Tezos


                    
                    By now, hearing "NFT” in any context evokes some sort of reaction — good or bad.
                    By now, hearing “NFT” in any context evokes some sort of reaction — good or bad. Some may be immediately thrust back to the spring of 2021 when digital artist Beeple sold an NFT of his original artwork for $69 million. Others might remember Peter Davidson’s singing “What the hell’s an NFT?” on Saturday Night Live. But for others, it’s less about novelty and more about utility.   Whether we like it or not, NFTs are so much more than the artwork that captivated the world two years ago. Their inherent capabilities — due almost entirely to the blockchain technology they are built on — lend themselves to industries and use cases that require transparency, authenticity and airtight security.  Consider healthcare and education as prime examples. In recent times, both sectors have encountered instances where individuals, such as nurses and teachers, were employed based on fraudulent qualifications. In May, the Washington Post highlighted a case where approximately 2,800 people acquired credentials from unaccredited schools without attending classes, passing the National Council Licensure Examination and subsequently using this achievement to secure better job opportunities. This is where NFTs can come into play. Schools can address this problem by issuing NFTs for certifications or credentials to students who have genuinely attended and completed their curriculum. By possessing these NFTs, students gain a credible means to demonstrate to potential employers that they have successfully fulfilled the educational requirements for the role. Employers can easily verify this information since NFTs serve as unique, unmodifiable identifiers. The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) — an antiquated, bureaucratic and frustratingly slow entity — is even considering incorporating NFT technology into its operations. Earlier this year, the California DMV — the state with the highest number of car registrations in the U.S. — tested digitizing car titles and registration as NFTs through the Tezos network (an open-source blockchain). The objective is to enhance efficiency and maintain more accurate records due to the immutable nature of NFTs. While still in the early stages of testing, this development holds great promise, potentially significantly improving the lives of Californians and many others in the future. Perhaps the most exciting, and certainly the most promising, is the incorporation of NFTs into event ticketing for the sports and entertainment industries. Following countrywide backlash from Ticketmaster’s handling of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour, it’s become increasingly clear that the ticketing industry at large is in need of an overhaul. From the influx of bots purchasing tickets immediately upon their release to price gouging and counterfeit sales, there is much work to be done. The NFL took an important first step in 2021 when it mandated that all tickets be digital to alleviate security issues and allow the league to track secondary market sales more accurately and efficiently. The innovative change from digital tickets — which is the norm today — to NFT ticketing would offer an even bigger increase in ensuring tickets are authentic, verified and secure. Additionally, NFT ticketing can significantly aid event ticket issuers by simultaneously offering seamless interactions with fans about event notifications, giveaways, services and more.  Ultimately, the potential for NFTs to impact and revolutionize daily life is extremely evident. Through their unmatched security, transparency and authenticity, NFTs have the ability to change the way we handle digital assets and could help shape the future. Through each of these various real-world use cases — education and healthcare credentials, DMV verification and NFT ticketing — NFTs would be able to usher in a new and improved era of efficiency and trust while ultimately providing a better future, user experience and higher quality of life. Anthony Georgiades is the co-founder of Pastel Network.      This article was published through Cointelegraph Innovation Circle, a vetted organization of senior executives and experts in the blockchain technology industry who are building the future through the power of connections, collaboration and thought leadership. Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Cointelegraph.

How can NFTs transform daily life?


                    
                    While Ether represents 50% of the total crypto donations made to Save the Children’s HODL Hope Campaign, Bitcoin donations amount to 34% of the lot so far.
                    An ongoing crypto donation campaign dedicated to improving the lives of children worldwide has received over $7.6 million to date, half of which was donated in Ether (ETH). Philanthropic foundation Save the Children’s HODL Hope Campaign remains nearly $2.4 million short of the $10 million it intends to collect by the end of 2023. ETH represented 50%, or $3.83 million, of the $7.6 million raised in crypto donations at the time of writing.Total crypto (in U.S. dollars) for Save the Children’s HODL Hope Campaign. Source: hodlhope.orgBitcoin (BTC) donations constituted 34% of the total cryptocurrencies, valued at a little over $2.6 million. USD Coin (USDC), a U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin issued by Circle, was the third most preferred way for the crypto community to help out children in need. USDC represented 7%, or nearly $520,000, of donations. Top cryptocurrencies donated for Save the Children’s HODL Hope Campaign. Source: hodlhope.orgThe U.S. dollar was used in 2% of donations, which was followed by major altcoins, including Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Tezos (XTZ), ThunderCore, Tether (USDT), Litecoin (LTC) and Solana (SOL).The Own The Doge (DOG) and PleasrDAO communities currently dominate the donor leaderboard after contributing 291.16 ETH, or over $1 million, to the cause. However, donors can stay anonymous and not be featured on the leaderboard.Top donors for Save the Children’s HODL Hope Campaign. Source: hodlhope.orgAs shown above, anonymous donors accounted for $3.9 million of the total campaign donations.Related: Crypto charities can exploit ‘gambler’s fallacy’ to reap larger donations — StudyThe ease of cross-border movement of funds allows greater participation in donation events for global causes. Recently, humanitarian aid and community services charity, the Singapore Red Cross, started accepting crypto donations. In partnership with Triple-A, the Singapore Red Cross started accepting BTC, ETH, USDT and USDC. “By accepting digital currencies, we open our doors to a new segment of donors who are tech-savvy and wish to make a difference through their digital assets,” said Benjamin William, secretary general and CEO of the Singapore Red Cross.Magazine: Real AI use cases in crypto, No. 2: AIs can run DAOs

Ethereum donations top Save the Children HODL Hope Campaign

Source: Adobe / ZayNyi As the crypto industry continues to evolve, a new wave of scams is emerging, blending the hype of artificial intelligence (AI) with crypto, Kathleen Breitman, co-founder of the Tezos blockchain, has warned. Writing in a commentary piece for Fortune on Sunday, warned of a rising trend where opportunistic individuals are attempting […]
The post The Collision of AI and Crypto Attracts Scammers – What’s Going On? appeared first on Cryptonews.

The Collision of AI and Crypto Attracts Scammers – What’s Going On?


                    
                    The stablecoin issuer reported the illicit funds had been used by a Southeast Asia-based crime syndicate responsible for a “pig butchering” romance scam.
                    Stablecoin issuer Tether froze roughly $225 million worth of USDT tokens as part of an investigation into a Southeast Asia human trafficking syndicate launched by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). In a Nov. 20 announcement, Tether said it had worked with the DOJ and crypto exchange OKX to freeze $225 million USDT in “external self-custodied wallets.” The firm reported the illicit funds had been used by a crime syndicate responsible for a “pig butchering” romance scam — a technique in which bad actors attempt to develop an online relationship with unsuspecting individuals, often convincing them to invest in legitimate businesses before conning them. According to Tether, the freezing of the USDT followed a “months-long investigative effort” into the location of the funds between the firm, OKX, DOJ, and U.S. law enforcement agencies. The stablecoin issuer said it would work with U.S. authorities to unfreeze any “lawful” wallets that may have been seized as part of the effort.“Through proactive engagement with global law enforcement agencies and our commitment to transparency, Tether aims to set a new standard for safety within the crypto space,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino. “Our recent collaboration with the Department of Justice underscores our dedication to fostering a secure environment. We believe in leveraging technology and relationships, such as our collaboration with OKX, to proactively address illicit activities and uphold the highest standards of integrity in the industry.”Impressive work by @Tether_to and @okx teams, alongside with Law Enforcement to stop bad guys https://t.co/P0U8ydP91x— Paolo Ardoino  (@paoloardoino) November 20, 2023

Tether has previously worked with global law enforcement agencies to freeze assets allegedly linked to criminal syndicates, such as when the firm coordinated with Israel’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing to freeze roughly $873,000 worth of USDT used for funding terrorist activities in Israel and Ukraine. The latest $225-million freeze appeared to be the largest in Tether’s history.Related: Circle, Tether freezes over $65M in assets transferred from MultichainUnlike many cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), which has the ability to be held outside the control of anyone but the individual with the private keys, stablecoins like USDT are more likely to be issued by a single authority. As a result, the issuers sometimes have the capability of freezing funds and halting transactions in response to requests from law enforcement.However, crypto moving through exchanges is sometimes subject to the same treatment. In August 2022, Binance said it had restricted account access to $1 million in crypto for a Tezos tool contributor following a request from authorities and similarly froze accounts linked to Hamas militants in October 2023 in response to Israeli law enforcement.Magazine: US enforcement agencies are turning up the heat on crypto-related crime

Tether freezes $225M USDT linked to romance scammers amid DOJ investigation


                    
                    The decentralized exchange increased margin requirements on several markets on Nov. 18, after an alleged targeted attack on the YFI token triggered massive liquidations. 
                    Decentralized crypto exchange dYdX has disclosed new measures to mitigate trading-related risks after burning $9 million of its insurance fund on Nov. 17 to cover users’ losses.According to an announcement on X (formerly Twitter), the exchange increased margin requirements on several “less liquid markets,” affecting tokens such as Eos (EOS), 0x Protocol (ZRX), Aave (AAVE), Algorand (ALGO), Internet Computer (ICP), Monero (XRM), Tezos (XTZ), Zcash (ZEC), SushiSwap (SUSHI), THORChain (RUNE), Synthetix (SNX), Enjin (ENJ), 1inch Network (1INCH), Celo (CELO), Yearn.finance (YFI), and Uma (UMA).dYdX triggered its insurance fund to cover users’ trading losses on Nov. 17 after a profitable trade targeting long positions on the YFI token caused the liquidation of positions worth nearly $38 million. dYdX founder Antonio Juliano dubbed the move a "targeted attack" on the exchange. According to him, YFI's open interest in dYdX spiked from $0.8 million to $67 million in a matter of days as a result of the actions of one individual. The same individual, according to Juliano, attempted to attack the SUSHI market on dYdX a few weeks earlier. "We did take action to increase initial margin ratios for $YFI prior to the price crash, but this was ultimately not sufficient. The actor was able to withdraw a good amount of $USDC from dYdX right before the price crash," he wrote. On X, the exchange’s team said that "highly profitable trading strategies have now been banned on dYdX,” in a reference to the language used by Mango Markets’ exploiter Avraham Eisenberg in his $116 million attack of 2022. dYdX is now offering a bounty payment in exchange for valuable information:dYdX will pay bounties to those most helpful in aiding the investigationWe will not pay bounties to, or negotiate with the attackerWe and others have made significant progress into identifying the attacker. We are in the process of reporting the information we have to the FBI— Antonio | dYdX (@AntonioMJuliano) November 19, 2023

The YFI token declined by 43% in just a few hours on Nov. 17 after soaring over 170% in November. The sharp decline wiped out over $300 million in market capitalization from the recent gains, according to data from CoinMarketCap. In the past 30 days, however, the token has still gained over 90%, trading at $9,190 at the time of writing.The Yearn.finance team hasn’t disclosed any official details about the incident. A source familiar with the matter told Cointelegraph that developers on the team do not control the majority of the token supply, strongly refuting initial concerns about a potential scam. The claim is supported by Etherscan data showing large centralized exchanges as YFI top holders.Magazine: Blockchain detectives — Mt. Gox collapse saw birth of Chainalysis

dYdX raises margin requirements in some markets, bans “highly profitable trades”

NHL Breakaway launches with Sweet, a platform for brands to create NFT collectibles under the Ethereum ERC-721 standard on Polygon and the Ethereum mainnet, as well as the Tezos NFT standard.