📢 Breaking News! 🚨

✅ #Tornado Cash DAO Overthrown By Attacker, Causing TORN Token to Tumble 40% 🌀💥

✳️ In a shocking turn of events, an attacker has successfully taken control of Tornado Cash DAO, the decentralized organization overseeing the operations and funds of the widely used crypto mixer.

💔 The impact on Tornado Cash's native token, TORN, has been significant, with prices plummeting by as much as 40% in the aftermath of this governance attack. However, there has been a slight recovery since then.

📆 This revelation came to light over the weekend, sending shockwaves through the crypto community. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of robust security measures in the decentralized ecosystem.

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Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, has uncovered a transfer of $12 million worth of Ethereum by the Lazarus Group. This move, conducted through Tornado Cash, comes amidst heightened scrutiny due to US sanctions and challenges faced by global law enforcement agencies.
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Elliptic reports that the Lazarus Group transferred $12 million in Ether via Tornado Cash, bypassing US sanctions. These funds originate from a cyber-attack on HTX and Heco Bridge in November, resulting in $100 million in losses. Despite sanctions, Tornado Cash’s decentralized operation poses challenges for global law enforcement efforts.

Lazarus Group Moves $12 Million in Ether Through Tornado Cash
Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic recently uncovered a significant transaction involving $12 million in Ether orchestrated by the Lazarus Group. This transaction utilized Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixer, despite the group being under sanctions. The North Korean hacker organization resumed using this platform, which traces back to a cyber-attack on HTX and the Heco Bridge in November. These attacks resulted in staggering losses amounting to $100 million for the affected platforms.

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Despite facing sanctions, Tornado Cash’s decentralized nature has enabled it to persist and operate. This resilience has made the platform a focal point in discussions surrounding cryptocurrency legislation and enforcement. The continued utilization of Tornado Cash by the Lazarus Group highlights the ongoing challenges faced by international law enforcement agencies in combating crypto money laundering.
The Persistent Challenge of Cryptocurrency Mixers
The activities of the Lazarus Group shed light on a broader issue within the realm of digital currency. Despite recent efforts by U.S. authorities to crack down on cryptocurrency mixers, these organizations have managed to endure. With the closure of centralized mixers like Blender and Sinbad, Lazarus’s operations shifted back to Tornado Cash. This shift underscores the shortcomings of existing control mechanisms for decentralized financial services.
Also Read:   $2B USDT Injection: Impact on Market Momentum
Data provided by Chainalysis indicates that the fight against cryptocurrency mixers has yielded some progress, with a notable 29% decrease in crypto money laundering observed in 2023. However, the Lazarus Group’s resurgence through Tornado Cash highlights the ongoing cat-and-mouse game between regulators and cybercriminals. This dynamic environment poses a continuous challenge for governments striving to curb the flow of illicit financial transactions.

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Lazarus Group’s Resilience and Global Coordination
In response to heightened regulatory scrutiny, the Lazarus Group has showcased remarkable adaptability. Following the crackdown on Sinbad, the organization swiftly transitioned to using YoMix. This agile response underscores the group’s adeptness at navigating the ever-changing landscape of cryptocurrency regulations and enforcement measures.
The actions of the Lazarus Group not only underscore the persistent threat posed by state-sponsored cybercrime but also emphasize the urgent need for a coordinated global response. As the group continues to exploit the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency services, it becomes increasingly evident that innovative approaches are imperative to effectively address these challenges.

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Important: Please note that this article is only meant to provide information and should not be taken as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other type of advice.
 

#Tornado #Bitcoin #Altcoin #Cryptocurrency #CryptoNews

Cryptocurrency mixers are facing a dilemma between preserving financial privacy and adopting increased regulatory measures to evade American scrutiny.
Tornado Cash and Sindibad Under U.S. Sanctions
The service Tornado Cash, designed to mix cryptocurrencies and conceal the origin of transactions, was sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in August 2022. This event triggered a debate on the role of mixing services in maintaining personal financial privacy in the cryptocurrency space.
 U.S. authorities continue to impose sanctions on such services, with Sinbad.io being the latest entity to fall under OFAC sanctions. Tornado Cash and Sindibad were also taken down by the FBI, with the U.S. Department of the Treasury accusing them of facilitating illegal transactions worth billions of dollars, especially by the North Korean-based hacking group Lazarus.

Share of all value sent to Sinbad by source, Sept. 2022–Nov. 2023 Source: Chainalysis
 
Mixers and Their Role in Financial Privacy
#Cryptocurrency mixers, such as #Tornado Cash and Sinbad, aim to enhance users' privacy by mixing funds from multiple users, making it difficult to trace the origin of specific coins. Despite mixers serving legitimate purposes in preserving privacy, criminals using these services for money laundering can tarnish their legitimacy.
 

