Category: Social media

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Crypto News Scams Social media

Elon Musk Buys Twitter Promising to Eradicate Crypto Spam Bots

It’s official, Elon Musk has bought Twitter for US$44 billion and will be taking the social media giant private. Despite various blue check Twitter accounts decrying the move as “dangerous for democracy”, Musk himself has signalled that freedom of speech will reign supreme in the online town square:

An Offer Too Good to Refuse

Under the agreement, shareholders will receive US$54.20 per share, a 38 percent premium on the company’s closing share price as of April 1, which was the last trading day before Musk disclosed his approximately 9 percent stake in Twitter.

The transaction, expected to close later this year, was financed with both debt (US$25.5 billion) and equity (US$21 billion). After initially electing to invoke a “poison pill”, thereby diluting his holdings, Musk responded with a new filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

At the time, Musk said:

I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy. However, since making my investment I now realise the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company.

Elon Musk

Recognising their responsibility to shareholders, the board of directors was ultimately left with little choice but to accept the offer. Bret Taylor, Twitter’s independent board chair, said:

The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon’s proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing. The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter’s stockholders.

Bret Taylor, independent board chair, Twitter

Musk’s Priorities

While some users will be pleased to hear that Musk intends to introduce a much-needed edit button, much of the focus was on freedom of speech: “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” Musk said.

He added: “I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”

Musk provided some additional context at TED 2022, highlighting it was a priority to eliminate the spam bots, which are particularly rife in the crypto industry:

One potential avenue for doing so could be to implement Michael Saylor’s suggestion of integrating the Lightning Network to make the cost of spam and scams economically unfeasible.

In order to engage, users would require an “orange tick”, which they could obtain by posting satoshis as collateral. Any breach of the rules would then result in a ban and loss of the collateral. Saylor outlined this in a recent interview, saying it could put an end to cyber attacks:

The Twitter user experience has undoubtedly been negatively impacted through censorship and the proliferation of spam bots. Hopefully, Musk will be a better custodian of the digital town square than his Silicon Valley predecessors. Initial signs are good.

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Crypto News Payments Polygon Social media

Stripe Tests New Crypto Payments Product Using Twitter and Polygon

Global payment processing giant Stripe has introduced crypto payouts to its Stripe Connect service, partnering with Twitter to pilot the technology before expanding it to other platforms in coming weeks.

The pilot will allow select creators who use Twitter’s monetisation features – such as Ticketed Spaces and Super Follows – to be paid for their content and receive their payouts in crypto via the Polygon network. Stripe has chosen to use the Ethereum scaling solution as the first network to process its crypto payments because of its “low fees, high speed, integration with Ethereum and broad wallet compatibility”.

Initially, Stripe will only support payments in the USDC stablecoin, but this will presumably expand in future as the technology matures and grows beyond Twitter.

Aim is to Streamline Traditional Payment Systems

In the announcement, Stripe’s product manager of crypto, Karan Sharma, cited the complexity and heterogeneity of traditional payment systems as a key factor in the decision to integrate crypto payments into Stripe Connect:

While we are continuously expanding our geographic coverage, many countries remain out of reach in part due to the intrinsic complexity involved in supporting heterogeneous local payments systems. Unfortunately, this makes participation in the online economy harder for many of those who stand to benefit most.

Karan Sharma, Stripe product manager, crypto

Stripe to Handle ‘Crypto-Related Complexity’

Twitter already uses Stripe Connect to handle payouts to creators, so the addition of crypto payments should be smooth. 

Stripe will handle all the “crypto-related complexity and operations” and no code changes will be required by Twitter. Nor will it have to worry about acquiring, storing or transferring crypto – Stripe will handle all of these functions. In addition, Stripe will perform all the required Know Your Customer (KYC) checks.

Stripe plans to support crypto payouts via Stripe Connect in more than 120 countries by the end of 2022.

Twitter Expands Range of Payments

Twitter is enthusiastic about offering creators more payment options and potentially expanding the range of users who can take advantage of its monetisation products:

As the Elon Musk takeover is now confirmed, this news marks the latest move by Twitter towards greater crypto adoption, having already rolled out Bitcoin tipping and Ethereum tipping for creators in the past few months.

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Australia Banking Scams Social media

Commonwealth Bank Issues Scam Alert Over False Crypto Platform Partnership Report

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) issued a scam alert this week to notify the public about a false article circulating on social media sites such as Facebook that claims the bank has partnered with a crypto trading platform. 

CBA emphasises that the claims made in the story are “totally false and untrue”.

The fake story purports to be from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and is designed to exploit people’s trust in, and familiarity with, CBA’s brand and convince them to click through to the scammer’s website. Once on the scammer’s website, users are asked to enter personal information and transfer money.

CBA encourages anyone who receives the scam article through any channel – be it social media, email or text message – not to respond or click on any associated links.

In addition to warning its customers directly, the CBA has reported the scam to all relevant authorities and has asked social media sites to remove the story from their platforms.

CBA’s Genuine Interest in Crypto May Confuse Readers

The scammers may have chosen to use the CBA brand in their fake news story partly because the bank has been particularly enthusiastic about crypto of late.

Last month, CBA said it intended to invest heavily in crypto-related services and just weeks ago its crypto trading app, the first offered by an Australian bank, was delayed due to regulatory hurdles following a successful beta.

Categories
Crypto News Dogecoin Social media

Robinhood CEO Mocked for Saying Doge ‘Could Become Currency of the Internet’

Vlad Tenev, chief executive of US-based brokerage Robinhood, has been mercilessly mocked for his assertion that Dogecoin could become the native currency of the internet:

Tenev Wades into Hostile Waters

Tenev took to Twitter to share his thoughts on what it would take for Doge to become the base layer of value on the internet.

His initial claim relates to transaction fees, saying that they have to be “vanishingly small”. He continues to say that, fortunately, Doge is “already there” compared to the 1-3 percent network fees that major card networks charge.

He then turns to block time, saying that at one minute, Doge’s current throughput is sub-optimal for competing with Visa’s 65,000 transactions per second. However, says Tenev, “Fortunately, this is easy to solve simply by increasing the block size limit.”

While critics may be concerned that an increased block size would come at the expense of decentralisation, Tenev believes that the increased throughput is “actually a fair tradeoff”.

Under-fire Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev. Source: CNN

Finally, he dismisses criticisms of Doge’s inflationary monetary policy and indeterminate hard cap supply limit by saying that it is less than the US dollar, and further, that “the inflation rate actually declines over time, and in a couple of decades it will be below 2 percent”.

Where to Begin?

You’d imagine that Robinhood would have earned some goodwill from the Bitcoin community following its recent Lightning Network announcement. However, the Twitter thread seemingly touched a nerve given all Tenev’s assertions have been thoroughly addressed as far back as 2017 during the infamous “Blocksize Wars”.

Some described the thread as “embarrassing”:

Image
Tenev’s assertions were viewed as clownlike. Source: @ShcoobyS

Others, however, questioned Tenev’s motives by “following the money”:

And perhaps Twitter user @1971Bubble has a point. Last year, Crypto News Australia reported that Robinhood’s Q3 crypto revenue had declined by 78 percent, largely due to Dogecoin.

For anyone paying attention between 2017 and now, it’s self-evident that Tenev’s assertions are misguided at best, and at worst, smack of self-interest. In the end, the saga was neatly summed up by Bitcoin proponent Mike Alfred, who offered Tenev some unsolicited advice:

Categories
Crypto News NFTs Social media

Dorsey’s First Tweet Lists for $48 Million But Gets Top Bid of $10,000

In determining the value of any asset, including NFTs, price is arguably the arbiter of truth. What, then, to make of an NFT of Jack Dorsey’s first tweet receiving a highest bid at just a fraction of its asking price?

‘Like the Mona Lisa’

Controversial entrepreneur Sina Estavi purchased Jack Dorsey’s first tweet (below) as an NFT in March 2021 for US$2.9 million. At the time, Estavi defiantly told naysayers:

Jack Dorsey’s first tweet NFT. Source: Opensea

Last Thursday, he then announced on Twitter that he wished to sell the NFT, and pledged 50 percent of its proceeds (which he thought would exceed US$25 million) to charity:

Dorsey, who since resigning from Twitter has been far more inclined to express what he really thinks, tweeted:

The auction closed April 13, with just seven total offers ranging from 0.09 ETH (US$277 at current prices) to 0.0019 ETH (almost $6). After opening the auction up again, at the time of writing bids on OpenSea had risen to US$10,882.40. Still, not quite the return on investment expected.

NFT Market Losing Steam

Last year, NFT was the word of the year, but this year the smart money may be more inclined to short it.

In 2021, brands could casually ride the NFT trend with success, but those late to the party, such as Liverpool Football Club, have encountered firm market resistance. As reported by Crypto News Australia last week, only 6 percent of the “LFC Heroes Club” NFT collection sold, making it one of the more spectacular failures in recent memory.

In the reality television series Survivor, host Jeff Probst utters the immortal words “the tribe has spoken” as castaways are voted off the island. In the context of Dorsey’s tweet, perhaps another tribe has spoken, so to speak.

Categories
Crypto News NFTs Secret Social media

Director Kevin Smith Slammed on Twitter After Announcing First-Ever NFT Minted Film

Filmmaker Kevin Smith (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy) and his co-producers have partnered with blockchain platform Secret Network to launch Smith’s latest project, a horror anthology titled KillRoy Was Here, exclusively as an NFT.

Filmmaker Kevin Smith. Source: JoBlo.com

This represents the first time a movie will be minted as a non-fungible token, though the news has been roundly greeted with derision from sections of the Twittersphere displaying obvious signs of NFT fatigue.

Is This the Real Kevin Smith?

“Unless I am wrong, NFTs are still bad and wrong and useless and a scam, and literally bad for the environment,” tweeted @SiggyRod. “Is this Kevin Smith posting or a representative from a contract he was unaware of?” Others were far less polite:

Other, more succinct reactions included: “gross”, “no”, “please stop”, “this is the bad place”, “insanely disappointing”, “bad look, Kev” and the almost poignant “this makes me sad”.

A rare voice of reason amid the tumult – albeit suspiciously seeming to be aligned with the project – belonged to @TorBair, who tweeted:

On Twitter, we can expect animosity towards NFTs. If this is you – PLEASE look into this more deeply. Secret NFTs are NOT the same as any NFTs that have come before. We’re trying to establish a real connection for artists with audiences.

@TorBair via Twitter

Privacy Preserved on Secret Network

Secret Network, the first blockchain with data privacy by default for smart contracts, allows users to build and use applications that are both permissionless and privacy-preserving. This unique functionality protects users, secures applications, and unlocks hundreds of never-before-possible use cases for Web3.

Last year, Secret launched NFTs from another indie filmmaker who first made his name in the ’90s: Quentin Tarantino, whose Pulp Fiction collection spawned controversy and lawsuits.

However, Smith’s Secret NFTs won’t be based on dusty old film artifacts. Instead, the project will mint 5,555 NFT collectibles, each serving as an exclusive pass to watch the film and access bonus features. Secret NFTs are configured with hidden information that can only be viewed by each respective NFT owner.

The NFT launch will take place in Q2 on Secret’s Legendao platform. For further information, visit: legendao.io/artist/kevin-smith.

Categories
Facebook Social media Stablecoins

Meta (Facebook) Turns to ‘Zuck Bucks’ in Latest Virtual Currency Move

Since offloading its failed Diem stablecoin intellectual property and rebranding to Meta, Facebook is looking to introduce non-blockchain-based virtual tokens and loans as it seeks new revenue sources against a backdrop of fierce competition in the social media landscape.

Virtual Currencies Dubbed ‘Zuck Bucks’

According to a report by the Financial Times, Facebook is exploring the creation of non-blockchain-based virtual currencies which employees internally have dubbed “Zuck Bucks”. Unlike Diem, its doomed blockchain stablecoin project, Meta is said to be leaning towards in-app tokens centrally controlled by the company, much like those used in gaming apps such as the Robux currency in popular gaming platform Roblox.

