Bitcoin Extortion Plot Executed on Russian Banks
At the present time, Russia and bitcoin seem to go together like peanut butter and cottage cheese. It's not exactly the most wholesome-sounding combination, and right away, our imaginations begin to run rampant. What exactly would such a concoction look like? Even worse, what would it taste like? It's no secret that Russia has not been friendly towards bitcoin in the past. News is flashing abound that the country is still aiming to ban bitcoin activities, and while censorship no longer threatens cryptocurrency-related websites on the same level it once did, the country's government has....
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Five banks in Russia have undergone a DDoS-attack according to Artyom Sychev, Deputy Director of the General Directorate of Security and Information Protection of Russia’s Central Bank. However, the regulator had warned banks in advance about the cyber attack planned for September26. "Last Saturday monitoring channels received information that, obviously, several major financial institutions will be attacked,” said Sychev. “We contacted with banks and gave them the possible details of how the attack will take place.” Banks were able to escape harm as the attack did not affect banking....
The City Court of St. Petersburg has recognized a large amount of cryptocurrency handed over by the victim in an extortion case as a means of payment, Russian media reported. The prosecutor’s office in Russia’s second-largest city describes the ruling as a precedent. Two Men Sentenced for Cryptocurrency Extortion in Russia Two Russian citizens have been sentenced to nine and seven years in prison under strict regime for extorting 5 million rubles (almost $90,000) in cash and 55 million rubles (close to $1 million) in digital assets from another man. In the course of the....
A group of over one dozen Connecticut residents are living in fear these days, as they have had the lives of their families threatened by an extortion plot. It is all over the desire to obtain Bitcoin from Fairfield County residents. The anonymous letters have been received within the last week, and they are threatening to kill the recipient and/or family members unless a Bitcoin ransom is paid by February 13th. Fairfield County law enforcement and the FBI are investigating 14 potential threats, sent to residents' homes in letters postmarked from Austin, Texas and Jacksonville, Florida.....
A Russian university is ready to test its blockchain-based analogue to the global payment messaging network SWIFT, from which Russian banks were cut off as part of Western sanctions. The developers say their system would not allow the disconnecting of countries and banks. Russian Developers Create SWIFT Substitute Using Blockchain Experts from the Competence Center of the National Technology Initiative at the St Petersburg State University in Russia announced they are preparing to trial a new interbank payment system, an alternative to SWIFT. The latter is now inaccessible for major....
Ukraine is now trying to expose cryptocurrency wallets used by politicians in Moscow amid warnings that Russia may employ digital coins to circumvent sanctions. The initiative comes as western allies agree to expel some Russian banks from SWIFT, the global interbank payments system.
Government of Ukraine Seeks Info on Crypto Assets of Russian and Belarusian Officials
Authorities in Kyiv have issued a call on social media for information about crypto wallets controlled by politicians in Russia and Belarus. On Saturday, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov....