Bitfinex Hacker Revealed: Lichtenstein Admits Theft of Billions of Dollars in Bitcoin

Marina Meza
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Bitfinex Hacker Revealed: Lichtenstein Admits Theft of Billions of Dollars in Bitcoin

Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded guilty in an agreement to laundering funds from the Bitfinex hack in 2016, has admitted that he was the real hacker. Lichtenstein and his wife converted some of the stolen assets into gold coins, which they later buried. The couple faces up to 20 years in prison and has agreed to forfeit the proceeds of the nearly 120,000 stolen Bitcoin.

The story of “the Bonnie and Clyde” of the crypto world seems to be coming to an end, since in a turn of events, one of them recognized that he was responsible for the hack perpetrated against Bitfinex in 2016.

The revelations came at a hearing held on August 3 before the Federal District Court in Washington, DC, where Ilya Lichtenstein, 35, and his wife Heather Morgan, 32, appeared before Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. in separate hearings, both accepting the charges brought by the prosecution related to the laundering of millions of dollars in Bitcoin stolen from the aforementioned exchange.

Although it has long been suspected that Lichtenstein or his wife, Heather Morgan, were responsible for stealing 120,900 Bitcoin, it has only been confirmed so far.

Lichtenstein Admitted to Being the Hacker Responsible for the Attack

At the hearing, Lichtenstein surprised those present by revealing himself as the hacker responsible for the attack perpetrated against Bitfinex in 2016, this despite the fact that the prosecution did not accuse him of said crime in the initial accusations.

By the time the couple were arrested, Assistant General Attorney Lisa O. Monaco said in a press release that it was the department’s largest cryptocurrency seizure, declaring that “cryptocurrency is not a safe haven for criminals.”

During the court hearing, the Bitfinex hacker also admitted that he and his wife turned part of the stolen cryptocurrency assets into gold coins that were buried. According to the CNBC hearing account, Lichtenstein flew to Ukraine and Kazakhstan to convert the cryptocurrencies into cash before depositing the funds into a US bank account.

The facts acknowledged by Lichtenstein and Morgan led many analysts to believe that the couple did not appear to be related to the hack as such, but simply part of the process to legitimize the funds, especially given that the value of those assets increased markedly over time.

Morgan Revealed More Details

In relation to Morgan, during her hearing, she offered more details about the crimes committed by the couple. Among the details revealed by Morgan, she claimed that she was aware that her husband paid rent and other bills with cryptocurrencies since 2014, but she was fully aware of the funds derived from the Bitfinex hack in early 2020.

Instead of informing the authorities, the accused became actively involved in practices to legitimize said capital, among which she highlighted memorizing part of the seed code of a Monero wallet, hiding gold coins, creating a shell company, and facilitating B2B commercial operations.

Although at the moment there is no date for a sentence for those involved, reports on the case indicate that both Morgan and Lichtenstein face maximum sentences of five years in prison, a figure considerably less than the 20 years originally contemplated, all thanks to the agreement. that they achieved with the authorities.

By Marina Meza

How Can LatAm’s First Stablecoin Spark a Crypto Battle?

Audy Castañeda
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How Can LatAm’s First Stablecoin Spark a Crypto Battle?

The Argentine cryptocurrency company Ripio announced that it has launched what is considered the first Latin American stablecoin, called “Cryptodollar”. What are the implications?

The emerging stablecoin business is accelerating in Latin America as the adoption of these crypto assets, whose main characteristic is fiat currency parity, gains ground in the region, amid the regulatory gaps that still weigh on most markets.

The Argentine cryptocurrency company Ripio announced that it has launched what is considered the first Latin American stablecoin, known as “Cryptodollar”.

As reported by Bloomberg, this stablecoin will trade under the UXD and will maintain a 1:1 parity with the dollar. This announcement marks a milestone for the Latin American crypto business, since with this development, the race in Latin America for the adoption of both locally issued stablecoins as well as their own Blockchain infrastructure is formally launched.

Experts Discuss Ripio

Ripio, with more than 8 million users and some 350 employees in Latin America and Spain, will be supported on the native LaChain network for the operation of UXD. The company hopes to open local offices in Uruguay and Colombia within the framework of this competition.

It is estimated that the market capitalization of the main stablecoins currently reaches $125.14 billion globally, with Tether(USDT), USD Coin, Dai, among others, with the highest contribution.

The director of the TicTank of the Universidad del Rosario, Erick Rincón Cárdenas, comments that the movements in the business of stablecoins may set off the alarm bells of the Latin American central banks, “With the substitution of activities of the monitored financial system and they will seek to restrict the course of some operations, such as foreign exchange.”