The company is also considering rewards for users who contribute meaningfully on its platforms – for example, within Facebook groups you may have “social tokens” or “reputation tokens”. Instagram by contrast could have “creator coins”.

Meta Looks to New Revenue Streams

Amid declining profits and users, as well as competition from TikTok, Facebook has of late increasingly turned to other revenue streams for future growth.

In addition to creating a token economy, the US$600 billion social network behemoth is also considering traditional financial services, such as loans for small to medium-sized enterprises. Details, however, remain sparse:

We have no updates to share today. We continuously consider new product innovations for people, businesses, and creators. As a company, we are focused on building for the metaverse and that includes what payments and financial services might look like.

Spokesperson for Meta (unnamed)

Moves to introduce non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are more advanced, as founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg recently confirmed plans to integrate NFTs into Instagram in the “near term”.

As news broke of Facebook’s latest attempt to remain in the social media driver’s seat, Twitter was awash with criticism of both Facebook and the controversial founder himself:

At this stage, it’s too soon to tell whether these initiatives will dilute the company’s growth efforts or otherwise accelerate it towards new heights. Time will be the arbiter.

Categories
Crypto News DeFi NFTs Social media Surveys

Twitter Marketing Report: Crypto and NFT Topics Explode 240%

Twitter Trends 2022 has given us the statistics on the hottest topics on Twitter and has revealed some interesting, but not surprising, results. For instance, talk about non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and crypto topics in general has surged an astonishing 242 percent.

The Twitter report’s findings suggest that the three top trends are:

  • “The Great Restoration”, healing the planet by healing ourselves;
  • “Fan-built Worlds”, digital communities calling the shots; and
  • “Finance Goes Social”, speaking to many of the Gen Z and Millennial population getting into investing – especially in digital assets.

300 Million Tweets About Crypto in the Past Three Months

Twitter users alone have posted almost 300 million tweets regarding digital assets. Twitter’s report revealed its biggest trends over the past two years, and finance – including digital assets – is number one on the list. Financial tweets have gone up by 78 percent year-over-year among average users, meaning the subject has gained traction even among non-professionals who do not work in the industry.

Money matters used to be closely held secrets of the few. But these days, a new crowd’s getting in on the action – and having fun.

Twitter Trends 2022

The most talked-about crypto topics on Twitter include Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple, followed by Cardano, DeFi, Coinbase and Binance.

Discussions of topics such as stablecoins, NFT marketplaces, decentralised apps and decentralised exchanges have ballooned by 242 percent – with DAOs another hot topic under the heading of “user-empowered communities”.

Some Words of Wisdom from Twitter

Twitter offered some advice to businesses and content creators recommending finding ways to make a brand more entertaining, exciting and inclusive. And while companies are dropping NFTs left, right and centre, the social network encourages giving a greater deal of thought to why digital assets are being offered in the first place:

“Don’t blindly jump on the NFT bandwagon – create something that’s meaningful to your community. For example, a sportswear brand didn’t just drop a logo NFT, they put their gear on the hottest NFT avatars to connect two passions their fans care about.”

Seems the NFT Bubble Has Burst (For Now)

The NFT bubble might have finally burst, with weekly NFT sales trending downward and interest in the sector dropping 45 percent over a 30-day period in late January and February 2022. Worldwide Google Trends data shows that interest plunged 45 percent in terms of internet searches. During the second week of January, the search query “NFT” sat comfortably at 100, the highest trend score a query can register, but by early March had dropped almost half to a score of 55.

Categories
Australia Crime Cryptocurrency Law Facebook Scams Social media

Australian Consumer Watchdog Sues Meta Over Crypto Scam Ads

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced it will be suing Meta over the company’s failure to block crypto scam advertisements involving Australian public figures that are in breach of Australian consumer law.

person holding silver iphone 6 https://unsplash.com/photos/iurEAyYyU_c
ACCC takes action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram. Source: ABC

False Endorsements of Crypto Investments

Dick Smith, David Koch and Andrew Forrest are some of the prominent Australian personalities unwittingly involved in a series of crypto scam ads circulating on Facebook. The ads claim that the featured celebrities have hugely benefited from cryptocurrency investments, then direct users to scam websites on the strength of these false endorsements.

