Tagged: fbi

October 21, 2022 @ 8:22 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Binance.US, the U.S. partner to the largest crypto exchange and “America’s home” to buy, sell, trade, convert and stake digital assets, announced the appointment of former Federal Bureau of Investigation agent, BJ Kang, “as the company’s first Head of Investigations.” In this role, BJ will… Read More

August 31, 2022 @ 10:00 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] is warning investors that cybercriminals are “increasingly exploiting vulnerabilities in decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms to steal cryptocurrency, causing investors to lose money.” The FBI has “observed cybercriminals exploiting vulnerabilities in the smart contracts governing DeFi platforms to steal investors’… Read More

July 25, 2022 @ 8:20 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The FBI recently issued a Public Service Announcement to “warn American citizens about a cryptocurrency scam using an investment strategy called Liquidity Mining in which scammers exploit owners of cryptocurrency, typically Tether (USDT) and/or Ethereum (ETH).” The scammer “builds a professional or personal relationship with… Read More

July 21, 2022 @ 8:32 pm By JD Alois  |  

As was reported earlier today, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges in regards to a former Coinbase manager and allegations of insider trading that involved two other perpetrators. The SEC noted that criminal charges have been simultaneously filed in the Southern District… Read More

July 2, 2022 @ 7:48 pm By JD Alois  |  

Ruja Ignatova, founder of OneCoin and sometimes referenced as the Cryptoqueen, is in the news again – this time for joining a very exclusive club – the FBI’s Most Wanted List. Ignatova is accused of having defrauded investors out of $4 billion via her company… Read More

June 2, 2022 @ 10:55 am By JD Alois  |  

A former employee of OpenSea (Ozone Networks, Inc.) has been arrested and charged with the first-ever digital asset insider trading scheme, according to the US Department of Justice (DOJ). Nathanial Chastain a former Product Manager at OpenSea has been charged with wire fraud, and money… Read More

May 15, 2022 @ 12:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested Eddy Alexandre, operator of the crypto and Forex trading platform EminiFX, regarding allegations of a $59 million fraud. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Alexandre allegedly committed commodities and wire fraud soliciting over $59 million from… Read More

February 27, 2022 @ 1:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The FBI Cyber Division notes that cyber threat actors have recently “deployed destructive malware” against organizations operating in Ukraine. The FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency noted in an extensive update that “leading up to Russia’s unprovoked attack against Ukraine, threat actors deployed destructive… Read More

February 18, 2022 @ 11:42 am By JD Alois  |  

SIM Swap fraud has been prevalent for years now targeting both traditional financial services as well as crypto investments. The scam is where a criminal hijacks your mobile phone by using a new SIM card affiliated with your phone number. Once accomplished, two-factor authentication goes… Read More

February 14, 2022 @ 10:57 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Stephen Palley. Partner, Anderson Kill. Chair, Technology, Media & Distributed Systems Group, noted that an FBI agent once told (with “false modesty to be sure”) that their biggest breaks often “come not from law enforcement genius but from mistakes by their targets.” Palley further noted… Read More

February 9, 2022 @ 8:35 am By Omar Faridi  |  

On August 2, 2016, Bitfinex – notably one of the largest virtual currency exchanges in the world – experienced a massive security breach. In a span of fewer than two hours, around 120,000 Bitcoins (BTC) had been stolen from Bitfinex and spread across 2,075 different… Read More

November 8, 2021 @ 3:37 pm By JD Alois  |  

Alleged perpetrators of the ransomware attack on, Kaseya – an IT firm that helped systems administrators manage large networks, have been charged by the US Department of Justice for the attack. This case is part of the Department of Justice’s Ransomware and Digital Extortion Task… Read More

June 17, 2021 @ 7:26 am By Omar Faridi  |  

On June 7, 2021, the US Department of Justice announced that they had managed to seize 63.69 BTC (valued at around $2.5 million) of the 75 BTC ransom Colonial Pipeline was forced to pay to DarkSide. This ransom recovery is notably the very first undertaken… Read More

June 8, 2021 @ 8:53 am By JD Alois  |  

The Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack caused incredible disruptions to the US economy costing businesses and consumers millions of dollars in lost productivity. As the price of gas rose, and people queued up at stations waiting on the dwindling supply due to the malfeasance, the perpetrators,… Read More

April 7, 2021 @ 3:35 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Gurvais Grigg recently revealed why he joined blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis as its Global Public Sector CTO after working for over two decades at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), most recently as Assistant Director of the FBI Laboratory. In his new role, Grigg will… Read More

March 17, 2021 @ 10:25 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Six New Hampshire residents are reportedly facing federal indictment because of an elaborate scheme that allowed people to exchange over $10 million for digital currencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). The US District Court indictment alleges that the co-conspirators had tricked or deceived financial… Read More

March 5, 2021 @ 12:44 pm By JD Alois  |  

John David McAfee, a well-known crypto proponent and founder of the McAfee antivirus firm, has been indicted in Federal court for fraud and money laundering. According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, McAfee and Jimmy Gale Watson, Jr,… Read More

February 17, 2021 @ 3:58 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Department of Justice has announced an indictment of three North Korean hackers said to be involved with the Korean military regarding   to cyberattacks and financial including theft of money and cryptocurrency.  The indictment is an expansion of a 2018 case outlining similar nefarious… Read More

December 13, 2020 @ 7:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

Russian hackers have apparently breached defenses at the US Department of Treasury monitoring emails for months, according to a report. Treasury was not alone, according to Reuters, the US Department of Commerce reportedly issued a statement on the breach to their systems: “We have asked… Read More

October 8, 2020 @ 8:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

Attorney General William P. Barr announced today the publication of the “Cryptocurrency: An Enforcement Framework.” The publication was created by Barr’s Cyber-Digital Task Force. The document outlines the Department of Justice’s approach to crypto and its challenges. The Framework states: “… despite its relatively brief… Read More