“This will also measure the pulse of the supervisory entities so that they begin to regulate, either for the better or for the worse of the industry.

These scenarios could occur to the extent that the stablecoin paper is published and the capacity of the currency is measured to show if there are risks of threatening financial stability, an insistent theme of central banks, whose position is reactive and resistant in terms of cryptoactive operations,” said the analyst in conversation with Bloomberg en Línea.

Camilo Rodríguez, an investment advisor in crypto assets at CR Academia, indicates that one of the differentiations of UXD is “the number of payment gateways and ramps, both cash and bank transfers, to the Ripio company.”

Stable Currencies in Latin America: Ripio and its UXD

Rodríguez particularly highlights that Latin America is going to have its own chain of blocks for emerging markets, using the UXD as a transactional medium.

“It is not a decentralized Blockchain; However, the commercial use that this can have is quite large and clearly gives a start and a foot towards a Latin American market that, if unified in a single ecosystem, can unseat international Blockchains and give Latin America a bit of prominence,” said the specialist.

Regarding LaChain, he highlights that it is based on the technology under which Polygon is supported, but in this case under its own infrastructure, with its own nodes and transaction validators.

Mauricio Tovar Gutiérrez, co-director of the InTIColombia research group at the National University of Colombia and co-founder of Tropykus, told this medium that differentiation will be key for UXD in an environment in which other competitors already have “very strong network economies and people He already recognizes them.”

By Audy Castaneda

MicroStrategy Co-Founder Reiterates Attractive Bitcoin Exposure Will Continue and other Flash News

Audy Castañeda
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MicroStrategy Co-Founder Reiterates Attractive Bitcoin Exposure Will Continue and other Flash News

Co-founder of MicroStrategy has reiterated his belief that his company will remain attractive to investors interested in Bitcoin.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Michael Saylor, co-founder of MicroStrategy, reiterated his confidence that his company will continue to be an attractive option for investors seeking exposure to Bitcoin.

He also emphasized that MicroStrategy will remain “differentiated as a particular Bitcoin operating strategy,” even with the advent of spot ETFs.

The bitcoin price has risen 145% since the firm began its buyout strategy in August 2020, he said, adding that his firm uses leveraged investing to generate returns that are passed on to shareholders.

“We are able to take advantage of the leverage because we are an operating company, something that an ETF couldn’t do, so we see it as beneficial to the entire ecosystem.”

On the other hand, Saylor said that spot bitcoin ETFs would allow large hedge funds and sovereigns to enter the space with billions of dollars. “We are a unique instrument; we are the sports car, while the spot ETF is going to be the supertanker.”

“Spot ETFs will serve another set of clients synergistically to grow the entire asset class,” he added in the earnings report.

On August 2, analysts raised the odds of approval for the spot bitcoin ETF in the United States to 65%. Saylor confirmed that the goal is to “accumulate as much BTC as we can” when asked how much his current holdings of 152,800 BTC will increase in the coming quarters.

He also confirmed that the company intends to sell up to $750 million worth of Class A common shares, according to a recent SEC filing, adding that the primary use of the proceeds “generally is just to acquire bitcoin.”

Goldman Sachs Predicts AI Will Overtake the Financial Impact of Electricity and Personal Computers on the US Economy

According to Goldman Sachs economists, AI could have a financial impact. Even bigger in the US economy than electricity and personal computers.

In a recently published investment report, economists Joseph Briggs and Devesh Kodnani forecast that AI could attract up to $200 billion in global investment by 2025, with about half of that going to the United States. This will significantly boost the US gross domestic product.

In the past, technological advances like electricity and personal computers fueled GDP growth of around 2%. Economists at Goldman Sachs estimate that AI could account for as much as 4% of GDP in the United States, as well as 2.5% in other countries that have already begun to invest considerably in this technology.

Worldcoin, the Cryptocurrency from the Creator of OpenAI, Will Open Its Security Technology to Other Organizations

Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency founded by Sam Altman, creator of OpenAI, has ambitious plans to expand globally. According to project leaders interviewed by Reuters, Worldcoin will allow other companies and governments to access and use its advanced iris scanning and identity verification technology.

Currently, to obtain a digital ID on Worldcoin, users must provide iris scans. Additionally, the cryptocurrency has been giving away tokens to those who undergo the scanning process. This unique method has been implemented at registration sites around the world, where people have been scanning their irises using a glowing spherical orb.

