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New Bitcoin Scam Targets Embarrassed Porn Viewers

A new scam has begun targeting porn viewers in an attempt to blackmail victims and extort $1,900 — and they only take bitcoin.

Via malware, the scammers claim to have compromising footage of viewers taken from the would-be victim’s webcam while pornographic videos were playing. The scam email sent to victims begins by revealing to them their own password — presumably obtained from a company data breach — as “proof” that their computer has been hacked, although it’s unclear whether the footage exists...Read more

Crypto-mining Malware Doubles from Last Year

The number of global organizations affected by crypto-mining malware more than doubled from the second half of 2017 to the first six months of this year, according to new data from Check Point.

The security vendor claimed in its Cyber Attack Trends: 2018 Mid-Year Report that the figure rose from just under 21% in the second half of last year to 42% in H1 2018, with cyber-criminals making an estimated $2.5bn over the past six months.

Read more: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cryptomining-malware-doubles-last/

S Korea To “Foster The Market” and “Stimulate Jobs” In Blockchain

The South Korean government is set to make broad changes to its blockchain regulations, paving the way for a shake-up of the country’s cryptocurrency policies.

Ko Hyung-gwan, the vice minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, has told reporters that the government’s plans will “foster the market” and “stimulate job creation” in blockchain-related industries, although he noted that South Korean fintech ventures “needed a wake-up call.”

https://cryptonews.com/news/s-korea-to-foster-the-market-and-stimulate-jobs-in-blockchai-2239.htm

12/12 Approved: Korea Industry Body’s Inspection of Crypto Exchanges Under Scrutiny

South Korea’s biggest self-regulatory cryptocurrency industry body, the Korea Blockchain Association (KBA), is under fire for its inspection standards after approving 12 out of 12 crypto exchanges screened in a recent self-regulatory drive.

The Korea Blockchain Association (KBA), an industry body that contains nearly two dozen cryptocurrency companies, has concluded an in-house inspection of 12 domestic cryptocurrency exchanges that began in May.

The self-regulatory drive was conducted via third-party experts authorized by the KBA in June and July, the Korea Herald reports. Notably, the inspection did not include any hacking simulation of exchanges and was only restricted to interviews of the exchanges in June and July, the Korea Herald reports.

The results of the inspection see 12 out of the 14 exchanges gain an affirmation for meeting the “general standards” mandated by the KBA. They include the adoption of cold or offline wallets, adherence to anti-money laundering norms, possessing a certain minimum in assets and more.
https://www.ccn.com/12-12-approved-korea-industry-bodys-inspection-of-crypto-exchanges-under-scrutiny/

Cryptocurrencies and blockchain have gone mainstream – and are now used for bets in the World Cup. But while some international stars are launching their own virtual currencies, other people are using them for more nefarious purposes.
https://bitcoinist.com/world-cup-gambling-busted-china/

University Researchers Turn to Blockchain to Preserve Cultural Heritage

A team from China's Tsinghua University has filed a patent application detailing a role for blockchain technology in protecting cultural heritage.

According to a patent filing submitted in April and revealed on Friday, three faculty members of the university have developed a concept for a system that can store and share digital versions of culturally important objects using a blockchain.

https://www.coindesk.com/university-researchers-turn-to-blockchain-to-preserve-cultural-heritage/

IOTA has now received an invitation from the Euro Commission and therefore has support. I bought this coin for another 10 cents, I continue to keep

Vidal Chriqui (co-founder BTU Protocol), confirmed speaker at BR’s Focus on Blockchain

Vidal Chriqui, co-founder of the BTU Protocol, will speak during the first edition of Focus on Blockchain organized by Business Review on July 19 at Impact Hub in Bucharest.

