The crypto market is constantly evolving, attracting the attention of the community. Every day, new cryptocurrencies, technological solutions, and innovations appear that expand the boundaries of the financial world. Crypto news is a key element that keeps users up to date with the latest developments. This article summarizes the most significant events in the industry over the past week.
Recruiter or Hacker?
Blockchain security company SlowMist recently discovered a new cybercrime strategy involving the Lazarus hacker group from North Korea. Using LinkedIn for phishing attacks, they pose as recruiters and investors to trick employees into downloading malware that allows them to steal valuable information and assets.
SlowMist’s investigation revealed that the hackers posed as Fenbushi Capital partners on LinkedIn to attract cryptocurrency industry professionals. They offered fake jobs or investment opportunities to gain access to victims’ systems. Their strategy was to send coding requests as part of the recruitment process. The seemingly innocuous files contained malware that, when run, installed a Trojan program that allowed remote access to the victim’s computer. This method allowed Lazarus to steal confidential information and assets without the victim’s knowledge.
Moreover, this is not the first time hackers have used LinkedIn for targeted attacks. In December 2023, they impersonated a fake Meta recruiter. Incidents like these only underscore the need for better security practices as fraudsters become more knowledgeable and sophisticated in their attacks.
Ethereum Whale Wallet Wakes Up After 8 Years of Dormancy
An Ethereum wallet associated with the Ethereum Foundation has woken up after an eight-and-a-half-year hiatus, transferring 2000 Ether (ETH) worth $6.6 million to a new address. This was reported by the analytical company Lookonchain in its X. They note that 2000 ETH were credited to the wallet on September 22, 2015. At that time, the ETH rate was less than a dollar and amounted to $0.9.
According to Etherscan, the transaction was made at 11:46 am on April 28, which means that the recipient’s wallet was empty at the time of the transfer. At the moment, 2,000 ETH are worth $6.65 million, which means that the Ethereum Whale has increased its profit by 369.344%.
Interestingly, this is happening at a time when the US securities regulator is set to decide on May 23 whether to approve some or all of the applications for Ethereum spot exchange-traded funds.
Avalanche Integrates With Stripe
The Avalanche C-Chain network has announced an integration with the payment company Stripe. The partnership allows Stripe users to purchase AVAX and transfer them to their wallets. In addition, eight Avalanche Web3 applications have also been integrated with the platform.
According to the post, Avalanche application developers can now embed the widget in their interfaces, allowing users to convert fiat to cryptocurrency using the payment platform.
The integration aims to solve the “cold start problem” in Web3, which occurs when users do not have enough funds to complete a transaction. To do so, Stripe will take care of “all KYC, payment, fraud, and compliance issues,” allowing developers to focus on the app itself. Initially, the integration allows users to create Avalanche accounts using their Google or Apple IDs and fund them with bank transfers, debit or credit cards.
Akash Gupta, Head of Consumer Products at Ava Labs, believes that the partnership will help increase the adoption of cryptocurrencies around the world.
“Core’s integration with Stripe is just another step that underscores our dedication to providing users with intuitive and streamlined solutions. By further bridging the gap between crypto and fiat, Core continues to pave the way for seamless onboarding and broader consumer adoption of digital currencies in everyday transactions,” he notes.
No More Likes on X?
Since Elon Musk owned Twitter, now X, there have been many updates. Sometimes not even for the better. But another big update is coming soon. According to a software engineer from X, “within the next few weeks,” the social network may remove likes and reposts from the feed view.
“I’m not working on this change myself, but employees are still dogfooding it. It should be gradually rolled out to users in the next few weeks and the UX may change by then,” said X software engineer Ellis Driscoll in an April 29 post.
Driscoll’s comment came in response to a demo video of the yet-to-be-implemented user interface shared by X’s head of payments, Christopher Stanley. The video demonstrates an “exploding menu” where likes and reposts are contained in a separate section on the home screen. Driscoll notes that the video only shows the menu, not the full user interface.
As before, X users will be able to view the number of likes and reposts, but they will need to open each post separately. Stanley added that the new user interface will allow users to interact with posts by “long-pressing and then swiping to select,” which he said “resembles a video game interface.”
“Now This Looks Like a Job For Me”
The American rapper Eminem not only announced his new album but also became one of the celebrities who have recently advertised on the cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com. The rapper posted a post with a video on social network X, writing simply: “You know what it’s always been.”
The video shows a boxing workout riddled with cryptocurrency jargon, including “proof-of-work” and the now infamous Crypto.com slogan: “Fortune favors the brave.” Eminem became the first celebrity to promote the exchange after a commercial with Matt Damon. At the time, the actor became a victim of ridicule and even appeared in an episode of South Park in 2022. He later stated that he only appeared in the ad to support Water.org, an initiative for clean water.
On social media, the reaction to Eminem’s cryptocurrency ad was mixed. Many users began to parody the words from the rapper’s songs, stylizing them for the crypto space. Here are some of them: “May I have your attention, please? Will the real Satoshi please stand up?”; “Yall act like you never seen a rug pull before jaws all over the floor like sbf just burst through the door”; “Craig Wright stands up. Eminem — “We’re gonna have a problem here”.
However, others doubted that his sponsorship would be better than Damon’s. Celebrities rarely promote cryptocurrencies, since famous people like Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, and Larry David took money to promote FTX before the exchange collapsed, and its founder was imprisoned.
Listing News
Cryptocurrency exchanges are constantly diversifying their trading opportunities and conducting many listings. A selection of tokens recently added to cryptocurrency exchanges:
Aurora Token is a cryptocurrency associated with the Aurora blockchain ecosystem that runs on the Near protocol. It facilitates the exchange of assets, including ERC-20 tokens, between Ethereum, NEAR, and Aurora via the Rainbow Bridge. The token is available for trading on exchanges such as KuCoin, WhiteBIT, Gate.io, and others.
RSIC-GENESIS-RUNE is a Bitcoin-based project that allows users to mine a new fungible token called runes on the Bitcoin blockchain. RSIC is available on OKX, Gate.io, and BitMart exchanges.
RTF Token is the first boxing token of the Ready to Fight project, founded by the famous Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk and his coach Sergey Lapin. The project has been officially supported by the World Boxing Council (WBC), the Saudi Arabian Boxing Federation, and the founders of the Riyadh Season event. The token is available for trading on Gate.io, WhiteBIT, HTX, and other cryptocurrency exchanges.
The Rabbitgame project is dedicated to the formation of a blockchain-based ecosystem, and Rait is a utility token that actively participates in the management of the platform’s network. Cryptocurrency exchanges where the token is available: MEXC, OKX, Binance, and others.
