The crypto market had a turbulent week but is still standing high at $176 billion.
During the past seven days, the major cryptocurrencies according to market cap could be seen both in the red and in the green on the charts.
However, this did not have a negative turn, as most coins had solid gains overall.
Bitcoin is still above the $5,000 price point at press time.
Although this is a new year high for the leading cryptocurrency on the market, some believe that this is not a fair price level.
Fundstrat CEO Tomas Lee, well known to the crypto community, spoke to CNBC about the current price point of Bitcoin.
Lee, who is often bullish about the cryptocurrency, said that the fair price of Bitcoin right now should be $14,000, according to the active Bitcoin addresses and the activity per user since 2013.
However, Bitcoin has a long way to come before it gets to that value.
In the meantime, the other cryptocurrencies are doing well, with Ethereum and Litecoin experiencing some of the highest gains.
In fact, Litecoin rose over 200 percent in value since the start of the year.
At press time, most major coins are unfortunately in the red, but with no significant price declines.
Bitcoin Scammer Jailed in Darknet Phishing Scheme
Michael Richo, 37, was sentenced earlier this week to 12 months and one day in jail for Bitcoin phishing scams.
According to the report released by the U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday, Richo stole approximately $365,000 in Bitcoins and more than 10,000 usernames and passwords from his victims.
The accused stole the cryptocurrency funds from individuals on the dark web, by posting fake links of popular marketplaces on several darknet forums.
The links redirected the victims to fake websites with login pages that were very similar to the real marketplaces.
After the victims were tricked into leaving their usernames and passwords, Richo then stole their credentials and used them to monitor the victims' Bitcoin balance at the real marketplace.
Next, before the victim had the chance to spend them, he withdrew the cryptocurrencies from the accounts and transferred them into his own crypto wallet.
Richo was arrested back in 2016, and a year later he pleaded guilty to money laundering and device fraud.
Darknet Hacking Forum Dark0de Is Back Online
Several years after it was officially shut down, the notorious hacking forum and dark web market Darkode (Dark0de) is back online, this time with new ownership.
According to a report by Forbes, a hacker known as Ownz revealed the information recently, adding that the long-term goal was to turn Dark0de in one of the largest hacking forums.
The forum, according to Ownz, operates similarly to the ways it did before it was shut down and includes all sorts of hacking tools, along with other relevant information and resources.
In 2015, Dark0de was targeted by Europol and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation in an operation that led to 70 arrests and the closure of the site.
This is not the first attempt to restore Darkode.
However, according to Ownz, the latest successful attempt includes over 12,000 members already, with around 1,000 active members on a weekly basis.
The currency of choice for the marketplace is Bitcoin, through which people can buy different tools that vary in price from $200 to $1,000.
4 People Indicted for Selling Drugs on the Dark Web
Four people, including a northern California nurse and three others from Chandler, Arizona, were recently indicted on darknet drug trafficking charges.
The case is a part of a larger federal operation in which 14 people were arrested.
The police found a substantial amount of narcotics and seized almost $2 million in cryptocurrency and more than $400,000 in cash.
The nurse, Carrie Alaine Markis, allegedly ran a darknet pharmacy through her home where she resold fentanyl, hydrocodone, oxycodone and other controlled substances from patients with prescriptions.
After raiding Markis' home, investigators discovered around $1.8 million in cryptocurrency and more than $200,000 in cash.
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That's it for our summary of this week's major crypto news headlines. This is the 41st post in our crypto news series. Catch up on the latest installments here:
