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Attack of the bots! Paxful fights off thousands of automated threats

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Paxful, a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency marketplace, has successfully defended against a number of serious threats, including 220,000 bot attacks and a variety of social engineering ploys — all in the span of two months.

During the same time period, hackers managed to steal around $200 million worth of cryptocurrency from the KuCoin exchange, and another unconnected attack saw $5.4 million stolen from Eterbase.

Paxful said that its alleged attackers attempted to use automated bots to brute force their way into accounts belonging to the project’s users:

“Bots, which are reported to generate about a quarter of global Web traffic, are de facto programs that emulate the actions of a real device for the purposes needed. They are a big headache for eCommerce businesses today, with cybercriminals using them to steal money, brute-force user credentials or carry out DDoS attacks.”

Global lockdown has presented criminals with a number of unique opportunities. Although not the biggest in terms of damage, the most publicized exploit of this nature was one perpetrated by a few teenagers who managed to hack some of Twitter’s biggest accounts.

Attack of the bots! Paxful fights off thousands of automated threats

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Widespread Adoption of Self-Sovereign Identity in the Wake of COVID-19

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Heard of Blockchain-based identity management? Wondering what SSI is all about? Why is SSI making noise around the COVID-19 pandemic? If your answer is probably yes, you have landed on the right page. 

Table of Contents

  • What are Decentralized Identity Solutions?
  • Why Consider Self-Sovereign Identity?
  • SSI Widespread Adoption During COVID-19 Pandemic 
  • Concluding Lines

 What are Decentralized Identity Solutions?

In the physical world, which is full of hackers and authorized activities, we take the sharing of credentials for granted. In this modern era of digitization, the traditional identity systems possess various downfalls in terms of vulnerability to attacks, high expenses, and tedious process. To drive well in a digitized society, it is vital to securely authenticate our digital identities. Unlike traditional systems, digital identity solutions such as self-sovereign identity(SSI) help individuals to control how their identities are shared and accessed without involving any third-party intermediaries.

Using distributed ledger technology such as Blockchain to decentralize identity is all about digital validation and keys where digital wallets are secured by cryptographic keys that cannot be recreated. The concept of Blockchain-based digital identity solutions is proving to be the most reliable as it is putting the power back in the hands of the people.

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Why Consider Self-Sovereign Identity?

 Since identity is a fundamental part of society, having sole ownership of our digital identities and control over how our personal data is accessed is extremely crucial.

Self-sovereign identity, also known as SSI, fosters digital movement and enables individuals to control their identity without the intermediary authorities. It allows people to interact with the same freedom and trust as they do in the offline environment. Since trusting third parties to securely hold our personal data is precarious, SSI brings the same freedom and personal liberty to the internet. Instead of giving control of personal information to dozens of databases, it allows individuals to control how their identities are managed at the global level.

SSI Widespread Adoption During COVID-19 Pandemic 

The deadly coronavirus pandemic has defiled all continents. The COVID-19 Credentials Initiative (CCI) is working on a digital certificate that allows individuals to use the recently accepted W3C Verifiable Credentials standard that indicates they have recovered from the outbreak. 

As we already mentioned, SSI provides a layer of confidence and protection instead of relying and trusting on a third-party to store personal data by safely placing the personal data of an individual in their hands. Interest in SSI has dramatically increased in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Leading companies and innovators in the industry are working on digital certificates. Pandemic has caused a lot of economic loss but to subsidize, governments are trying to reopen economic activities. In efforts to that, solutions to present and carry our accurate digital health information details have been emerging. Top organizations are working aggressively for developing confidential and secure methods of certifying COVID-19 test results. Such results will enable all organizations to get back to their work and resume their operations confidently. 

Digital certificates are also being issued to individuals, letting them prove their health conditions and allowing them to prove that they have recovered from the disease. 

Such health passports, also known as Immunity Passports, could serve as verifiable proof that individuals have developed antibodies, which they can present, allowing them to go back to their workplaces and other areas of their interest. The basic idea behind such passports is to link the individual’s identity with their Covid-19 test status. 

Apart from the health domain, SSI can be implemented for various other use cases such as accessing financial and government services, enrolling in an academy, and others. Moreover, SSI can even replace government-issued cards and would remove the risk of user credentials with logging into websites.

