A place where an illegal transaction happens, such as a drug deal has come to be known as “the trap spot”. In those moments when both parties meet anyone can run up on the participants and cause pandemonium to erupt. Due to the untrustworthy dealings of Coinbase and Bitstamp, the best method for acquiring Bitcoin is through old fashioned OTC trade. However speculation of the dangers of trapping has become reality for unlucky individuals in New York City. The Observer reported a crime wave in which victims have been robbed at gunpoint for their coins. Continue reading
Category Archives: Fiat/BTC interfaces
The Superfish Funder List
In the wake of yesterday's disclosure of Lenovo's appalling inclusion of the Superfish malware on their OEM Windows installs, let us highlight the Venture Capital Firms which made Superfish possible: Continue reading
CoinTelegraph: CCN and NewsBTC Advertising Yet Another Scam
In a new article on CoinTelegraph Allen Scott alleges that CryptoCoinsNews and NewsBTC have both been promoting a scam where they advertise a fraud operation which buys bitcoins at above market prices using hacked Paypal accounts before the scam operators stop paying for the bitcoins they "buy" at all. These new allegations come on the heels of CCN and NewsBTC both serving as major advertising partners for the GAW "miners" scam.
USMS Announce Yet Another Bitcoin Auction
The United States Marshals Service has announced yet another auction for an amount totalling 50,000 BTC which were seized during the 2013 Silk Road bust.
The amount of bitcoin on offer, available blocks1 and deposit requirements mirror that of the last auction which was held in December of 2014. It is not yet known if Tim Draper, whose Sillycon Valley condo languishes for sale will make a big show of announcing his intention to bid. Continue reading
Series A = 10 blocks @ 2000 BTC, Series B = 10 blocks @ 3000 BTC ↩
Vermont Bitcoin ATM Cease and Desist Requested
On January 12th Blu-Bin, a Burlington-based 3D printing business, received a cease and desist letter asking for the shutdown of the state's only Bitcoin ATM. The number of Bitcoin ATMs throughout the world is booming significantly, although concerns of the privacy of the individuals using these machines have arisen. The US has attempted to heavily regulate Bitcoin ATMs with KYC, thus usage of one sometimes requires personal data such as a social security number, a palm print or taking a picture of the user's face. Continue reading
CAVIRTEX Shutting Down, Withdrawals "Temporarily Disabled"
CAVIRTEX, Canada's most prominent CAD-BTC exchange and staunch advocate for government regulation, announced earlier today that it will cease operations effective March 25th, 2015. Continue reading
Netagio To Close Bitcoin Exchange In Favour Of Fiat
The UK Bitcoin exchange Netagio today announced intentions to close the exchange as of the 18th of March, opting instead to launch a wealth storage business which will safe guard cash in money vaults across the globe.
Speaking on the closure, Simon Hamblin, CEO of Netagio, said: Continue reading
Coinbase To Shut Down Tipping Button
In a move reminiscent of Reddit Note's much acclaimed launch yet quick demise, Coinbase today announced that they will shut down their tipping button as of the apt date April 1st 2015. The Coinbase announcement reads: Continue reading
btcXchange.ro To Shutdown
An ongoing dispute between btcXchange.ro's management and a developer appears to have taken a new twist as the exchange today gave its clients notification that the service will go offline for an unknown period of time beginning February 11th 2015. The notice reads: Continue reading
TurboTax Stops Filing State Tax Returns Due To Massive Fraud
United States tax preparation company TurboTax, a subsidiary of "financial software" developer Intuit, has discontinued its e-filing service for state tax returns due to concerns over massive fraud. Reportedly Utah was the first state to raise concerns to the company identifying 28 returns as fraudulent with a further 8,000 suspected fraudulent returns. Minnesota followed by refusing to accept state returns filed through Turbo Tax after users reported logging in and seeing TurboTax show their taxes already had already been filed for them. Alabama similarly flagged 16,000 returns as likely fraudulent and insists that their computer and network security practices are in no way connected to the existence of fraudulent returns. Continue reading