After hitting a new low last week, the crypto market is slowly recovering, despite some minor drawbacks throughout these last few days.
Falling under the $190 billion price point, the total market cap hit this year's new low.
However, following the next few days, the number managed to reach $200 billion.
The coins were mostly in the green, but without any drastic changes in price.
Bitcoin (BTC) was struggling to stay close to the $6,500 mark while Ethereum (ETH) recovered from the price leap that was not seen for over a year and is currently standing above the $200 price point.
BTC lost in market dominance and its current rate of the total market capitalizations lies at around 55 percent.
Tim Draper, a venture capital investor, has optimistic predictions for the crypto market.
Draper, speaking at the PE-VC Summit in Singapore, compared this market to the internet in its early days, claiming that in the next 15 years the total market cap could reach up to $80 trillion.
According to him, these recent market slides are the result of people who are not familiar with cryptocurrencies, and once they adapt to it, many global industries would transform.
Europol Warns on Terrorist Cyberattacks Via the Dark Web
The terrorist organization Daesh could turn to launching cyberattacks, warns the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol).
Their annual report suggests that Daesh is possibly using the dark web to buy malware that would assist in these attacks.
With the terrorist organization losing many territories in the Middle East lately, it is plausible that they may turn to cyberattacks instead.
According to the report, Daesh-affiliated organizations have previously been the cause of many low-level cyberattacks.
Extremist networks are known to use the dark web, as well as encrypted messaging systems to communicate and recruit other members.
They usually purchase illicit malware with cryptocurrencies, as an easy way to go unseen on the internet. They also use digital assets to easily move funds across borders.
Suspect in Huazhu Data Breach Arrested
A suspect linked to the enormous hotel data breach targeting Huazhu Group Ltd., which occurred at the end of last month, has been arrested, Reuters reported this week.
The Chinese hotel chain was a subject of cybercrime, one that compromised the information of nearly 500 million customers that have stayed in their hotels.
The data was listed on the dark web for the price of 8 Bitcoins or approximately $50,000.
Chinese police detained the 30-year old suspect last Wednesday before he was able to complete the sale of the information from this data breach.
The stolen data consisted of registration and booking records, as well as personal information about Huazhu's guests.
As the investigation continues, the company has refused to reveal further information. After the data breach, Huazhu Group faced a 22 percent stock share drop.
The cyberattack is considered to be one of the largest recorded in history.
Illicit Mining Activity Increases by Almost 500 Percent
Cryptocurrency mining malware detections have increased by 459 percent over one year, shows a report [PDF] released by the Cyber Threat Alliance (CTA) this week.
The problem has taken a different turn, turning into a global issue with no intentions of slowing down.
While 2017 was characterized by the threat of ransomware, the main problem this year is cryptocurrency mining malware.
Hackers are able to illegally generate cryptocurrencies by exploiting Eternal Blue, a tool targeting Microsoft software allegedly leaked from the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) in 2017.
This sparked the rise of illicit mining activity. The leaked loophole has also been used in heavy cyberattacks, including the WannaCry and NotPetya malware outbreaks.
Around 85 percent of the total crypto malware mining detections were targeting Monero, one of the most preferred privacy coins.
U.S. Court Seized Millions in Crypto from Founder of AlphaBay
After more than a year, a U.S. district court concluded the civil forfeiture case to seize the assets of Alexandre Cazes, admin of the presently defunct darknet market AlphaBay.
In July 2017, Cazes was arrested in Thailand on several charges including drug trafficking, money laundering and fraud.
The alleged AlphaBay creator died by suicide shortly after the arrest.
His fortune was estimated to a net worth of $23 million, including real estate and expensive vehicles.
Over $8 million was in cryptocurrency, with 1,605.05 BTC, 8,309.27 ETH, 3,691.98 ZEC and a still unknown amount of Monero.
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That's it for our summary of this week's major crypto news headlines. This is the 12th post in our new crypto news series. See previous installments here:
