Every part of this infrastructure has the potential to be the focal point of an attack, including wallet software, exchange platforms, the blockchain algorithms underpinning the currency itself, and the people who use it. dollar) is underpinned by a vast administrative and legal framework, cryptocurrency requires an enormous infrastructure to work socially. In the same way that fiat currency (like the U.S. Some of the same principles and tools that draw people to cryptocurrency can work to the advantage of attackers, and the field has more than its share of scammers. The cryptocurrency ethos, which espouses deep personal privacy, anonymity (or at least pseudonymity), and autonomy, can be both a helps and a hindrance to security.
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By contrast, cryptocurrency is essentially cash, so it is much more liquid. Many digital thefts leave the attacker with illiquid assets-that is, something that still needs to be converted into money. 4 Why Is Cryptocurrency Such an Appealing Target?Ī variety of factors contribute to the appeal of cryptocurrency as a target for malicious actors. There is also growing evidence that the DPRK is using the pseudonymous nature of blockchain transactions to launder money and operate clandestine global financial operations. Of that $2 billion, about $600 million came from attacks on cryptocurrency exchanges and users. Over the last few years, Pyongyang has amassed roughly $2 billion in foreign and virtual currency, using cyberattacks and blockchain technology to circumvent economic sanctions. However, new evidence from a panel of experts reporting to the United Nations Security Council provides a better sense of the scope of the threat. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is already a known threat in the cryptocurrency space. It is less centralized than if Facebook were running the entire show, but more centralized than other cryptocurrencies, making it sort of a corporate oligarchy rather than either a nation-state fiat currency or a completely decentralized, community-run currency. Members of the association will have votes on the future of the currency, placing Libra in a sort of middle position in terms of decentralization.
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This association, which is the other unique aspect of the Libra currency, will be composed of a number of organizations from different industries, including tech, finance, and consumer goods and services. Instead, its value will be guaranteed by a basket of deposits that will be diversified across several different currency markets, which are brought to the table by the Libra Association. However, it will not be pinned to the value of an existing fiat currency like the USD or Euro. The Libra currency is a type of stablecoin that is, its value will not fluctuate significantly the way that, for instance, bitcoin does. While Facebook’s offering is technologically similar to existing cryptocurrencies, there are some differences with respect to governance that could make Libra different for both attackers and users.
![hack blockchain wallet hack blockchain wallet](https://www.cryptotelegraph.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/1581555163_maxresdefault-1140x570.jpg)
One obvious, recent change in the cryptocurrency scene came with Facebook’s long-anticipated announcement that it is bringing a cryptocurrency to market in 2020. 3 A Whale of a (Potentially) Different Color 2 Cryptocurrency security consultants Ciphertrace noted that in the first half of 2019, attacks against cryptocurrency exchanges and infrastructure passed $480 million, making 2019 look like another banner year for cryptocurrency attacks.
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The remaining attacks were primarily aimed at businesses (21%), users (14%), and government (7%). According to endpoint security provider Carbon Black, $1.1 billion in cryptocurrency was stolen in the first half of 2018 alone, with exchanges comprising 27% of attacks. Attackers aren’t just cryptojacking and targeting exchanges. 1 Cryptocurrency theft is growing both in terms of frequency of attacks and breadth of targets. Ten months ago we asked a rhetorical question: will losses from cryptocurrency exchange hacks hit one billion dollars in 2018? Indeed, they did.