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While many traditional financial institutions hesitate to embrace cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, a recent news report suggests that Fidelity Investments, the fourth largest U.S. asset manager, is looking to enter the fray. Business Insider reported last week that Fidelity has posted internal job listings for systems engineers “to help engineer, create, and deploy a digital…

In the decades that followed the enactment of the Homestead Act of 1862, more than 1.6 million U.S. citizens and intended citizens filed applications with the U.S. government to lay claim to 160 acres of land guaranteed to each applicant willing to settle, farm and improve the lands.

Settlers quickly encountered a major problem. The…

As numerous states propose and enact legislation focused on blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, in 2018, no state has been more aggressive in this space than Wyoming. In March, the state legislature passed several bills impacting cryptocurrency businesses, each of which is designed to position Wyoming as a blockchain-friendly environment for businesses.

  • B. 0019: This bill

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Lazarus, the well-known hacking group responsible for the WannaCry ransomware attack from last year, as well as the attack on the Bangladesh Central Bank and Sony, is now targeting global financial firms and Bitcoin adopters with a phishing campaign dubbed “HaoBao.”

The phishing campaign was discovered by McAfee Labs in mid-January. The way it works…

As previously reported, state legislatures throughout the country continue to propose legislation designed to facilitate the use of blockchain-based technology by businesses within their states. In recent weeks, legislatures in Florida and Nebraska have each proposed laws streamlining the transaction of business electronically and through use of distributed ledgers on blockchain applications. In Arizona, the…

Researchers at cybersecurity firm AlienVault have discovered a computer virus of North Korean origin which infects and hijacks computers in order to mine Monero, a private digital currency which styles itself as “secure, private and untraceable.” Cryptocurrency mining is the resource-intensive process by which computers or “miners” running specific software verify cryptocurrency transactions. In exchange for their computing power, miners are given small amounts of cryptocurrency. In the case of North Korean’s Monero malware, the virus installs mining software on infected computers unbeknownst to their owners or users. The software then secretly mines Monero and sends mining rewards back to a server located at Kim II Sung University in Pyongyang. Researchers are unsure how many computers may be affected.
Continue Reading Another Hitch in the Crypto Boom? North Korean Malware Hijacks Computers to Mine Monero Cryptocurrency

In the latest example of security risks attendant to initial coin offerings (ICOs), on August 21st the blockchain startup Enigma reported that online scammers used fake solicitations for an ICO presale to steal approximately $500,000 in ether (a virtual currency) from investors.

Enigma is a blockchain startup incubated at MIT Media Lab that is in the process of rolling out its first product, known as Catalyst. Catalyst is described as a platform providing data sets and developmental tools specifically geared for hedge funds focused on cryptocurrency markets. Enigma’s funding was to be derived, in part, from a planned a token sale on September 11, 2017, with a goal of raising $20 million worth of ether.  
Continue Reading Scammers Strike Enigma Initial Coin Offering