Author: Michael Gu

  • Chinese ICO Platform, ICO.info temporarily suspends operations

    Chinese ICO Platform, ICO.info temporarily suspends operations

    The ICO platform, ico.info made an announcement today to voluntarily suspend its current operations. A notice on the website stated that new ICOs will not go online, however successful ICOs will receive tokens as planned. ICO has launched more than 10 ICOs in the past few months, including Press.One – a publishing website that will be built on the EOS platform.  Many of the ICOs were so popular on the ico.info platform that users complained they couldn’t get in on any of them.

    This news follows the recent rumors of increased government restrictions and regulations with regards to raising money through crowd sales. There have been rumors of official guidance for token sales along with official government tweets about stopping ICO related events. So far nothing concrete has been issued, however, this has prompted websites like ico.info to preemptively stop its activities and redpulse to stop accepting funds from Chinese Citizens.

     Suspension duration

    The biggest question now is what will happen to the future of ICOs in China. Currently, it’s not known exactly how long this suspension will last. One thing for sure is that they need to clarify this issue with relevant departments and they need to wait for the new policies be drafted. At this current point, deposits will not be credited to the site.

    ICO.info previous successful projects:

  • Segwit Activation and Bitcoin Future with Jimmy Song

    Segwit Activation and Bitcoin Future with Jimmy Song

    Hi guys! I’m going to interview Jimmy Song (with Ivan on Tech), a vocal Bitcoin Developer and Entrepreneur about Segwit and the future of Bitcoin. Do you guys have any suggestions for interview questions?

    I would like to ask the boxminingmedeveloper.temp927.kinsta.cloudmunity if you have any questions to ask Jimmy (concerns over Bitcoin Scaling etc).

    Video will go live on July 19th Wednesday 8 pm CST
    (view from link below, will also be cast on Ivan’s channel)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7NbMJqUnEQ

    Comments and suggestions:
    https://docs.google.com/document/d/1az8gtlpBRKXUOEyzPIv_kuy9d6AXY04ffm4Y9zX_lLk/edit?usp=sharing

    Objectives:
    Scenarios for Aug 1st
    Dispel some rumors / false information that is spreading in the bitcoin community
    Theme: Will Aug 1st Lead to a Better Bitcoin?

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    Questions

    1. Tell us about yourself How did you get into Bitcoin
    2. Why do we need to fix Bitcoin Scaling? (eg. currently, a large number of transactions create higher fees)
    3. Optimistic Scenario – Locking mechanism etc
    4. Failed Scenario – Betray and chain split
    5. Practical: what do “regular” people absolutely need to know until the August the 1st? For example: is it safe to transact during that time etc.. (pamblancopainting.com)
    6. How do we think we can heal the wounds and get everyone working together again
    7. What misconceptions do you want to dispel – what do you think people get most confused about

    References

    https://medium.com/@jimmysong
    Latest Post: https://medium.com/@jimmysong/uasf-segwit2x-scenarios-and-timelines-1a540336c4be

  • Ethereum Wallet Scams and Phishing

    Ethereum Wallet Scams and Phishing

    It is well known that during a panicked state, high brain function stops and we are more vulnerable to scams. The current market dips definitely have an emotional toll and scammers are exploiting its. Scammers are using our weakened states to trick us into accidentally revealing our ethereum wallets and other logins. The most common form of the scam is the usage of fake websites, known as phishing attacks. These websites are malicious and will attempt to steal the keys to your wallet and take ALL of your hard earned crypto currency. For example:

    This is a screenshot of a scam trying to disguise a fake website as MyEtherWallet. MyEtherWallet.com is safe, but the thieves managed to make an exact clone. The clone looks EXACTLY the same, but with one key difference, if you input your key and password, it will send that to thief and they will gain complete access to your account.

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    Beware of the familiar

    Many of these attempts use familiar sounding names and use exact replicas of websites. This is why people fall for them EVEN though they have been warned or are vigilant. Sometimes we are distracted and accidentally click on it, then go through the mechanical motion of logging in with our private key.

    “PLEASE NOTE: These links do NOT take you to MyEtherWallet. If you hover over the link it will redirect you to: “myetherwallet.ch, .tech, .com.de, etc.” Basically anything other than the official site!”

    Fake emails

    Whilst has been warned many times, it takes one time of dropping our guard before getting caught. Many emails are innocent and disguise themselves as warnings or informational articles.

    Remember to stay vigilant, consider using well stored paper wallets or hardware wallets.

  • South Korea to Legalize and Regulate Bitcoin

    South Korea to Legalize and Regulate Bitcoin

    Law makers in South Korea are planning to Legalize Bitcoin with 3 Draft plans in the works

    “Park Yong-jin, a lawmaker and member of the country’s ruling Democratic Party is drawing up three revisions this month to build a regulatory framework for digital currencies.”

    If this move is similar to the legalization of Bitcoin in Japan that occurred earlier this year. In fact, Bitcoin is so popular in Japan that the Japanese Airline Peach is accepting Bitcoin as an official source of payment.

    Another Korean Official, the FSC chairman Yim Jong-yong stated:

    The government will push for the systemization of digital currency on a full scale in tandem with a global trend in the U.S., Japan and other countries.

    Legalization of Bitcoin is both good for users and the government – so long as there aren’t too many restrictions.

    South Korea Loves Cryptocurrencies

    South Korea was a major factor behind the rising price of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Steem and DASH last month, with the South Korean Exchanges Bithumb and Coinone dominating the trade volume ranks. In addition, South Korea was paying MORE for cryptocurrencies than anywhere else in the world. For many coins, South Koreans were paying 10% extra! One of the reasons behind this is because of the extremely high demand for Crypto and the restrictions on transferring the Korean won out of the country – hence access to Poloniex is more limited. (https://mrbonespumpkinpatch.com)

    Law makers in South Korea are planning to Legalize Bitcoin with 3 Draft plans in the works

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    “Park Yong-jin, a lawmaker and member of the country’s ruling Democratic Party is drawing up three revisions this month to build a regulatory framework for digital currencies.”

    If this move is similar to the legalization of Bitcoin in Japan that occurred earlier this year. In fact, Bitcoin is so popular in Japan that the Japanese Airline Peach is accepting Bitcoin as an official source of payment.

    Another Korean Official, the FSC chairman Yim Jong-yong stated:

    The government will push for the systemization of digital currency on a full scale in tandem with a global trend in the U.S., Japan and other countries.

    Legalization of Bitcoin is both good for users and the government – so long as there aren’t too many restrictions.

    South Korea Loves Cryptocurrencies

    South Korea was a major factor behind the rising price of Bitcoin, Ethereum, Steem and DASH last month, with the South Korean Exchanges Bithumb and Coinone dominating the trade volume ranks. In addition, South Korea was paying MORE for cryptocurrencies than anywhere else in the world. For many coins, South Koreans were paying 10% extra! One of the reasons behind this is because of the extremely high demand for Crypto and the restrictions on transferring the Korean won out of the country – hence access to Poloniex is more limited.

  • Segwit in Easy to Understand Terms

    Segwit in Easy to Understand Terms

    Now that Segwit has been locked in for Litecoin. it’s about time to take a closer look at what Segwit is and how it improves Litecoin. Here is a very brief introduction of what Segwit – it is please forgive me if it’s a little bit too simplistic but I want to try to summarize it in very easy to understand terms.

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    What is Segwit?

    If you consider of Bitcoin miners as accountants that process all the transactions that happen on the network and bundles them up into a ledger called the blockchain. Then the Segwit is a change to the ledger.  Think of it as a tax form.  It’s the act of removing of a signature from the form and placing it into a separate form. That’s all it is. Segregation of witness – the removal the signature on a form and placing it elsewhere. By taking out the signature, you create additional room on the ledger to fit more transactions.

    Why Adopt Segwit?

    Segwit is vital for the Bitcoin network where transactions are taking a long time because there isn’t enough room on each ledger (block) to place all the transactions. Litecoin doesn’t have this problem. Instead, Segwit was adopted to allow for technologies such as the Lightning Network.

    Segwit is a technological upgrade, and I can see why miners will go crazy over this. Especially when miners are the ones who decide to adopt this or not. Consider like an association of tax accounts trying to approve a new form. Accountants don’t like each other already, and they must all agree on a substantial change to a tax form. It turns out for Litecoin it was possible to persuade the miners to agree with each other, whilst for Bitcoin, it’s not yet possible as there is much more drama.

    The Post-Segwit World

    Now that Segwit is locked in for Litecoin, there are substantial changes in currency price (generally in the upward direction). Of course, must take this with a slight grain of salt. Litecoin prices are susceptible to financial manipulations such as the good old pump and dump.  Litcoin is getting a lot of media attention. This means there will be a lot of new investors that still don’t understand the consequences of Segwit or how Lightning Networks work. Some will overvalue it while others are indifferent. The most important thing is to understand what Segwit is and learn more about the Lightning Network.

  • Humaniq Review- Brilliant idea, poor execution

    What is Humaniq

    Humaniq is an attempt to give the 2 billion people on the planet without access to banking. Banking is especially important in developing countries, as it allows people to buy crucial items such as seeds, stoves, solar panels and even food. Currently, the reason why 2 billion people don’t have access to banking is due to a lack of a way to identify the candidates. Without proper identification, the system is prone to scams. Humaniq tries to solve this problem using blockchain (bitcoin) technology in combination with a biometric ID system.

    Humaniq Initial Coin Offering (ICO)

    Currently, Humaniq is attempting to raise money for their project in the form of an initial coin offering (ICO). This is a crowdsourcing strategy where the public is asked to contribute Bitcoin or Ethereum to the project in return for Humaniq currency (HMQ).

    Why is the concept of Humaniq Amazing

    Humaniq solves a few crucial problems that are facing financial systems.

    • Easy of Account Creation – Currently to create bank accounts, banks require passports and other official documentation which might not be available everyone. Humaniq requires biometric ID and can bypass this issue.
    • Accountability – Blockchain technology allows us to track where the currency is being transferred with absolute transparency. This is a great for preventing scams – eg, users can verify if money load is indeed going for the purchase of seeds and not weapons.
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    Major problems for Humaniq

    There is one major kink in Humaniq’s plan – the technology required achieve accurate biometric ID using smartphones don’t exist yet. The current Humaniq app uses Photo ID which is vulnerable to hacks using photos of the account owner.

    We tried the Humaniq app and managed to access other user’s accounts accidentally when login in via facial recognition.

    An argument could be made that the Humaniq white paper details a much better method for Biometric ID, using a combination of voice and facial movement to add layers of security. Whilst this sounds good, such a system has never been successfully built.

    Companies such as Intel, Microsoft, Samsung, and Apple have all thrown millions at solving the identity verification system with no perfect solution. This problem is beyond the scope of a small team of engineers with small amounts of funding from an ICO.

    Conclusion

    Whilst the concept behind Humaniq is amazing, without proof that they can solve the biometric ID problem the project cannot work. Biometric ID a primary pillar of the project and without a 100% accurate system, users’ accounts can be hacked and their currency stolen. Humaniq must establish a perfect Biometric ID system as part of a minimum viable model and before releasing the idea to the public.

    Review Rating

    Rating – 2/5 – Amazing concept, poor execution.

    Resources

    Icorating review of Humaniq

    Reddit – Humaniq is a Scam