Read more: http://business-review.eu/news/vidal-chriqui-co-founder-btu-protocol-confirmed-speaker-at-brs-focus-on-blockchain-176751

12/12 Approved: Korea Industry Body’s Inspection of Crypto Exchanges Under Scrutiny
https://www.ccn.com/12-12-approved-korea-industry-bodys-inspection-of-crypto-exchanges-under-scrutiny/

Billionaire investor Steven Cohen is entering the emerging market by investing into a cryptocurrency hedge fund that favors Bitcoin and Ethereum over Ripple.
https://bitcoinist.com/steven-cohen-invest-bitcoin-not-ripple/

The OKCoin cryptocurrency exchange opened a division in the US and added the Fiat currency – the dollar-to the listing. Users of the platform can already make deposits in us dollars and withdraw funds in Fiat. USD is available in trading pairs with bitcoin, bitcoin cash, litecoin, ethereum and ethereum classic.
https://www.coindesk.com/okcoin-exchange-launches-in-us-offering-fiat-to-crypto-trading/

The Byteball project launches airdrop of its tokens for participants of the decentralized social network Steemit. More than a million Steemit users will be able to get Byteball tokens. The whole process will go through the so-called Steem attestation.
https://medium.com/byteball/introducing-a-bridge-between-byteball-and-steem-and-an-airdrop-548d7958b9e9

The Bitcoin Rise Is Huge, Finds Bank Of Canada

The Bank of Canada (Banque Du Canada) have published a report off the back of a two-year study into Bitcoin in Canada. The report, named ‘Bitcoin Awareness and Usage in Canada: An Update’ by Christopher S. Henry, Kim P. Huynh and Gradon Nicholls explores the growth Bitcoin has seen in Canada and looks towards future prospects for the currency in the country.

https://cryptodaily.co.uk/2018/07/the-bitcoin-rise-is-huge-finds-bank-of-canada/

"Leading a blockchain-companies Nebulas and Egretia, a pioneer in the gaming industry on the blockchain, have agreed on strategic cooperation, with particular emphasis on the creation of games on the blockchain".
https://medium.com/egretia/egretia-cooperates-with-nebulas-to-promote-the-blockchain-ecosystem-54e061c57065

Death Threats Allegedly Force John McAfee to Cancel Conference Appearance
A cryptocurrency conference has asked controversial industry personality John McAfee to cancel his live appearance at the event, citing “a number of credible death threats” against the cybersecurity pioneer.

According to statements posted on Twitter, McAfee was scheduled to speak in-person at the Blockchain World Conference this morning but was asked by the event organizers to appear via live stream instead due to concerns over the safety of attendees.

The conference tweeted:

“Due to a number of credible death threats against McAfee, The BWC team has been forced to request that @officialmcafee live stream his keynote speech at 11am EST, from a secret secure location. Mr. McAfee’s globally impacting message will not be silenced by the efforts of a few!”
https://www.ccn.com/death-threats-allegedly-force-john-mcafee-to-cancel-conference-appearance/

Cryptocurrency Prices Soar on News Coinbase Is ‘Exploring’ Adding Five New Assets
https://www.ccn.com/cryptocurrency-prices-soar-on-news-coinbase-is-exploring-adding-five-new-assets/

"Users of the Poloniex exchange were able to conduct trading operations after the API key was generated on the exchange's website through the official mobile application released for Android and iOS".
https://medium.com/circle-blog/announcing-the-official-poloniex-mobile-app-3114880449e1
https://twitter.com/Poloniex/status/1017869226030313472

"The Coinbase exchange announced the beginning of the process of studying for the possible addition to its list of the following cryptocurrencies":
https://twitter.com/coinbase/status/1017863343288115200
Cardano (ADA)
Basic Attention Token (BAT)
Stellar Lumens (XLM)
Zcash for (ZEC)
0x (ZRX)
The above coins will require additional research and the exchange cannot guarantee that they will be available for trading.

Tezos Is Giving Away Grant Money to Crypto Developers

A few short weeks after the beta version of its mainnet went live, Tezos is looking to encourage its community to begin developing on its platform.

The Tezos Foundation announced a new grant-making process Friday, saying it will hold a formal call for proposals in August. In a press release, the foundation explained that it has three initial targeting key areas: research that will extend the Tezos protocol, development of tools that will support Tezos and resolutions to grow the Tezos community.

https://www.coindesk.com/tezos-is-giving-away-grant-money-to-crypto-developers/

Why Regulators Will Give Crypto a Green Light

an Villaverde is an econometrician and mathematician devoted to the analysis of cryptocurrencies since 2012. He leads the Weiss Ratings team of analysts and computer programmers who created Weiss cryptocurrency ratings.

https://cryptonews.com/exclusives/why-regulators-will-give-crypto-a-green-light-2242.htm