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South Korea’s Leading Crypto Exchanges Aid Police in Hunting "Nth Rooms" Blackmail Porn Members

The four primary crypto exchanges in South Korea, namely Coinone, Korbit, Bithumb, and Upbit, have reportedly offered to help police investigate the sexual exploitation of underage girls in the “Nth Rooms” scandal that has sparked a national outcry.

Crypto exchanges table vital information

The sexual exploitation of underage school-going girls in South Korea has been happening for years in the “Nth Rooms” incident. Notably, they would be filmed undertaking violent self-harm and sexual acts, and the videos taken were made available via Telegram chat rooms after members made crypto payments.

It is reported that at least 10,000 people utilized these chatrooms after paying fees ranging from $200 to $1,200.

Following thorough investigations by the South Korean police, dozens of victims have been established as the videos usually presented the girls’ addresses and names. Currently, the police have identified 74 people, including 16 underage girls who were exploited.

Crypto exchanges seek to reveal crucial information about this scandal that has left people across the globe mouth agape because of the inhumanity rendered to underage girls. It is alleged that among the 10,000 members in the “Nth Rooms” were famous startup company CEOs, sports stars, popular artists, and professors.

The ringleader of the blackmails and chat rooms was revealed as 24-year-old Cho Ju-bin after at least 5 million South Koreans signed petitions to have him named.

Crypto exchanges heed the call

Following requests by the South Korean police for assistance, the four leading crypto exchanges in this nation seek to comply with this appeal by offering crucial information that will be instrumental in unraveling the culprits in the “Nth Rooms” scandal.

Earlier this month, the country’s national assembly amended the Act on Reporting and Use of Specific Financial Information, and this officiated the legalization of cryptocurrency trading and holding.

Once implemented, this law will be instrumental in averting crimes, such as the “Nth Rooms” scandal and money laundering given that crypto businesses, such as exchanges, wallet companies, and trusts, will be required to have a real-name verification partnership with an approved local bank. As a result, a verified person will be assigned a single bank account where he/she can deposit and withdraw fiat currency to and from an exchange.

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New Zealand Police Issues Warning Against “Nasty” Sextortion Blackmail Porn Scam Demanding Bitcoin Ransom

New Zealand police are warning about a new porn blackmail scam that is targeting residents who watch adult content videos in the country. The scam, which threatens to expose porn activities unless a Bitcoin ransom is paid, is moving and doing round. The fraudsters blackmail victims through their emails and threaten to expose their porn-viewing proclivities to the world if they do not pay up.

Senior Detective Sergeant Callum McNeill said that this is not the first time New Zealand residents have experienced such email extortion scams. He stated that such fraudulent activities have been steadily on the rise since 2018 in the country.

Scammers Prey on Victims

Waitemata police, (in Auckland, New Zealand), are investigating recent reports of the illegal extortion activities demanding victims to pay a ransom in Bitcoin. The police outline that the the fraudsters operate by sending an email to victims informing them that their computer system has been hacked, and a video has been taken through their webcam (screenshots) showing that they have been looking at pornographic sites. Then the fraudsters threaten to send the pornographic videos to friends and family of the victims unless they are paid NZ$1900 (US$1,150) in Bitcoin.

Police stated that the crypto blackmailers also claim to know victims’ passwords. In some cases, the scammers disclose passwords that victims have used in the past, which they have obtained through leaked online data hacks on the dark web through compromised credentials.

Police have advised residents who have received such ‘sextortion’ emails demanding a Bitcoin ransom to simply delete them. McNeill urged residents to regularly change passwords as frequent as possible, and it is especially vital to change the password if it has been listed by a fraudster in an email.

McNeil said: “We ask anyone who believes they are a victim of this scam and has transferred money to contact police by phoning 105.”

Beware of Crypto Scams

Cybercriminals continue to affect the crypto market adversely. Crypto scammers disguise themselves as trustworthy companies or third parties to trick victims into giving away sensitive information, which could be used to gain access to their accounts and devices to steal their money. It is vital for general consumers to be very cautious and practice good habits to avoid falling victim to such scams. As Bitcoin becomes more popular and attracts mainstream users, fraudsters are preying on new and resorting to tricks like imitation websites and phishing emails to steal consumers’ funds.

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Norwegian Police Arrest Millionaire For Wife's Murder After Two-Year Goose Chase for Kidnappers Demanding $10M Monero Ransom

In October 2018, a Norwegian millionaire named Tom Hagen reported that his wife had been kidnapped and presented a ransom note to police that demanded $10 million worth of the privacy-centric cryptocurrency Monero.

