Not much has changed during these last few days. The crypto market is still holding on to the same digits from last week.
The largest cryptocurrency on the market, Bitcoin (BTC), noted a relatively steady week, considering the severe price downfall since the beginning of August.
At press time, Bitcoin has around 53 percent dominance. During the previous week, most of the digital assets were in the green, with prices gradually rising following the turbulent period they were in.
However, despite these modest market gains, Ethereum (ETH) lost the $300 support, after last week's price fall. The coin continues to trade at a low price point that has not been seen for over nine months.
The total market cap climbed over the $200 billion price point once again and is now standing at $217 billion. Last week, the total market capitalization was gravely shaken, after falling to a nine-month low.
Monero Mining RaaS Princess Evolution Discovered on the Dark Web
Japanese multinational cybersecurity and defense corporation, Trend Micro, located a crypto-malware, displayed as Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) looking for affiliates on the dark web.
The virus was initially detected earlier this month by Trend Micro researchers, after observing malvertising operations which delivered crypto-mining malware.
The virus, called Princess Evolution, is the latest version of Princess Locker, a ransomware that appeared for the first time in 2016. After the virus infects your device, it then begins encrypting your files and later demands ransom for a recovery.
The thing about Princess Evolution is that it spreads malware, but at the same time it distributes a script for mining Monero. This enables hackers not only to infect your files but also to collect revenue from crypto-mining.
RaaS is based on affiliate marketing. It means that third parties distribute the ransomware to their potential victims. Usually, the developers keep 40 percent of the payment, while the affiliates get 60 percent of the ransom.
Currently, a decryptor which might help in dealing with Princess Evolution is not available. However, the ransomware victims are advised to wait instead of paying the ransom to the hackers.
SEC Regulators Warn Retirees About Possible $100 Billion IRA Crypto Fraud
Self-directed Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) have become a popular option for retirees, an issue which raised serious concerns among U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission regulators.
These IRAs provide the possibility of maximizing savings, especially before retirement. They operate through non-traditional assets, usually precious metals or real estate. Nevertheless, from more recently, retirees are converting to cryptocurrency as a potential investment option.
Earlier this month, SEC regulators warned that this $100 billion industry is under the eye of fraudsters, especially when it comes to digital assets.
The director of the SEC's Office of Investor Education and Advocacy, Lori Schock, in a statement to CNBC, explained that for them it's important to raise awareness about the potential risks on this matter.
For now, the agency claims that there still wasn't a case of such crypto-fraud.
Hackers Can Steal Cryptocurrencies Through Your Phone Number
Last week, Michael Terpin, a cryptocurrency investor, filed a $224 million lawsuit against telecommunication company AT&T after being robbed of $24 million in cryptocurrencies.
The U.S. investor accused the corporation of negligence after hackers stole the cryptocurrency through his mobile phone. Terpin believes that AT&T supplied hackers access to his phone number.
The used method is called SIM swapping, which allows hackers to steal cryptocurrencies simply by taking over your number.
Aaron Higbee, the co-founder of anti-phishing company Cofense, explained to CNBC that as long as a mobile number is of sufficient duration, it means that your information can be found in a database somewhere.
With the correct authorization, telecom providers can assign your phone number to any device. This can easily be accomplished, using information such as your social security number. According to Higbee, data is constantly being purchased and sold on the dark web.
SIM Swapping is a process where the victim's number is transferred to a SIM card in ownership of the hacker. Once they get a grasp of it, attackers can use your phone for many purposes, including resetting important passwords and accessing your accounts.
Hacker Ordered to Post Bail in Bitcoins
Martin Marsich, a 25-year-old hacker, was recently ordered by a San Francisco federal court to post bail worth $750,000 in cryptocurrency.
Marsich was arrested in early August for hacking video game industry giant Electronic Arts (more commonly known as EA). The young man infiltrated the company's network and allegedly stole more than $324,000 worth of digital goods. EA is suspecting that Marsich sold the acquired accounts on the dark web.
However, federal authorities and the court ultimately ran into obstacles, only to confirm that using cryptocurrencies in the real world can pose a grave problem, due to their complexity.
The accused is said to be in possession of many smaller cryptocurrencies, rather than a large one such as Bitcoin, and selling them would only cause tremendous market fluctuation.
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation couldn't take the coins into possession, even though they were supposed to be used for compensating EA.
That's it for Dark Web News' summary of the major cryptocurrency news headlines of the week. This is the eighth post in our exclusive crypto news series, which we launched earlier this summer. See previous installments of our weekly crypto market series:
