Monthly Archives: December 2014

MtGox Bankruptcy Trustee Answers Some Questions

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MtGox and Bankruptcy Trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi have answered some questions put to them by creditors at the second creditors meeting held on November 26th 2014.

In short:

  • Proof of claims will be accepted beginning April 2015.
  • Payments to TIBANNE have been reduced where possible.
  • Financial reports for MtGox's first and second fiscal year have been released but it's not known if they are accurate.
  • Bitcoin addresses will continue to be withheld.

Below is the English text from the predominately Japanese document.

Continue reading →

Too Many People Pay Ransomware Demands

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A recent report by ESET security suggests that the TorrentLocker ransomware enjoys a 1.44% rate of success in converting victims into ransom payments. This discouraging figure suggest that there are still far too many people subsidizing this phenomenon. As noted in the guide to protecting yourself from ransomware, paying ransoms only encourages the continuation of this activity. Don't be like the Sheriff's department that admits it paid to subsidize criminal activity.

Spanish CyberSquat Raided in 'Counter-Terrorism' Operation

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There are report that Kasa de la Muntanya has been raided by Spanish police for its connections to Anarchist activity in an operation that has been described as being "Counter-Terrorism" in nature. At least 11 people have been arrested. Kasa de la Muntanya had in the past been profiled by the BBC as being a 'Cyber Squat' and has been described by Julia Tourianski on Twitter as a place that housed several families. An online profile describes Kasa de la Muntanya as a social center which has been occupied since 1989. Continue reading →

CFTC Requests Public Comment LedgerX

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The CFTC, known for stating but never demonstrating its authority over Bitcoin, is asking for public comment on related applications submitted by LedgerX in its attempt to register as a swap execution facility and a derivatives clearing organisation. Comments must be submitted on or before January 30th 2015.

LedgerX, who's investors include Google Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Crypto Currency Partners and Eric Kagan, hopes to list physically settled digital currency option contracts in 2015.

Public comments are available to read and submit here.

OphionLocker, Latest Ransomware Which Is Spread Via Ad Networks

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F-Secure reports that a new piece of ransomware named OphionLocker is being distributed via ad networks. First spotted by Trojan7Malware, OphionLocker encrypts a user's files before demanding a ransom of 1 BTC and directing them to smu743glzfrxsqcl.onion via tor2web.org for further instructions.

Once infected, OphionLocker prompts users with a warning which states: Continue reading →

The Antidote to Ransomware: Prevention

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The threat of ransomware as the dominant means by much malware peddlers can extract a quick profit has slowly been growing ever since Bitcoin surpassed the per ounce price of silver in early 2013. Seeing as ransomware has become such a main stream phenomenon that it has reached a New York Post advice column it's high time Qntra has offered some advice on avoiding the pains that ransomware can inflict. Here's a few measures you can take: Continue reading →

Butterfly Labs Allowed to Reopen

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The Kansas City Business Journal is reporting that the judge in the Federal Trade Commission's case is allowing Butterfly Labs to continue business operations under court supervision. From the court order of Judge Brian Wimes:

"Plaintiff fails to show any continuing violation of the alleged misconduct. Plaintiff argues defendants' past conduct suggests they are likely to return to this business model and related representations in the future. But, as previously discussed, the court disagrees."

Butterfly Labs will be required to submit monthly reports to the court outlining progress in shipping products, processing refunds, and improving corporate governance. Other litigation against Butterfly Labs continues including cases in both Missouri and Kansas.

Vice Fingers Alleged Silk Road 2.0 Mole Account

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Vice Motherboard is alleging that the account used by the FBI inflitrator into the Silk Road 2.0 was named 'Cirrus', and that the user had notably at one point been a staff member of the original Silk Road. This conclusion was reached through a process of elimination. Vice also reports that some people involved in Darknet markets had suspicions about this user for some time.