A former Microsoft software engineer from Ukraine has been sentenced to nine years in prison for stealing more than $10 million in store credit from Microsoft’s online store. Ars Technica reports: From 2016 to 2018, Volodymyr Kvashuk worked for Microsoft as a tester, placing mock online orders to make sure everything was working smoothly. The software automatically prevented shipment of physical…
Tag: Bitcoin
Silk Road Bitcoins Worth $1 Billion Change Hands After Seven Years
A billion dollars worth of bitcoins linked to the shuttered darknet market Silk Road has changed hands for the first time in seven years, prompting renewed speculation about the fate of the illicit fortune. The Guardian reports: Almost 70,000 bitcoins stored in the account which, like all bitcoin wallets, is visible to the public, had lain untouched since April 2013. The…
A Few Trick-or-Treaters in Canada Receive a Surprising Treat: Bitcoin
Cointelegraph reports: While many children dressed as ghosts, goblins, and witches last night may have been disappointed to find an inedible thin piece of cardboard left out in a goodie bag, a lucky few recognized the treat as a Bitcoin prize. According to an October 31 tweet from Brad Mills, the crypto user filled a Halloween candy box with more than…
Therapy Patients Blackmailed For Cash After Clinic Data Breach
“Many patients of a large psychotherapy clinic in Finland have been contacted individually by a blackmailer, after their data was stolen,” reports the BBC: The data appears to have included personal identification records and notes about what was discussed in therapy sessions. Vastaamo is a nationwide practice with about 20 branches and thousands of patients. The clinic has advised those affected…
Mysterious Hackers Donating Stolen Money
A hacking group is donating stolen money to charity in what is seen as a mysterious first for cyber-crime that’s puzzling experts. smooth wombat writes: Darkside hackers claim to have extorted millions of dollars from companies, but say they now want to “make the world a better place.” In a post on the dark web, the gang posted receipts for $10,000…
Owners of BitMEX, a Leading Bitcoin Exchange, Face Criminal Charges
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The New York Times: American authorities brought criminal charges on Thursday against the owners of one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency trading exchanges, BitMEX, accusing them of allowing the Hong Kong-based company to launder money and engage in other illegal transactions. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan indicted the chief executive of BitMEX, Arthur Hayes, and…
America’s IRS Wants Cryptocurrency Exchanges Declared on Tax Forms
America’s dreaded tax-collecting agency is sending “a strong warning to millions of crypto holders who aren’t complying with the law that they must file required forms,” reports the Wall Street Journal. The front page of this year’s tax forms — just below “Name” and “Address” — will ask filers to declare whether they’ve received or exchanged any virtual currencies. The Journal…
Swiss Region To Take Cryptocurrency For Tax Payments In 2021
A Swiss region that has billed itself as a hub for high-tech finance said Thursday that it plans to accept cryptocurrencies Bitcoin and Ether for tax payments starting next year. ABC News reports: Switzerland’s Zug canton joins its eponymous main city and several Swiss towns in agreeing to take tax payments in cryptocurrency. Zug is thought to be the first region…
Is Blockchain ‘the Amazing Solution for Almost Nothing’?
Long-time Slashdot reader leathered shares an investigation from the Correspondent about blockchain — and ” what’s so terribly revolutionary about it? What problem does it solve…? I can tell you upfront, it’s a bizarre journey to nowhere. I’ve never seen so much incomprehensible jargon to describe so little… And I’ve never seen so many people searching so hard for a problem…
Richard Stallman Discusses Privacy Risks of Bitcoin, Suggests ‘Something Much Better’
Richard Stallman gave a new interview to the site Cointelegraph, which asked him his feelings about cryptocurrencies. “I’m not against them,” Stallman answers “I’m not campaigning to eliminate them, I just don’t particularly want to use them.” Cointelegraph then asks Stallman how he feels about tests underway for the Chinese government’s own central bank digital currency: Richard Stallman: “Digital payment systems…