worldwide when it comes to crypto adoption.

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Swyftx launches ‘Earn and Learn’ — paying Aussies to learn about crypto scams

Australian crypto exchange Swyftx said it had identified a rise in demand for crypto education during the bear market as the reason for its launch.

Australian crypto exchange Swyftx is launching a new “Earn and Learn” crypto education platform, aimed at rewarding its users for completing courses covering an array of crypto scams. 

The new educational platform will launch on Sept. 6 and comes amid heightened attention over crypto-related scams in Australia.

Swyftx’s head of corporate affairs, Tom Matthews, said the aim is to better equip the public with knowledge until such a time the industry is fully regulated. It would also serve to help people better understand the crypto market and reduce their susceptibility to scam coins.

Matthews told Cointelegraph that the platform will help users identify different scams, such as those involving spurious tokens, pig butchering and other social media cons, and pump-and-dump schemes.

“Cryptocurrency scams exist but there’s frustration within the industry around how often this term is bandied about when what people are actually talking about are traditional scams, which happen to involve digital assets.”

Additionally, the courses will give users an “at a glance” checklist to consider when looking at tokens to assess their utility, he said, adding:

“This includes areas like the background of their founding teams, the strength of their tokenomics, any weaknesses in the project, the strength and profile of their VC backing, the financials and tokenomics, and understanding the project’s goals and relevance.”

The exchange, which claims to have 660,000 customers, identified a big rise in demand for crypto education during the bear market.

The first 4,000 people to successfully complete the first course on fundamental analysis will receive five Australian dollars ($3.20) in Bitcoin (BTC), with 100 Australian dollars ($64.30) in total rewards available to each participant over the next 12 months.

The firm is anticipating up to 80,000 Australians to participate, he said.

Matthews said that the demand for more education has been largely driven by the high level of grassroots crypto adoption in Australia, adding:

“The demand for quality educational resources is close to exponential at the moment. The next market cycle will be driven by knowledge, not hype and people are now far more aware of the risks around token scams or failures in the wake of Terra/Luna.”

Zac Povolny, co-founder of Australian investor education and research platform Investified and a contributor to some of the courses, said, “With thousands of digital asset opportunities to invest in, it’s important to have the skillset and education to cut through and identify assets with real utility and staying power.”

Many lack the fundamentals necessary for a sustainable project, he added.

Related: Crypto and blockchain education becomes priority at top universities

Globally, several major exchanges such as Coinbase have launched similar educational platforms with crypto incentives. Binance also offers crypto-earning opportunities through its Academy section.

Coinbase Earn went live in late 2018 offering a handful of altcoins such as ZRX, ZTX, GRT, and COMP for completing short educational courses on the respective assets; however, it was often over-subscribed at the time.

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More Than $23,000,000 Worth of Crypto Lost to Hacks and Frauds in August: Bug Bounty Platform Immunefi

More Than ,000,000 Worth of Crypto Lost to Hacks and Frauds in August: Bug Bounty Platform Immunefi

A new report from a bug bounty platform shows that the amount of crypto assets lost to hacks and frauds took a dive in August. According to Immunefi, $23,366,220 worth of digital assets were lost in August, marking a sharp decline from the $320,498,660 worth of losses recorded in July. Crypto losses from hacks and […]

The post More Than $23,000,000 Worth of Crypto Lost to Hacks and Frauds in August: Bug Bounty Platform Immunefi appeared first on The Daily Hodl.

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Australia’s Bendigo Bank blocks high-risk payments to crypto exchanges

Chainalysis policy lead Chengyi Ong warned crypto users may eventually have no choice but to deal with offshore unregulated exchanges.

Australia’s Bendigo Bank has become the fourth major bank in the country to announce blocks for “high-risk crypto payments,” citing the need to protect customers from investment scams.

The bank said on July 31 that it implemented new rules on instant payments to crypto exchanges that add “some friction to certain genuine payments,” according to its head of fraud, Jason Gordon.

It cited combatting fraudulent payments and enhancing protections for its 2.3 million customers as reasons for the blocks.

Screenshot of Bendigo Bank's warning about investment scams. Source: Bendigo Bank

A Bendigo Bank spokesperson told Cointelegraph that certain instant crypto transactions that it identifies as higher risk will be blocked, but the bank is not disclosing further details at this time.

The spokesperson said it identifies high-risk transactions by employing “a combination of factors” but refused to comment on specifics. The bank said it was not disclosing what exchanges may be affected by its changes.

Bendigo Bank’s blocks follow similar actions in recent months from three of Australia’s Big Four banks — Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank (NAB) and Westpac.

In an interview conducted before the recent Bendigo Bank announcement, Chainalysis APAC Policy Head Chengyi Ong warned that such actions would force Australia’s crypto public to interact with offshore exchanges.

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Ong argued that such blocks won’t stop criminal actors from using other platforms, crypto or not, while uncertainty over banking access could also drive crypto exchanges and users outside the jurisdiction of authorities.

Related: Kansas Heartland Tri-State Bank closed by FDIC as banking crisis deepens

Instead of cutting off exchanges, Ong says banks — alongside regulators, telecommunication providers and social media platforms — need to cooperate at every point of the scam lifecycle.

“[We need to target] all the potential attack vectors and all the potential points of interaction between a victim and a scammer. We have to tackle every single one of those touchpoints.”

Dr. Aaron Lane, senior lecturer with the RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, told Cointelegraph that the best thing banks can do for consumer protection is to constructively work with exchanges, adding:

"Debanking as a risk tool should be reserved for individual cases of serious and unacceptable risk, not a general posture towards an entire industry or asset class."

Australia has been weighing crypto-specific laws for over three years, and Dr. Lane urged lawmakers to take crypto law reform “out of the too-hard basket.”

