CIPHERTRACE GLOBAL ALERT: New Phishing Attack Claims to Have Webcam Video of Victims Performing Embarrassing Act – Asks for Ransom in Bitcoin Global Alert, December 11, 2019: In early December 2019, CipherTrace researchers received multiple reports of a new strain of phishing extortion. These “sextortion” emails attempt to fool recipients into believing that the scammer…
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At the core of a growing opioid crisis is the deadliest drug in the US—Fentanyl. According to Canada’s RCMP and the US DEA, the lethal dose for pure Fentanyl is estimated at 2 milligrams (mgs) for a typical adult. To put that in perspective, first responders need to take caution responding to overdoses involving Fentanyl…
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Two key regulatory bodies recently rocked the foundation of the crypto economy with new guidance that will have major impacts on exchanges and other virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The global anti-money laundering watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), recently updated guidance that includes a “Funds Travel Rule.” In short, the new rule…
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SANCTIONS UPDATE: On August 21, 2019, the following individuals and their associated digital currency addresses have been added to OFAC’s SDN List under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. YAN, Xiaobing (Chinese Traditional: 顏曉兵; Chinese Simplified: 颜晓兵) (a.k.a. “YAN, Steven”; a.k.a. “ZHOU, William”), Wuhan, Hubei, China (Chinese Simplified: 武汉市, 湖北省, China; Chinese Traditional: 武漢市, 湖北省, China); DOB…
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Since its inception in 2015, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS) BitLicense has been a source of controversy and debate. Most regulators regard the BitLicense controls as reasonable measures to reduce the inherent risks in transmitting and holding custody of cryptocurrency. However, opponents of the BitLicense see it as expensive, intrusive, and unjustly targeting…
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The recent hack of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, highlights the need for heightened security in the crypto space. In what Wired reported as “a ‘large-scale security breach,’ hackers stole not only 7,000 bitcoin—equivalent to over $40 million ($56 million at the time of this writing, just one week later)—but also some user two-factor…
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In October 2018, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) amended its Recommendation to clarify how the FATF standards apply to activities or operations involving virtual assets. Recently, FATF asked for consultation comments with regards to a draft “Interpretive Note to Recommendation 15.” Explaining the need for revision, the FATF said: “Recognising the need to adequately…
Read more In light of recent events regarding the acquisition of blockchain analytics company Neutrino, CipherTrace wants to make our position about privacy and confidentiality clear. CipherTrace has received numerous inquiries from the media and customers regarding our privacy policies. On February 19, Coinbase acquired a blockchain analytics company, Neutrino. Neutrino was founded by executives from the…
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This analysis by CipherTrace looks at Iran’s proposed Crypto-Rial sovereign virtual currency. We conclude that such a currency and the regulations that Iran is proposing, will in fact, result in a flourishing cryptocurrency — i.e., one that benefits the regime through increased surveillance, taxation, access to global financial markets, and evasion of sanctions. The reasoning…
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