By Audy Castaneda

Tether Bought 1,529 Bitcoin (BTC) in Q2 2023

Audy Castañeda
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Tether Bought 1,529 Bitcoin (BTC) in Q2 2023

The company paid approximately $45.4 million for the bitcoin, at an average price of $26,692 per bitcoin. Tether’s purchase of bitcoin is part of its plan to allocate up to 15% of its quarterly earnings to bitcoin, with the possible launch of a bitcoin spot ETF.

On August 3, Tether, the company behind the stablecoin USDT, revealed that it bought 1,529 bitcoin (BTC) in the second quarter of 2023.

The firm confirmed the purchase in a statement, saying it paid approximately $45.4 million to add the BTC to its balance sheet. That amount implies that they bought it at an average price of 26,692 USD per BTC.

Part of the Tether Investment Plan in BTC for 2023

The acquisition is part of Tether’s strategy to allocate up to 15% of quarterly earnings to Bitcoin. The company announced this plan in May and it is seen as a way to further diversify Tether’s reserves. The company’s CTO, Paolo Ardoino, has maintained a fairly positive stance on Bitcoin’s price appreciation over the next few years.

This is the second quarter where Tether adds a position in bitcoin (BTC) to its reserves. In the first quarter, they did not give information on the exact amount of bitcoin purchased, but they assured that it represented 2% of Tether’s reserves. In that quarter they reported 2.44 billion dollars in reserves, so that 2% would be approximately$ 49 million’s worth of BTC.

With these moves, it seems that Tether plans to apply the same bitcoin buying strategy as MicroStrategy, which, at the beginning of August, bought about 467 BTC, increasing its bitcoin reserves by more than 150 thousand BTC.

Tether Reports $1 Billion Earnings in Q2

At the end of July, Tether published its quarterly report on the reserves that the company manages and with which it supports USDT. In such a report, it is highlighted that most of the reserves are in United States treasury bonds, cash, and other similar financial instruments.

They emphasize that the company managed to collect profits in operations for more than $1 billion. Comparing the earnings with the previous quarter, it implies an increase of 30%, a remarkable gain considering that the industry is in a crypto winter.

These positive numbers, on the part of Tether, give more confidence to the USDT stablecoin. The stablecoin market is dominated by Tether for a reason. USDT’s dominance is 68% based on its market cap, followed by Circle’s USDC at 21% across all participating chains.

Bitcoin (BTC) Purchases by Tether Happen at the Right Time

This new Bitcoin purchase by Tether comes at a time when institutional interest in Bitcoin is growing. In June, the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock, filed an application for a Bitcoin spot ETF.

Many other asset managers have also filed applications for bitcoin spot ETFs, and the SEC is expected to make a decision on these applications in the coming months.

Approving a Bitcoin spot ETF in the United States would be a huge boost for the Bitcoin market. It would make it easier for institutional investors to buy and sell Bitcoin, and would likely lead to increased demand for it.

The purchase of bitcoin by Tether and institutional investors is a positive development for the bitcoin market. It shows growing confidence in the first cryptocurrency, which could lead to further price appreciation.

By Audy Castaneda

Worldcoin Will Allow Companies and Governments to Use its Identification System

Marina Meza
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Worldcoin Will Allow Companies and Governments to Use its Identification System

According to Worldcoin executives, the ultimate goal is to create the largest database of authentic human beings. At registration sites around the world, people have been scanning the iris of their eyes with a glowing spherical “orb.” OpenAI creator’s cryptocurrency raised $115 million from venture capital investors.

Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency from the creator of OpenAI, will expand its operations to register more users around the world. Its leaders assured that it will allow other organizations to use its security technology.

Since its inception, Worldcoin has given a lot to talk about, as it is the cryptocurrency of the creator of OpenAI, Sam Altman. Project leaders spoke to Reuters and said they will allow other organizations to use their iris scanning, as well as identity verification technology.

OpenAI Creator’s Cryptocurrency Seeks to Expand around the World

According to the Reuters report, the idea is that companies or governments can access and use the Worldcoin digital identity system.

The cryptocurrency currently requires users to hand over their iris scans in exchange for a digital ID. They have also been giving away their free cryptocurrencies to those who come to the process. At registration sites around the world, people have been scanning the iris of their eyes with a glowing spherical “orb.”

For Ricardo Macieira, general manager for Europe at Tools for Humanity, the San Francisco and Berlin-based company behind the project, the ultimate goal is to create the “largest database of authentic human beings.” Therefore, they assure that they intend to have a registry free of bots and without the possibility of false identities.

“We are on this mission to build the largest financial and identity community that we can”

According to Macieira, Worldcoin will continue to implement operations in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and “in all parts of the world that accept us.”

Though the project’s co-founder, Sam Altman, has countered those claims with posts on X showing a video of people lining up for the iris scanner. Macieira says that in the future the orbs will be even more focused on the community.

Worldcoin’s Exponential Growth

Worldcoin has seen significant interest, crossing 2 million digital ID registrations with around 40,000 daily registrations. The OpenAI creator’s cryptocurrency raised $115 million from venture capital investors including Blockchain Capital, a16z crypto, Bain Capital Crypto, and Distributed Global in a funding round in May.

However, the foregoing has generated some criticism, because some express concern about the subsequent use that may be given to said biometric data.

Worldcoin has an important justification for its security methods. The Worldcoin website mentions several possible applications, including distinguishing humans from Artificial Intelligence, enabling “global democratic processes”. In addition to showing a “potential path” toward universal basic income.

Worldcoin under Scrutiny

Worldcoin’s data collection methods have already come under scrutiny from regulators around the world.

France’s privacy watchdog has already stated that it considers them “questionable,” while German regulators launched an investigation into Worldcoin’s operations in 2022. UK regulators are also considering opening an investigation into the company. Furthermore, on August 2, the Kenyan Minister of Homeland Security announced that Worldcoin is not allowed to operate in the country.

However, the Worldcoin website claims that it is “completely private” and that users can choose to have their biometric data stored in encrypted form or to have it deleted.

By Marina Meza

Cybersecurity Firm Discovers a New Mac Security Threat on the Russian Dark Web

Audy Castañeda
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Cybersecurity Firm Discovers a New Mac Security Threat on the Russian Dark Web

Guardz CIR leveraged AI to discover dangerous Mac malware on the Dark Web, posing a potential threat to users’ privacy and security. HVNC malware found on the Russian cybercrime forum “Exploit” offers full control over victims’ Mac systems for $60,000. Cyber ​​surveillance is crucial. Collaboration between Guardz CIR and ChatGPT shows the importance of AI in modern cybersecurity research, helping to identify hidden threats.

Guardz Cyber ​​Intelligence Research (CIR), a leading cybersecurity company, recently used the power of AI to discover new security threats for Mac. Following their successful discovery of ShadowVault, the team turned to ChatGPT, a language model of AI, to scan the Dark Web for additional potential threats that await Mac users.

In a blog post, the Guardz CIR team described their decision to use AI, as well as their phishing protection service, to consult on potential Mac security threats on the Dark Web. ChatGPT’s initial response indicated that there was a chance to find other macOS cybersecurity threats on these hidden online forums. Motivated by this insight, investigators embarked on a deep dive into the cybercrime underworld to authenticate and further explore the clue.

Hidden Virtual Network Computing (HVNC) Malware Detection

Guardz CIR’s tenacious efforts paid off when they stumbled upon a malicious utility being sold on a Russian cybercrime forum called “Exploit”. Menacing dent software like Hidden Virtual Network Computing (HVNC) targets legitimate HVNC applications intended for remote computer control. This specific malware, however, takes advantage of HVNC functionalities to gain unauthorized access and full control over an unsuspecting victim’s Mac system, all without the user’s knowledge.

A Price Tag for Total Control

Sellers of the HVNC malware were selling their illicit wares for a staggering “$ 60,000-lifetime price.” The offer came with an additional “malicious capabilities” package that could be purchased for an additional $20,000. According to Guardz, this dangerous malware has been available for sale since April 2023.

Although the discovery of the HVNC malware has set off alarm bells within the cybersecurity community, no instances of its actual use have been reported. Guardz has not clarified if they tried to acquire the malware for further analysis, or if they simply detected its presence on the darknet.

Impact of Mac Security Threats

If HVNC malware falls into the wrong hands, it could have disastrous consequences for Mac users around the world. With the ability to gain unrestricted access to victim machines and operate remotely without detection, cybercriminals could exploit sensitive data, compromise privacy, and carry out further attacks against unsuspecting targets.

As macOS gains popularity, it becomes an increasingly attractive target for cybercriminals seeking to exploit vulnerabilities. Users and organizations should prioritize adopting security best practices, including regular updates, tron ​​password management, and reliable antivirus software.

The Role of AI in Cybersecurity Research

The successful collaboration between Guardz CIR and ChatGPT exemplifies the growing importance of AI in cybersecurity research. Harnessing the power of AI to analyze vast amounts of data and identify potential threats is proving to be a valuable tool for modern cybersecurity professionals.

The latest discovery of HVNC malware from Guardz Cyber ​​Intelligence Research highlights the pressing need for increased Mac security measures. With the increasing role of AI in threat detection and investigation, the future of cybersecurity looks bright in the face of these ever-evolving cyber threats.

By Audy Castaneda

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