According an article published by Reuters, Hagen was arrested on April 28 on the suspicion of murdering his own wife, Anne-Elisabeth Hagen, although his lawyer has denied the allegations.

Although Hagen has not officially been charged with any crime, Police Legal Counsel Aase Kjustad Eriksson was quoted in the report saying that police now have “reason to suspect Tom Hagen of murder or conspiracy for murder.”

But what about the $10 million Monero ransom?

According to Police Inspector Tommy Broeske, “There was no kidnapping, no real negotiating counterpart or real negotiations.” Inspector Broeske said there appears to be substantial evidence that the investigation has been intentionally misled.

Hagen’s wife, Anne-Elisabeth, was reported missing from their Oslo home in late October last year. While Hagen is considered to be one of the richest people in Norway, with a value of over $150 million, it is unknown how much Bitcoin or other crytptocurrency he may hold.

Hagen’s lawyer Svein Holden denied the allegations and said that, “He (Hagen) strongly maintains that he has nothing to do with this.”

Under Norwegian law, people may be held under suspicion of a crime prior to any formal arrest being made. Hagen will appear in court on April 29.

Decentralized Hackers 'Anonymous' Promise Retribution for George Floyd, Will Expose Minneapolis Police Record of Systemic Racism

Hacktivist group ‘Anonymous’ has promised retribution against the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) for the death of George Floyd last week.

On Saturday night, May 30, it appears the group has begun to make good on their promise, as the MPD website was inaccessible for most of the night and appears to have been subjected to unauthorized access and tampering.

As reported by Bloomberg on June 1, the alleged Anonymous hack occurred on Saturday night as protests reached a fever pitch around the country. Thousands of Americans rose in protest against the unlawful and completely unnecessary killing of George Floyd and the rate of police violence aimed at black Americans.

Although police officials did not immediately wish to comment on the alleged attack, there were noticeable anti-hack additions to the website on Sunday morning. Pages on the website required captcha verification, a popular automated hack bot deterrent for access to the public pages.

Anonymous Promises to Reveal Depth of MPD’s Systemic Racial Profiling and Abuse

Anonymous posted the video below on their unconfirmed Facebook page on May 28. The video was aimed specifically at the Minneapolis police and promised to expose the department’s “horrific track record of violence and corruption”, of which they believe George Floyd is just the latest casualty.

As protestors clashed violently with US police and the National Guard over the weekend, the video gained nearly 2.5 million views on Facebook.

The video is presented by the Anonymous figure dressed in the usual dark hoodie and displaying the Guy Fawkes mask, a popular symbol of protest made famous by the movie V for Vendetta. The figure concludes the video, which details the unjustified death of George Floyd and as many as 193 others, stating that the MPD is not capable of carrying out true justice. The figure promised, “we will be exposing your many crimes to the world. We are legion, expect us.”

The power of the Anonymous group can be found in these final words, “We are legion” – a nod to their decentralized model of operation. The hacktivist operation claims to operate as a series of decentralized cells, making them difficult to track and meaning that there is no distinguishable leader with which to bargain or negotiate.

Given the depth of the information already exposed in the warning video, we can only imagine what has been uncovered in the recent alleged hack that appears to have occurred last Saturday.

India Darknet Policing Ramps Up Following Drug Racket Arrests

Law enforcement agencies in India are teaming up with national research and academic institutions to enhance their ability to police the darknet.

Indian law enforcement agencies are collaborating, as part of a think-tank, with academic institutions, technology startups, and research organizations to bolster darknet policing capabilities in the nation.

According to the Hindustan Times, sources close to the matter said, “A Union home ministry think-tank is studying software solutions to help law enforcement agencies monitor the darknet, or a network of secret websites and encrypted networks, and track cybercriminals through digital footprints.”

The joint effort is expected to analyse limitations of policing the darknet and produce a range of solutions to bolster law enforcement on the dark web. So far, the police have identified around 12 clear problems with their ability to police the darknet in India and submitted these to the cohort of 120 academic and research institutions.

The Hindustan Times also reports that the law enforcement resource being developed will leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques to update itself automatically and regularly. There are also plans to design a case management platform for financial crimes.

Darknet Violations Surging

The darknet is the overlay network within the internet that can only be accessed by specific software which rose to infamy within the crypto-community thanks to the Silk Road darknet marketplace. Via the Silk Road, darknet users could get their hands on just about anything, from narcotics to weapons, and they could pay using Bitcoin.