The consumer watchdog believes that Meta is not doing enough to prevent the circulation of these ads on both Facebook and Instagram. The personalities in the ads have not given any permission for their names and faces to be used in the money-making schemes, and users who have engaged with this material have reportedly been the victims of intense pressure tactics, including phone calls asking for funds.

Rod Sims, the ACCC’s chair, outlined his disappointment with Meta’s lack of action and solutions in a March 18 media release:

https://www.accc.gov.au/media/image-library

Meta should have been doing more to detect and then remove false or misleading ads on Facebook, to prevent consumers from falling victim to ruthless scammers.

ACCC chair Rod Sims

Sims stated that in one circumstance an individual consumer lost A$650,000 to one of these scams. The ACCC will be seeking injunctions, penalties, declarations, costs, and other orders from Meta to ensure the practice does not continue.

Australia Cracks Down on Crypto Scams

News of the ACCC’s legal action against Meta follows an investigation into how Australians lost over A$70 million in 2021 through investment scams alone.

Scamwatch reported in July last year that investment scams involving cryptocurrency and other digital assets were on the rise. Other prominent fraud-related practices have included romance scams, personal identity theft and illegal crypto mining.

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Coinbase Crypto News Hackers Scams Social media

Scam Alert: Beware of Telegram Bots Stealing Your Crypto with One-Time Passwords

Hackers are using Telegram bots to trick users into handing them access to their cryptocurrency accounts. One US citizen lost US$106,000 after a fake phone call from a bot pretending to be from crypto exchange Coinbase.

One-time password (OTP) bots are specifically made for hackers. The customer only needs to enter the victim’s phone number and name, and the bot uses these credentials to stage a phone call posing as a crypto exchange or bank.

Customers pay a monthly fee to use the authentication code to operate the bot. Some services cost US$300 per month and provide additional tools at fees ranging from $20 to $100 for more live phishing panels.

Screenshot of bot. Source: Intel471

The image above is an example of an OTP bot in action, named SMS Buster. According to intelligence firm Intel471, these bots are “remarkably easy to use” and relatively cheap considering the amount of money hackers can pull out:

SMS Buster requires a bit more effort from an actor in order to obtain account information. The bot provides options to disguise a call to make it appear as a legitimate contact from a specific bank while letting the attackers choose to dial from any phone number. From there, an attacker could follow a script to track a victim into providing sensitive details such as an ATM personal identification number (PIN), card verification value (CVV) and OTP, which could then be sent to an individual’s Telegram account. The bot, used by attackers targeting Canadian victims, gives users the chance to launch attacks in French and English.

Intel471 blog post

Obstetrician Loses $100k

As per a CNBC report, American obstetrician Dr Anders Apgar fell victim to one of these bots after receiving a phone call that seemed legitimate to him, along with a series of banner notifications on his phone informing him his Coinbase account was in jeopardy.

The bot tricked Apgar into thinking his account was in potential danger, prompting him to enter an OTP code generated by his phone’s mobile app. The code was then forwarded back to the bot’s customer, giving him access to Apgar’s funds, which contained US$106,000 in bitcoin.

A Coinbase representative told CNBC it would never make unsolicited calls to customers:

Coinbase will never make unsolicited calls to its customers, and we encourage everyone to be cautious when providing information over the phone. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from a financial institution, do not disclose any of your account details or security codes. Instead, hang up and call them back at an official phone number listed on the organisation’s website.

Coinbase representative

Beware of OTP Bots

OTP bots have become popular among hackers as they’re easy to use and profitable. Profitable because most sites and online services use the 2FA (two-factor authentication) model, which requires the user to supply both a password and a verification code (the OTP).

The 2FA model was widely embraced by most websites to protect their users’ accounts. Even if hackers have a user’s password, they still need to enter the verification code sent to the mobile device in order to access the account.

We saw a similar threat two weeks ago, when Crypto News Australia reported about an information-stealing malware called “Mars Stealer”, targeting more than 40 crypto hot wallets, browsers and 2FA plug-ins. .