Concluding Lines 

While Blockchain developers and experts race to create digital certificates that will allow people to prove if they have recovered, there are few considerations. Few believe that such digital certificates or immunity passports could interfere with their human rights and civil liberties, and the other major factor is the lack of accurate results of the pandemic. Still, there is no scientific evidence about the accuracy of antibody-mediated immunity to ensure the correctness of immunity passports. 

Blockchain has proved its success in many real-world applications and can be applied to support coronavirus outbreak fighting as well. It’s for sure that a secure and user-friendly decentralized identity will help people at all levels. SSI is introducing a new identity system that gives you control and preserves privacy.

 To get instant updates about Blockchain Technology and to learn more about online Blockchain Certifications, check out Blockchain Council.

Widespread Adoption of Self-Sovereign Identity in the Wake of COVID-19

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Myths About Cryptocurrencies That You Should Know About

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Are you one of those who find cryptocurrencies confusing? In this article, we will clarify commonly judged misconceptions about Cryptocurrency. So let’s get started.

Table of Contents

  • Overview 
  • Myths About Cryptocurrency 
  • The Verdict 

Overview 

The advent of cryptocurrencies has taken the world by storm. Despite its popularity, people do not have a solid understanding of how cryptocurrencies work, and they find them confusing. Let’s start from the basics and understand what cryptocurrencies are. Cryptocurrency is a virtual currency, or we can define it as a medium of exchange that employs cryptographic protocols to ensure the safety and authenticity of transactions. Such virtual money works on the concept of the underlying technology, Blockchain, that is not regulated by any authority, and this is the reason why cryptocurrencies and their transactions are completely secured. But sadly, the concept of Cryptocurrency is still in its infancy and is generally misunderstood, contributing to the circulation of several misconceptions surrounding it.

Want to know more about cryptocurrencies and become a Certified Cryptocurrency Expert? Wait no more. Get enrolled in Blockchain Council today! 

Myths About Cryptocurrency 

Now, without further delaying, let’s explore the misconceptions surrounding cryptocurrencies.  

1. Bitcoin is the only crypto asset that matters. 

We all know that Bitcoin is the first-ever Cryptocurrency because of which it is the most widespread cryptocurrency people own. The reason why it is still the most likable Cryptocurrency is due to the reason that it has the highest liquidity in the crypto space.domain and the higher the liquidity ratio, the easier it is to sell a cryptocurrency at market price. But believing that it is the only crypto asset that matters would be a mistake. 

Although the market capitalization of Bitcoin tops the list, other cryptocurrencies have also started gaining public attention. According to the recent reports, Ethereum’s economy hits new milestones in transfer value and market cap. 

2. Cryptocurrency is an illegal form of digital money and used for criminal activities.

This is one of the biggest myths that cryptocurrencies hold. Although crypto-assets can be used for several purchases such as food and clothing, it is a belief that people use Cryptocurrency generally to make illegal purchases. The wider range of people believe that it is easier to buy illegal objects with Cryptocurrency than other payment systems. Undoubtedly it is true that crypto assets were previously used in some illicit activities, but the assumption that they are mainly used for such criminal purposes is entirely wrong. It is used considerably less commonly for illicit activity as compared to major currencies such as the US Dollar.

3. Cryptocurrencies are easily hackable 

Another misconception surrounding digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies, is that they are easy to hack. Although crypto-related exchanges have proven vulnerable to hackers in the past, to state they can be hacked easily is entirely false. These are difficult to hack because of its underlying technology, Blockchain, which ensures that hacks are unlikely. Crypto transactions are secured as transactions are stored in blocks of encrypted data. 

4. Crypto exchanges are not taxable

Crypto-based exchanges are assumed to be tax-free, but this is not true. Such exchanges need to register and pay tax on their earnings. As there are no central authorities or banks involved with crypto transactions, but that does not mean they are not taxable. There is plenty of confusion regarding certain aspects of how cryptocurrencies are supposed to be taxed. Cryptocurrencies are in the eyes of the IRS, and it has a new tax form out for all crypto traders. Last year, the IRS sent letters in order to amend or pay fines on unreported crypto profits to around 10,000 taxpayers that were connected somehow with crypto assets.

5. Assumptions that Cryptocurrencies will be banned 

The majority of the people fear investing and trading with Cryptocurrency because they believe that cryptocurrencies are unregulated and will be banned in the near future. But it is also important to consider that many countries, including U.S., India, and others, have taken a positive step towards cryptocurrencies. Instead of leaning more towards crypto restriction, countries are keen on learning regulations, which indicates that Cryptocurrencies are here to stay. 

The Verdict 

From the above discussion, you must have gained a clear understanding of the myths and why they are unreal. While few still hesitate and do not accept Cryptocurrency as payment, they are various popular retailers such as Microsoft, Overstock, KFC Canada, and others that accept cryptocurrencies for their respective purposes. Apart from the points that we have mentioned, keep in mind there are several other myths that exist too. 

If you want to understand all the ins and outs of Cryptocurrency and become a Certified Cryptocurrency Expert/Trader, Blockchain Council, a globally recognized online organization, can help you learn the fundamental and technical aspects of cryptocurrencies. 

 To get instant updates about Blockchain Technology and to learn more about online Blockchain Certifications, check out Blockchain Council.

Myths About Cryptocurrencies That You Should Know About

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Why is Blockchain Booming in the Healthcare Industry Despite Challenges?

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If you are curious to know how Blockchain can transform the healthcare industry, you have landed at the right page. 

Table of Contents

  • Blockchain More Than A Bitcoin
  • How Blockchain is Revamping Healthcare Industry
  • Cyberattacks Encourage Blockchain Implementation in Healthcare  
  • Challenges that Need to Addressed
  • The Verdict

Blockchain More Than A Bitcoin

Blockchain technology is a P2P decentralized distributed public ledger that mitigates the dependence on a centralized authority while enabling secure and pseudo-anonymous transactions between the participating parties. Many aspects of Blockchain, such as decentralization, transparency, and immutability, are potentially drawing attention in the healthcare industry. Technology is addressing two of the most pressing issues that are: difficult access to health-related information by patients and incomplete records at the point of care. 


Technology emerged in 2009 as the foundation for trading the digital currency bitcoin, and since then, it has taken the world by storm. Blockchain developers, technocrats, and healthcare industry players believe that technology has the potential to provide a measure of data protection against hacker attacks as well.

Want to become a Certified Blockchain Developer? Sign up to the Blockchain Council now!

How Blockchain is Revamping Healthcare Industry

Initially, Blockchain had its implications in the finance domain, but today as it is much matured; therefore, it is expanding its use cases in the healthcare sector as well. Presently, healthcare suffers from fragmented data, delayed communications between the participating parties, and lack of interoperability. Blockchain helps in facilitating access to medical records stored in fragmented systems. Technology has the potential to enhance medical record management and the insurance claim process, along with accelerating clinical and biomedical research. With smart contract functionality, technology can create a secure, transparent, and effective technical infrastructure to revamp existing healthcare departments, promoting individuals’ and communities’ wellbeing. 

Blockchain can potentially help keep a decentralized, transparent, and incorruptible log of all records without involving central authority/third-party intermediaries. Although it offers transparency, it ensures that all logs of records are kept private. Its decentralized nature allows everyone in the healthcare department, including patients, doctors, and healthcare providers, to safely and quickly share the information. Most importantly, it empowers patients by giving rights in their hands while deciding who gets access to their medical records.

Apart from that, in the drug production and distribution supply chain, it benefits multiple players, including manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, and pharmacies, by allowing everyone on the supply chain to know the true source and track its distribution whenever they want. 

Cyberattacks Encourage Blockchain Implementation in Healthcare  

As Blockchain indicates no sign of stopping, US healthcare officials believe that Blockchain can provide data security against cybercriminals and hackers since technology does not suffer from a central failure point. 

Reports suggest that in 2018, healthcare institutions were subjected to multiple cyber-attacks, which resulted in the penetration of more than 15 million patient records in 503 violations. Further, in 2019, such breaches increased by 60%.

Unlike traditional systems, the blockchain network is secured through cryptography. Only the intended users can access data using their own private keys, thus eliminating the chances of ransomware and other kinds of attacks. 

According to the DevPro Journal, “Blockchain, with its instantaneous exchange of medical and financial information, could allow insurance claims to be instantly filled and fulfilled as all data will be verified and coming from trusted partners.”

Want to know more about Blockchain technology? Become a Certified Blockchain Exert today! 

Challenges that Need to Addressed 

Blockchain is constantly improving rather than completed, and it has a few potential challenges that must be considered for it to be adopted in the healthcare industry. Few challenges are as follows:

  • Despite its popularity across multiple sectors, the perception that it only links best with Bitcoin has hindered its acceptance within the medical research communities. All entities involved in the healthcare department must accept and embrace this new model for its mass adoption. 
  • The complexity of processing large amounts of data in a single transaction, such as an MRI image, a CAT scan, is the other significant issue that needs to be addressed. 
  • Blockchain is incapable of removing deleted or replaced modified records. Instead, it adds additional blocks to represent such deletions and modifications, which indicates this process results in the need for ever-increasing storage. 

The Verdict 

Top pharmaceutical conglomerates, including blockchain developers and technocrats, are working to figure out the most productive ways to utilize blockchain technology. Blockchain is no more an emerging technology; rather, it is a mature concept that is creating unique opportunities with its decentralized approach, leading to secure and immutable information. In the giant field of the medical field, we can say Blockchain is here to stay. 

To get instant updates about blockchain certifications and become a blockchain expert, check out Blockchain Council. 

Why is Blockchain Booming in the Healthcare Industry Despite Challenges?

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Indian Police Investigate Crypto Exchange Accused of Running Mining Scam

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Cryptocurrency fraud is currently running rampant across several countries. India is one of the countries with the most common of such criminal activities, and law enforcement is now investigating yet another case.

Branching Out Into Fraud

Earlier this week, local news source Millennium Post reported that the Economic Offence Wing of the Delhi Police had launched a full-scale probe into Pluto Exchange, a local digital asset exchange platform, and its operators. Per the report, the investigation came after 43 investors filed a complaint against the firm.

The complaint alleged that Pluto Exchange’s founder, Bharat Verma, and several other company officials, had developed a fraudulent scheme that lured investors. The scheme was purportedly a trading and mining operation called “F2poolminin.” It ran as a subsidiary of the exchange.

One of the plaintiffs explained that he met the exchange operators first at the Connaught Place, a business and technology hub in New Delhi. They told him that he could invest in the scheme and make between 20 to 30 percent monthly. He added that they also offered him some extra commissions if he managed to bring more people into the fold.

The plaintiff eventually invested $6,500 with the scheme. When he didn’t get any returns for a while, he confronted Verma, who told him that the company had been unable to pay because some of its bank accounts had been frozen, and the Bitcoin price had dropped significantly.

Per the report, Pluto Exchange had left India and is now based in Dubai. However, they’re still running the scam and have ow collected about $6.8 million from investors.

India’s Extensive Crypto Crime Problem

The Pluto Exchange saga is currently the latest in a long line of fraudulent crypto operations seeking life in India. For now, perhaps the most popular scam form has been call center scams, which are targeting some high-income residents.

India TV News reported last month that cybercriminals are targeting these victims through messages on social media, encouraging them to buy Bitcoin through a mobile app. The app, which purportedly functions as a crypto exchange, is merely a sham. Once a user deposits Bitcoin into the exchange, the scammers block the person and disappear.

A witness told the news source that an unidentified victim lost $50,000 to the scheme, while another unnamed businessman lost at least $3 million.

The scammers have also targeted some top government officials. Earlier this month, India Today reported that hackers managed to break into the Twitter account of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The hackers, known under the collective name “John Wick,” reportedly asked Modi’s followers to donate to “PM National Relief Fund for Covid-19,” a fake coronavirus relief fund.

Blockchain data shows that no funds were sent to the site, leading to the belief that the massive Twitter hack of July had made people much wider. However, this growth in fraudulent activities is alarming.

Sidharth Sogani, the founder and chief executive of blockchain and cryptocurrency research company Crebaco, told Cointelegraph last month that Indian investors lost about $500 million to scammers both home and abroad between 2017 and 2019. hings also can get much worse, as cryptocurrencies are growing in popularity across the country.

