http://digitalmoneytimes.com/crypto-news/altcoin-pump-dump-punishable-law-south-korea/Virtual currencies are often associated with all kinds of negative terms, including scams, hacks and pump-and-dump schemes. Especially the latter category is far more common in the world of virtual currencies than one might assume, as most of the “altcoins” are created by a group of developers looking to make a quick buck. In all fairness, with over 4,000 virtual currencies in existence already, there is no need to create more.
Market manipulation is certainly against the code of ethics of the trading community. While it may be punishable by law as well, the difficulty is in proving the charges with respect to altcoins.