Digital Currencies incl NFT etc. 01; (Feb 14 - Apr 21)

[winston]

Remain vigilant of cyber attacks, Bitcoin users warned

Network security expert Assoc Prof Dr Zuriati says Bitcoin accounts can be hacked by third parties using highly capable quantum computers.

SERDANG: Following the recent “WannaCry” ransomware cyber attacks which blackmailed computer users worldwide, those dealing in digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, need to be more vigilant and keep their accounts secure as such transaction systems are open to the risk of cyber security threats.

Network security expert Assoc Prof Dr Zuriati Ahmad Zukarnain said although Bitcoin operates using two key types – public and private – to make transactions, however, the private key could be hacked by third parties using highly capable quantum computers.

“Quantum computers are able to create a ‘large factorisation’ and can detect the public and private keys used in Bitcoin transactions.

“The threat is when the ‘private key’ is sniffed by third parties, they are free to make transactions using a hacked account as the ‘private key’ proves the ownership of a Bitcoin address (used to send and receive the currency),” she said when met at her office.

Last month, the “WannaCry” ransomware had affected hundreds of thousands of users worldwide, locking access to the files on their computer, and then requesting Bitcoin payments to unlock them.

Zuriati said the Bitcoin’s private key was used to keep safe the Blockchain, a public digital database which keeps records on all bitcoin transactions.

The lecturer from Universiti Putra Malaysia’s Department of Communication Technology and Networking said if a third party managed to hack the private key, they could have access to the value of Bitcoin in a hacked account.

She said studies showed that the use of digital currency had become popular in Malaysia as payment transactions were more convenient than using credit cards, besides being secure, fast and cheap.

In an effort to enhance the safety of Bitcoin, Zuriati said the Russian Quantum Centre had suggested that each account’s blockchain should be coupled with Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) and “post-quantum cryptography”.

In this way, she said the “peer-network” architecture used in Bitcoin system would be more secure, thus preventing the private key from being stolen by third parties.

The Bitcoin currency was created by a computer expert using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, and it operates independently of any central bank, allowing free transfers by electronic means without middlemen.

While the value of a currency is typically backed with gold or silver, Bitcoin is backed with mathematical calculations.

The currency has become popular because central banks of countries cannot control a person’s financial affairs, and it has become one of the preferred mode of transactions for small businesses.

Source: Bernama

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/catego ... rs-warned/

[behappyalways]

Bitcoin bulls runs wild as cryptocurrency surges above $3000
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/11/bitcoin- ... -3000.html

[winston]

Bitcoin price triples since start of year to break through US$3,OOO

Source: The Star

http://www.thestar.com.my/business/busi ... Xhi1fYS.99

[winston]

Dear All,

If you are trading Bitcoins in Singapore, be aware that there are some problems at Xfers, the appointed agent for Coinbase.

The following are the complaints against Xfers on their Facebook account in Singapore:-
https://www.facebook.com/Xfers.io/

Supposedly, some people have sold their bitcoins but Xfers have not been crediting their money on time.

Take care,
Winston

[winston]

not vested anymore

Singapore Central Bank Uses Ethereum to Digitalize National Currency

By Diana Ngo

Source: Coin Journal

https://coinjournal.net/singapore-centr ... -currency/

[winston]

not vested anymore

Bitcoin continues to steal the headlines, but this time for the wrong reasons.

The digital currency had a bad day on Monday U.S. time, falling around 11% as some bitcoin exchanges experienced technical issues. CNBC has all the details:

The Coinbase exchange said Monday in a statement on the exchange's status website dated 2:08 p.m. ET that, "Coinbase is currently experiencing high traffic & customers have receive(d) a 'service unavailable' message when visiting Coinbase.com."

Coinbase accounts for nearly 17 percent of U.S. dollar-denominated bitcoin trade volume, according to Cryptocompare, and had reported outages in late May amid "unprecedented traffic and trading."

Another exchange, BTC-e tweeted at 2:06 p.m., ET, that it was hit by distributed denial-of-service attacks, or DDoS.

BTC-e's website was back online as of 4:01 p.m., after giving an error message earlier in the afternoon around 2:26 p.m. The exchange accounts for about 6 percent of U.S. dollar-denominated bitcoin trade, according to Cryptocompare.

Source: Barron's Asia

[winston]

not vested anymore

Bitcoin took a hammering earlier in the week when a couple of exchanges were hit by cyberattacks. Well, there was another attack overnight.

CNBC has the details:

Bitfinex, the largest U.S. dollar-based bitcoin exchange, said on its status website Wednesday morning that its platform was under distributed denial-of-service attacks, or DDoS, that attempts to paralyze a system with a flood of information.

The attack followed a similar one reported Tuesday morning. That problem was resolved within an hour, and the exchange said Wednesday that despite the "ongoing attack," "Most users will be able to use the platform normally though."

The news followed smaller BTC-e exchange's tweet Monday of a similar attack on its systems that afternoon, when its website also temporarily went down. By Wednesday morning, BTC-e had deleted the tweet and its website showed trades going through.

Source: Barron's Asia

[behappyalways]

Getting High on Cryptocurrencies
https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articl ... tle-absurd

[winston]

Rickards: Bitcoin vs. Gold

The cryptocurrency craze continues with the leading virtual currency — Bitcoin — trading near record highs. But, to bestselling author and currency expert Jim Rickards, the new age currency may be in a bubble.

Delving into the theory of valuation, the Currency Wars author said that even if investors seem to be expressing a liquidity preference for Bitcoin over the dollar, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are losing confidence in the greenback.

“If you were losing confidence in the dollar than gold would be going up and it’s not, so it looks like a bubble,” he told Kitco News.

He added that investors should not worry that virtual currencies take over the U.S. dollar’s reserve currency status any time soon because the market is just too small.

Another facet that investors may be ignoring, Rickards continued, is that investors racking up substantial gains from crypto investments might not be properly filing their taxes.

“The IRS could subpoena one of these [cryptocurrency] exchanges and freeze up all the bitcoin,” he said. “The IRS did this with Americans with Swiss bank accounts, they’ll do it with bitcoin.

Source: Kitco News

http://thecrux.com/rickards-bitcoin-vs-gold/

[winston]

Rickards: Bitcoin vs. Gold

The cryptocurrency craze continues with the leading virtual currency — Bitcoin — trading near record highs. But, to bestselling author and currency expert Jim Rickards, the new age currency may be in a bubble.

Delving into the theory of valuation, the Currency Wars author said that even if investors seem to be expressing a liquidity preference for Bitcoin over the dollar, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are losing confidence in the greenback.

“If you were losing confidence in the dollar than gold would be going up and it’s not, so it looks like a bubble,” he told Kitco News.

He added that investors should not worry that virtual currencies take over the U.S. dollar’s reserve currency status any time soon because the market is just too small.

Another facet that investors may be ignoring, Rickards continued, is that investors racking up substantial gains from crypto investments might not be properly filing their taxes.

“The IRS could subpoena one of these [cryptocurrency] exchanges and freeze up all the bitcoin,” he said. “The IRS did this with Americans with Swiss bank accounts, they’ll do it with bitcoin.

Source: Kitco News

http://thecrux.com/rickards-bitcoin-vs-gold/