Indian Police Investigate Crypto Exchange Accused of Running Mining Scam

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Gaming Industry Adopting Blockchain to Bring a New Era

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There is nothing more exciting to look forward to than new games. Isn’t it? What about blockchain-based games that offer a completely safe environment for gamers.

So let’s get started to see how Blockchain can transform the gaming industry.

Table of Contents

  • Why Blockchain is Booming
  • How Blockchain is Giving a New definition to Gaming Industry
  • Digital Entertainment Asset can Tackle Flaws in the Pay-to-Play Model
  • How Blockchain-Powered Gaming Platform ‘Ultra’ can Give New Definition
  • Concluding Lines

Why Blockchain is Booming 

Blockchain is a peer-to-peer decentralized distributed ledger technology that mitigates the dependence on a centralized authority. Blockchain developers are pushing towards this technology because it offers immutability, transparency, privacy, and complete security and allows everyone to create a verifiable digital record.

Technology has the potential to revolutionize almost all industries, including finance, supply chain, eCommerce, digital identity management; the gaming sector is no more an exception. Blockchain platforms use powerful data encryption techniques to secure crypto token transactions. Moreover, it ensures that hackers can’t edit or modify existing transactions stored in the Blockchain network.

How Blockchain is Giving a New definition to Gaming Industry

Centralized servers are more prone to attacks and hacking. This is because if hackers break the encryption, they can have complete control over the assets stored on the server. But Blockchain allows players to securely store their digital collectibles in their crypto wallets.

Unlike pay-to-play games, which involve central authority, Blockchain-based games allow players to own their in-game assets. This is because Blockchain uses smart contracts functionality whose results are recorded in a decentralized and immutable way; hence no one can change the ownership of the in-game assets.

Digital Entertainment Asset Tackling Flaws in the Pay-to-Play Model

The current market relies on gamers/players who purchase in-app items that become ineffectual shortly, and then players are left regretting how much they spent on expensive games.

According to the latest announcement, a blockchain-based entertainment platform, Digital Entertainment Asset, DEA has the potential to transform the present gaming industry and aims to offer “a highly entertaining and intuitively usable platform.”

Established in August 2018 and headquartered in Singapore, DEA claims to offer three elements: Playmining, Digital Art Auction, and DEAPcoin.

To deal with existing issues, DEA claims to provide a viable solution by rewarding players, meaning users get something in return for adventure and exploration instead of getting charged, known as Playmining. Such assets can then be used in the Digital Art Auction platform. Digital Art is managed by a blockchain that allows buyers with authentic ownership and guarantees that the creators receive full compensation for their works. The team explained that the earned points and reading manga will be free for all players and can be exchanged for digital currency.

The Digital Art can then be purchased using a DEAPcoin, which is specially created for the DEA platform.

DEA also explained that each digital asset would initially offer an illustration by famous Japanese manga artists, and with time, other variety of assets will be added for players.

‘Ultra’ can Give New Definition to Gaming Industry

Ultra, a well-known blockchain-based gaming platform, aims to revamp the gaming industry by putting the power into the hands of developers and players.

Recently, the Ultra gaming platform announced that it will integrate Theta Network’s live-streaming technology that will allow users to preview games in action before making a purchase and earn rewards to spend in the Ultra ecosystem for sharing streams.

Theta Network is a decentralized video delivery network, running on a dedicated blockchain, powered by users.

This is how their integration service will help players. When a user hits a game’s landing page, the game will be played live through Theta streaming technology directly within the Ultra platform, which will allow gamers to earn rewards of both tokens: Theta (TFUEL) and Ultra.

Concluding Lines 

Blockchain was considered a disruptive technology once it became clear that Bitcoin wasn’t it’s only use case. Technology is revamping the gaming industry by enabling open communication between players and developers. Moreover, it can also be helpful in creating decentralized gaming systems where no single authority controls the gaming system. Blockchain aims at enabling gamers to play, discover, compete, and socialize with zero friction.

Thus Blockchain technology can bring a revolutionary change in the gaming industry.

What’s your take on this? Let us know in the comment section.

To get instant updates about blockchain certifications and become a blockchain expert, check out Blockchain Council.

Gaming Industry Adopting Blockchain to Bring a New Era

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