Sinbad’s clearnet site is no longer operational. Source: Sinbad.io
Sanctions and U.S. Policy Toward Mixers
The U.S. Department of the Treasury has decided to focus on mixers as a category of transactions primarily associated with money laundering. Their goal is to increase transparency and combat their misuse by illegal actors, including groups like Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and North Korea.

 The U.S. sanctions crypto mixer Sinbad.io for its role in North Korean laundering activities. Source: Chainalysis
 Protecting Financial Privacy and Human Rights
Many individuals in the cryptocurrency space consider financial privacy a human right, even though it may not be universally recognized in all jurisdictions. The law protects the right to privacy but extends to financial privacy to a lesser extent.
 Some argue that mixers could find ways to prevent their exploitation by illegal groups, thereby preserving their legitimacy and existence.
 Conclusion
Cryptocurrency mixers are facing mounting pressure from U.S. authorities, and their future remains uncertain. Their ability to provide financial privacy while resisting regulation may be key to their survival. While some argue that mixers should implement control mechanisms to avoid illegal activities, this path may contradict the fundamental purpose of these services, which is to maintain the privacy and anonymity of users. In the end, it is a dilemma between financial privacy and regulatory compliance.
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 Notice:
,,The information and views presented in this article are intended solely for educational purposes and should not be taken as investment advice in any situation. The content of these pages should not be regarded as financial, investment, or any other form of advice. We caution that investing in cryptocurrencies can be risky and may lead to financial losses.“

A group of pro-crypto organizations has filed an amicus brief in support of a lawsuit challenging the legality of sanctions imposed on the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Tornado Cash.

The amicus brief, filed by the Blockchain Association, the DeFi Education Fund, and Coin Center, argues that the sanctions imposed by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) are unlawful.

The OFAC imposed sanctions on #Tornado Cash in February, alleging that it was being used by criminals to launder money. However, the pro-crypto groups argue that the sanctions are unprecedented and violate the First Amendment right to free speech.

“The OFAC has never before sanctioned software,” the amicus brief states. “The sanctions against Tornado Cash are a clear overreach of the OFAC’s authority.”

The pro-crypto groups also argue that the sanctions violate the right to due process. The OFAC did not provide Tornado Cash with an opportunity to challenge the sanctions before they were imposed.

“The OFAC’s decision to impose sanctions on Tornado Cash was arbitrary and capricious,” the amicus brief states. “Tornado Cash was denied due process and the opportunity to defend itself.”

#Torn #TornadoCash

Read full article here: https://optimisus.com/market/market-news/crypto-community-fights-back-against-u-s-sanctions-on-tornado-cash/

An attacker who gained control over Tornado Cash put forward a proposal on May 21 that could reverse his original exploit.

Exploiter could undo his attack

Tornadosaurus-Hex, a community member, wrote:

“The [Tornado Cash] attacker posted a new proposal to restore the state of Governance. I think that there is a good chance he’s going to execute it.”

Tornadosaurus-Hex also noted that, because the attacker has control over Tornado Cash, other governance members have no choice in whether the proposal passes.

Other members of the community have warned that the attempt to restore the project’s default governance may not be benevolent. On Twitter, 0xdeadf4ce said that the plan could be an attempt to further manipulate the price of Tornado Cash’s TORN token.

A recovery could allow the attacker to capitalize on the fact that his original attack led the value of #TORN to drop significantly. TORN fell from $6.08 to as low as $3.57 in hours, marking a decline of 41%. The price has only partially recovered to $4.73 as of May 21, and even a brief recovery could make any stolen cryptocurrency more valuable.

If the recovery proposal is not an attempt to raise prices, it could be an attempt at trolling or an “expensive but not disastrous” lesson, 0xdeadf4ce concluded. The outcome of the recovery proposal will not be clear until May 26, he added.

Tornado Cash attack began on Saturday

On May 20, an attacker gained control over Tornado Cash by creating and voting for a proposal that gave him sole control over the project’s governance.

Paradigm researcher Samczun said that this allowed the attacker to withdraw all locked votes and withdraw all tokens in #Tornado Cash’s governance contract. Samczun said that though the attack allows the attacker to “do whatever they want,” the attacker ultimately chose to withdraw 10,000 votes as the TORN token and sell those assets.

It should be noted that Tornado Cash remains active in spite of the fact that the U.S. Treasury imposed sanctions on the project in August 2022.

The service is a decentralized coin mixer that handles only cryptocurrency. It seems that the U.S. government either is unable to directly enforce sanctions against Tornado Cash due to its lack of centralized operations or is uninterested in enforcement.