According to the Times of India, as part of a global crackdown targeting darknet narcotics and black market pharmaceutical syndicates, India’s Narcotics Control Bureau made several important arrests in the global Operation Trace enforcement action. The arrested syndicate accepted payments in Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Cryptocurrency and the Dark Web

Policing the dark web has become more of a priority for global law enforcement since the advent of cryptocurrency, which often gives criminals a less traceable means of paying for illicit services.

The use of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum has become the preferred payment for internet-based human trafficking and sexual exploitation services, which include blackmail porn and the sexual assault of minors and children, according to forensics firm Chainalysis.

While the perception is that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether can be used anonymously, sophisticated analysts are now actually using the underlying blockchain technology against criminals as all transactions are immutable and traceable.

Recently, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Criminal Analyst, Kim Reece was named as a finalist for the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal. Reece’s blockchain analysis led to an international criminal investigation of one of the largest dark web child pornography sites—’Welcome to Video’ that leveraged cryptocurrency to cloak their payments on over one million video downloads.

Working alongside cross-agency partners Christopher M. Janczewski, IRS- Criminal Investigations, and Zia M. Faruqui of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Reece’s contribution led to the arrests of the site’s operator, Jong Woo, and more than 300 users, as well as the rescue of 25 exploited children. All through blockchain traceability.

New Zealand Police Froze $140 Million in Assets and Crypto From Alleged BTC-e Exchange Money-Launderer Alexander Vinnik

New Zealand police have revealed that they have frozen NZD$140 million ($90 million) from Canton Business Corp and its company owner Alexander Vinnik who were holding funds in a New Zealand company. Vinnik is now in French custody but is also wanted in the US.

Andrew Coster, New Zealand Police Commissioner, stated that they had collaborated closely with the US Internal Revenue Service in this matter. He stated that the funds likely suggested illicit profits from hundreds of victims.

The money is the largest amount ever frozen by New Zealand police in the country’s history.

Dirty Money Crackdown Reaches the Strongholds

The United States has accused Alexander Vinnik of money laundering of millions of dollars through BTC-e, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the globe. Canton and its owner, Vinnik, previously operated crypto exchange BTC-e. It is reported that BTC-e operated in the US, but had no anti-money laundering policies and controls. This resulted in cyber-criminals and criminals laundering profits generated from various criminal activities, including theft, drug crime, ransomware attacks, corruption, computer hacking, and fraud through BTC-e.

Russia, his native country, also wants Vinnik to put him on trial. Vinnik mentions that he served as a technical consultant to BTC-e crypto exchange and had no connection to or knowledge of any illegal activity.

Upon the request by the US authorities, Vinnik was arrested in Greece in 2017 for alleged involvement in money laundering activities. After a legal tug-of-war for two years, Vinnik was transferred from Greece to France. In January 2020, French authorities filed preliminary charges of extortion and money laundering against Vinnik.

Vinnik denies any wrongdoing, and he went on a hunger strike to protest against his transfer to France. He instead prefers to go to Russia, where he would face lesser charges. His lawyer stated that because of the hunger strike, her client was hospitalized on his arrival in France.

Greek officials had ruled that Vinnik should be transferred first to France, then to the United States, and eventually to Russia.

On June 22, New Zealand stated that they captured NZ$140 million ($90 million) from Alexander Vinnik and his company, Canton Business Corporation, as they were holding the money in a New Zealand firm.

New Zealand prides itself on setting up companies and establishing the ease of doing business in the country. However, the country has been sometimes targeted by foreign-based criminals who use shell companies to launder money.

Coster stated that there is always a risk facing New Zealand companies as they would be used in international money laundering. He said that the latest seizure demonstrates that the country is not and will not be a safe haven for illicit profits generated from international crime in other regions across the world.

New Zealand’s companies register shows that Vinnik owned a firm identified as WME Capital Management from 2008 until 2012. However, the register does not list Vinnik as a shareholder in any firm beyond that particular date.

The New Zealand police have frozen the money. The police mentioned that they intend to apply to the High Court to seek the money to be forfeited and paid to the victims of the crime identified.

Crypto Fraud Alarming Concern

The decentralized and anonymous nature of the cryptocurrencies has become a boom to many users. But the new technology is frequently exploited by hackers at the expense of the common users. CipherTrace, a blockchain forensic company, revealed that the cryptocurrency sector lost more than $4.4 billion in scams and thefts in 2019.

Crypto fraud has risen due to malpractices occurring through crypto exchanges. Cryptocurrencies have become constant targets for scams, including hacking, phishing, digital theft, and fraud. It may remain difficult to stop scams altogether, but a balanced approach involving a suitable security framework and regulations could help contain the pandemic.

Bithumb CEO Summoned by South Korean Authorities Following Police Raid on Offices

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bithumb Holdings, Lee Jung-hoon has been summoned by the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Intelligent Crime Investigation Unit.

Per reports from South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, Chairman Lee was summoned on allegations of defaulting to list the controversial token called BXA tokens.

As Blockchain.news previously reported, the genesis of Bithumb and Lee’s tussle with the authorities was fueled by the BXA tokens reportedly issued by the Blockchain Exchange Alliance (BXA) and the Singapore-based BXA consortium. The Blockchain Exchange Alliance was reportedly due to be taken over by a Singapore-based South Korean firm, but the deal fell through when the firm defaulted on payment. A condition of the takeover was an obligation for Bithumb to list the BXA token, which it never did following the default.

As Bithumb refused to list the token, its initial value of about 30 billion Korean Won (US$25.8 million) raised in its Initial Coin Offering began to drop, a situation that angered investors.

Prior to the summons of Chairman Lee ,who is also being investigated for Property Theft, the South Korean police have raided the office of the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by volume on two occasions.

Bithumb is one of Two Korean Exchanges Raided By Authorities

While the investigations into Bithumb are yet to be concluded following the incessant raid of the exchange by the authorities, Conbit, the nation’s third-largest cryptocurrency exchange was also raided by the police for alleged arbitrage manipulation of Bitcoin (BTC), Ripple (XRP), and Ethereum (Eth) transaction volume.

Following the raid of Coinbit, the authorities were able to uncover about 99% trade manipulation resulting in the exchange earning an unfair income to the tune of 100 billion won, approximately $84 million. Despite these irregularities in the country’s top exchanges, South Korea still remains a top crypto hub with the government’s interest in developing its own CBDC picking up momentum in recent times.

Corrupt Cop Sentenced to Prison for Accepting Bitcoin Bribe from Dark Web Drug Dealer

A former Russian police officer has been sentenced to eight years in prison for accepting a Bitcoin and cryptocurrency bribe from a dark web drug dealer, in exchange for his professional services.

Darknet: Bitcoin for professional services

The former cop, Yuri Zaitsev, was the former head of department for a drug trafficking task force operating under the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Khakassia. He was found guilty of receiving a cryptocurrency bribe and of disclosing State secrets.

The investigation started in 2018 and found that Zaitsev had initiated contact with a drug dealer operating for a darknet marketplace. The operator illicitly sold narcotics online and was fouled by a customer that had stolen from him. In exchange for tracking down the thief that had wronged the darknet dealer, Zaitsev accepted Bitcoin cryptocurrency payments amounting to 52,000 rubles.

In addition, the former chief officer was charged by the Investigative Committee of Russia for disclosing classified information to the dark web operator.

Charges against corrupted cop

Not only did Zaitsev accept Bitcoin bribes from the darknet dealer, but he also allegedly informed the criminal of State secrets and provided information concerning his work environment, officers he collaborated with as well as their schedule and daily conduct.

This confidential information was given as a means to ensure that the dark web dealer and his organized criminal group could operate their online drug business while remaining undetected by police officials and law enforcers.

Following prosecution from Russian law officials, the dirty cop was fired from the Main Directorate for Drugs Control in Khakassia and sentenced to 8 years in prison.

In addition, Zaitsev was charged with a penalty of 156,000 rubles and is prohibited from holding a position of authority within organizations for 4 years. Furthermore, he is stripped of his title as a police lieutenant colonel.

Silk Road defunct, dark web programmer arrested

This is not unlike the former Silk Road programmer Weigand’s verdict.

The dark web software operator was charged for using Bitcoin for his own gains, for lying to the FBI and the IRS about his involvement with the dark web marketplace as a tech advisor and programmer.

Weigand has been sentenced to five years of prison by the US Department of Justice. His sentencing is set for December.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey Supports Nigerian Protest Against Police Brutality With Bitcoin Donations

Twitter’s Chief Executive Officer Jack Dorsey has thrown his support behind the ongoing #EndSars campaign and protests in Nigeria with Bitcoin (BTC) donations. The protests aim to shine a light on police brutality in the African nation.

Dorsey revealed his support for the Nigerian movement via Twitter on Wednesday where he said:

“Donate via #Bitcoin to help #EndSARS”

The ongoing #EndSars protests have plunged Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation into a state of unrest in which the youth population took to the streets to protest against the seemingly unending human rights violation imposed by a unit of the Federal Police Force dubbed Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS). Backed by the power of the state, the SARS unit was created to fight armed robbery, kidnappings as well as other criminal activities but over time, they have resorted to the extortion of the youth population particularly those who have a positive inclination to digital means of earning.

With the years gone by in which there have been calls from various quarters to reform the rogue SARS unit, the situation has only seemed to grow worse, and now, the youths are determined to protest until the SARS unit is disbanded and assurance of reformed police is given by the government to end all other forms of reported brutality.

Jack Dorsey’s Bitcoin donation came after funds raised to support the protests were reported threatened to be shut down by the government and the cryptocurrency savvy youth population resorted to a blockchain-backed alternative that is free from the power of the state.

Jack Dorsey Keeping Promises

Jack Dorsey who weighed in on the Coinbase’s ‘Apolitical’ controversy is undoubtedly living true to his words and believes that refusing to join societal discourse “leaves people behind.” With Jack donating to the massively trending #EndSars protest both on social media and across the streets of Nigerian cities, he has set an example that can further show the world the good cause bitcoin can be used for.

Bitcoin donations are not uncommon in the crypto-sphere, and as Blockchain.news reported, bitcoin donations were received to help fight the devastating effects and to provide reliefs to victims caught up in the Australian bushfires back in April

Image source: blockchain.news

Cryptos Confiscated from $4.2 Billion PlusToken Scam Likely Sold by Chinese Police, says Journalist Colin Wu

Chinese cryptocurrency and blockchain journalist, Colin Wu, has revealed that the huge amounts of Bitcoin and Ethereum seized by the Chinese government from the ongoing PlusToken Scam have been converted to fiat currency and reserved in the Central Treasury managed by the China’s central bank.

The reporter has disclosed that an official announcement appears to indicate that the government has sold the cryptocurrencies and kept the funds in the Central Treasury owned by the People of Bank of China.

Colin Wu shared screenshots of official documents of the huge amounts of Ether and Bitcoin confiscated from the PlusToken crypto scam, which is regarded as one of the largest Ponzi schemes in the cryptocurrency industry.

He said that China’s police confiscated about 190,000 Bitcoins and 830,000 Ethereum that worth $3,213,109,000 and $423,474,300 respectively.

Furthermore, crypto and Bitcoin market analyst, David Puell, tweeted that a similar kind of such sell-off was executed in 2019. This was the incident when Chinese authorities arrested Chen Bo, the mastermind of PlusToken Ponzi scheme in June 2019. Chinese police confiscated cryptocurrencies, sold them, and kept the funds in the country’s national treasury. Puell also mentioned particular cryptocurrency exchanges (OKEX and Huobi) that the government authorities used to dump the cryptocurrencies into the open market while cashing out fiat currencies.

Puell believes that the government has sold the cryptocurrencies confiscated currently via OKEX and Huobi exchanges and kept the funds in the national treasury.

Puell’s tweets also revealed to the crypto community that the current sell-off of the seized Ethereum and Bitcoin have had an impact on the cryptocurrency markets by pushing their exchange rates down.

Meanwhile, Thomas Silkjaer, the CEO and founder of blockchain analytics, forensics and AML compliance company, xrplorer.com, has also revealed that huge amounts of XRP were among the cryptocurrencies confiscated by the Chinese authorities. He disclosed that the government has sold all the XRP coins via the HBTC exchange, and now only a few tokens are left in the shuffle pool.

On November 19, a court ruling indicated that China’s police confiscated more than $4.2 billion worth of crypto assets during a massive PlusToken Ponzi scheme crackdown. The total amount of crypto assets seized include the following: 213,724 Tether, 6 billion Dogecoin, 74,167 Dash, 27.6 million EOS, 1.4 million Litecoin, 79,581 Bitcoin Cash, 487 million XRP, 833,083 Ether, and 194,775 Bitcoins. Chinese law enforcement confiscated the cryptocurrencies from seven culprits during the crackdown. The court ruling directed all the seized crypto assets to be processed and funds kept in the national treasury. The court document stated that the PlusToken scam might have taken more of such enormous funds from victims.

PlusToken Scheme Targeting Million of Investors

Authorities in China have arrested many bad actors who have been responsible for conducting PlusToken Ponzi scams. Such arrests have been made as a result of extensive investigations by local agencies including China’s Ministry of Public Security, which is the main police force agency in the country. So far, Chinese investigators have taken over 100 culprits behind the multi-billion-dollar cryptocurrency scam into custody.

Since 2019, the PlusToken scam had expanded to over 3,000 pyramid scheme type layers. The fraudulent scheme targets over 2 million investors in the country by attracting them with lucrative crypto investments. Scammers ask for payment in Bitcoin in exchange for an opportunity to invest in lucrative tokens. However, it always turns out to be a huge scam.