Ong’s and Dr. Lane’s comments follow an official statement from the Department of the Treasury in June that included similar warnings.

The Treasury said it understands its inaction on debanking will stifle financial services competition and innovation and could “drive businesses underground and to operate exclusively in cash.”

Collect this article as an NFT to preserve this moment in history and show your support for independent journalism in the crypto space.

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Additional reporting by Brayden Lindrea.

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Losses from crypto rug pulls outpaced DeFi exploits in May: Beosin

Over $45 million was lost to exit scams in May while exploits on DeFi protocols racked up less than half that amount over the same period.

The amount of cryptocurrency lost to "rug pull" or "exit scams" — where founders suddenly up and leave with investors’ money — had outpaced the amount stolen from decentralized finance (DeFi) projects in May, a blockchain security firm has revealed.

A June 1 report from Beosin said in May total losses from rug pulls and scams reached over $45 million across six incidents.

Meanwhile, there were 10 attacks on decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols that netted only $19.7 million. The amount is a nearly 80% decrease from April and losses from these types of exploits had been on the decline for two months, it added.

The largest of such rug pulls was the $32 million that crypto project Fintoch is alleged to have made off with on May 24. The $7.5 million attack on the DeFi platform Jimbos protocol was the largest attack last month according to Beosin.

Related: Could Ben.eth’s PSYOP tokens face legal scrutiny? It depends, say lawyers

“Hackers and scammers are gradually shifting the target of their attacks from various project parties to ordinary users,” Beosin wrote.

It recommended crypto users “raise their anti-fraud awareness,” undertake due diligence on a project before investing and learn how to better safeguard their crypto.

Beosin also warned against using shared or public charging devices for mobile phones as these could potentially be modified to inject malicious programs that could compromise private keys.

In April, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued a similar warning the use of free charging stations such as those found at airports should be avoided.

“Bad actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and monitoring software onto devices,” the FBI’s Denver office tweeted on April 6. It instead advised carrying a charger and USB cord for use in an electrical outlet.

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Can you recover stolen Bitcoin from crypto scams?

Recovering stolen Bitcoin from crypto scams is challenging due to the anonymous nature of blockchain transactions and jurisdictional issues.

The process of recovering stolen Bitcoin (BTC) from cryptocurrency scams is difficult and complex. The prevalence of cryptocurrencies has led to an increase in scams and other fraudulent practices that prey on the gullible. Numerous people have suffered significant financial losses as a result of falling for different crypto scams, such as phishing, rug pulls and hacker attacks.

Although cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin’s decentralized and pseudonymous structure have some benefits, they also create major obstacles for recovering stolen funds. This article will delve into the various methods and potential avenues for recovering stolen Bitcoin and explore the important factors to consider in the process.

Understanding the landscape of DeFi scams

As already noted, there are many different types of decentralized finance (DeFi) scams, including phishing scams, rug pulls and social media scams. To trick and take advantage of gullible people, scammers use strategies such as impersonation, bogus websites and misleading investment possibilities.

These frauds have an enormous effect, leading to monetary losses, compromising personal data and diminishing confidence in the cryptocurrency sector. To avoid being a victim of fraud, it is crucial to be aware of these frauds and comprehend their strategies.

Related: DeFi Scams 101: How to avoid the most common cryptocurrency frauds

The challenges of recovering stolen Bitcoin

Due to the intrinsic properties of blockchain transactions, recovering stolen Bitcoin presents a number of difficulties. These transactions’ pseudonymity and anonymity make it challenging to track the flow of money and pin down the offenders.

Furthermore, jurisdictional issues and the decentralized nature of blockchain technology make the recovery process more challenging. Additionally, recovering the stolen Bitcoin is extremely difficult due to the technical challenges of locating and identifying stolen money. However, the avenues discussed below may help recover stolen BTC.

Legal avenues for recovery

Victims of Bitcoin theft can report the occurrence to law enforcement organizations that focus on cybercrime. The likelihood of recovery is increased by collaborating closely with specialized task forces and specific cybercrime teams. Coordination across several jurisdictions is made possible by international collaboration and the presence of legislative frameworks, which speed up the recovery process.

Blockchain analytics and investigation techniques

Blockchain analysis is essential for retrieving Bitcoin that has been stolen. These methods and technologies aid in tracing the movement of money, locating addresses connected to the fraud, and spotting erroneous transactions.

Collaborating with cybersecurity companies experienced in blockchain investigation and forensic professionals improves the chances of finding and retrieving the stolen BTC. Untangling the complications of stolen Bitcoin and maybe recovering the funds for victims is made possible by combining technological know-how and investigation techniques.

The role of exchanges and service providers

The recovery of stolen Bitcoin depends heavily on exchanges and service providers. Authorities might start the recovery process by freezing the funds linked to the scam and working with reliable exchanges. To stop unauthorized transactions and improve user protection, exchanges must put more stringent security measures in place, including multi-factor authentication and strong Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) requirements.

Seeking restitution through civil litigation

Cryptocurrency scam victims may pursue compensation through civil litigation. To successfully navigate the legal process, it is crucial to work with legal professionals with experience in situations involving cryptocurrencies. It’s crucial to keep in mind that civil action can be difficult and drawn out, and there might be difficulties in identifying and locating the con artists or recovering the stolen funds. Depending on the jurisdiction and applicable legislation, legal remedies may vary.

Related: How to mitigate the security risks associated with crypto payments

Prevention and education

Prevention is the key to thwarting cryptocurrency fraud. People and organizations can better defend themselves from falling for such scams by increasing awareness and education about the hazards and typical fraudster tactics. Being a target of cryptocurrency scams can be greatly decreased by putting into use best practices for protecting Bitcoin holdings, such as using hardware wallets, updating software and exercising caution when doing online transactions.

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