Author: Anna Galvez

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Crypto News

Tron (TRX) Moves From PoS To DPoS – Here Is Why!

Tron (TRX) tweeted a message on the official Twitter page on August 11th, citing the distinctions that exist between the Proof of Stake (PoS) and the Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) protocols.

The Proof of Stake (PoS)

The PoS protocol is where the miners place some of their coins in a specific block to authenticate a transaction. The block then picks them out according to an algorithm of how much time or how many coins the miner possesses. Once chosen, the miner checks the transaction.

The likelihood that a miner will be directly elected is dependent on the number of coins he is wagering. The Proof of Stake protocol held a significant edge over Proof of Work in reducing power consumption and system tension and promoting for faster transactions.

The Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS)

On the other hand, the DPoS is an accurate and more useful interpretation of the PoS protocol. The employment of a permanent voting system and a system of reputation to reach consensus are two of the main characteristics of the Delegated Proof of Stake.

Community representatives vote for their Super-Representatives who subsequently authenticate the transactions to earn a reward.

Why Tron (TRX) moved from PoS to DPoS?

There are many reasons why Tron (TRX) changed its running protocol from a PoS to a DPoS. The main reason for the shift is that community members have more power within a DPoS protocol, and can even govern the network.

Additionally, in a DPoS platform, there are virtually zero risks of fraudulent activities, as the community members are the ones who authenticate a transaction before it happens. This method is opposed to the PoS protocol where an illegal activity or a threat can only be discovered after it happens.

Besides, Tron (TRX) moved from PoS to DPoS to reduce costs and electric consumption, but also to give more power to investors who can now decide who becomes Super-Representatives.

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Crypto News

Brazil Officials And The Local Crypto Community Still Debate Possible Cryptocurrency Regulations

In a new meeting demanded by the Chamber of Deputies, a group of Brazilian parliamentarians debated on Thursday, August 9th, on what guidelines should be taken into account to formulate possible blockchain and cryptocurrency regulators. The discussion was held publicly in conjunction with the Getulio Vargas Foundation’s Applied Information Technology Center, in Sao Paulo.

Some of the participants bet on maintaining the freedom offered by the blockchain technology

While the issue of cryptocurrency was not addressed in depth, the lack of professionals with knowledge of protocols such as in the Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain was debated. Some participants argued that a blockchain alone is not a magic solution.

It is important to mention that the Brazilian crypto community is one of the largest in South America, with lots of active members on social networks and meetings with local entrepreneurs, and now also with parliamentarians.

The meeting also served to review the Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) sector

The discussion in this direction was conducted by Felippe Barretto, an analyst with the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission. The executive stressed that the ICOs do not have any regulation and that their objective is to seek financing from “the retail trade.”

Some Brazilian officials demand for cryptocurrency regulations

That is not the first time when this type of meeting between officials and various members of the crypto community has taken place in Brazil.

Last June, the Commission on Science, Technology, Communication and Information Technology of the Chamber of Deputies discussed different issues regarding a potential framework for future cryptocurrency regulations.

On that occasion, parliamentarians Thiago Peixoto, Odorico Monteiro, and Vitor Lippi stressed the need to create a regulatory framework. However, the representative of the Central Bank of Brazil, Mardilson Fernandes Queiroz, suggested that blockchain technology doesn’t need any regulation, but that cryptocurrencies do.

On the other hand, Joao Amoedo, a future presidential candidate of Brazil, said that cryptocurrencies can be a viable payment method, and are no threat to fiat money and central financial and banking systems.

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Crypto News

About 46% Of Mexico’s Smartphone Users Are Interested In Buying Cryptocurrencies

A study conducted among smartphone users in Mexico revealed that, although there is evidence that people either fear to invest in cryptos or don’t know much about cryptocurrencies, there is also growing Mexican interest in the subject. In this sense, 46.1% of those who do not currently own digital assets or have never used them, expressed their willingness to acquire Bitcoin (BTC) or other cryptos in the next six months.

The information is derived from a survey called the MX18 Cryptometer, which was conducted between May 22nd and June 5th, 2018, at the initiative of a group of firms related to the cryptocurrencies market in Mexico. For this study, data was collected through 1,416 interviews with mobile phone users.

Although the sample seems small as 64.7 million smartphone users live in Mexico, the goal of the study was to obtain the first indicators on the knowledge and general feeling of the population in relation with blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.

The study found that 26.5% of respondents had already bought or used cryptocurrencies at some point. Also, the most appreciated cryptocurrency by Mexicans is Bitcoin (BTC), the leading digital asset in the market, about which more than 61% of the Mexican heard of.

Mexicans are more and more interested in cryptocurrencies

Mexicans are using their cryptocurrencies mainly for online purchases and payments (35.2%), as well as to maintain them and wait for their value to increase (32.5%). However, there is one group (20.5%) that is dedicated to obtaining short-term profits through the purchase and sale of digital assets.

On the other hand, of those who expressed interest in acquiring cryptos, 46.2% would do so aiming to maintain a balance waiting for its value to increase.

Among the results that pose challenges to the Mexican crypto community, 47.4% of those who said they were not interested in buying cryptos indicated that the reason is the fear of fraud. Likewise, 39% say they do not know about this topic, while 30.5% consider that the cryptocurrencies have no support.

The firms that promoted the MX18 Cryptometer study, Bitso, Fiinlab, Wisum and Psyma Latina, agreed that, in order to increase the cryptocurrency adoption across Mexico, it is necessary to encourage users to “move from interest to action.”

Also noteworthy, Mexico is a leading country in the Latin America regarding new financial technologies, known as FinTech companies. In fact, it already has a regulatory framework for this sector that was enacted during the Q1 2018.

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Crypto News

Facebook Denies The Partnership With Stellar (XLM) For Implementing Joint Projects

Contradictory information about the possible partnership between Facebook and the Stellar (XLM) project team was published in the media on August 10th. Shortly after the publication, on the Business Insider portal, of unofficial information that Facebook was meeting with the Stellar project’s team to work together, a statement emerged from a Facebook spokesperson who denied the news.

The information published by Business Insider also came from an unidentified spokesperson who claimed that the Facebook team, led by David Marcus, was in discussions with the open source payment technology company, Stellar, to explore the likelihood of entering the field of finance and banking transactions, taking advantage of the new technology.

Thus, according to comments from the source, the social network would plan to register payment transactions on a platform like Stellar (XLM), to which merchants could connect.

Facebook denied the information, according to an unidentified spokesperson from the social network’s part, who also added that after the publication of the Business Insider report, the price of Stellar (XLM) token surged by approximately 10% on Binance.

Facebook denied the partnership with Stellar (XLM) team, but it manages a blockchain technology team

The news about the potential partnership between Facebook and Stellar (XLM) coincided with the announcement that the research leader of the Facebook blockchain team, David Marcus, is leaving his position on the board of directors of the Coinbase exchange house to devote himself full-time to the project of the company led by Mark Zuckerberg.

Marcus is the former director of Messenger and has been leading a small technology development team on Facebook since last May. On this point, some commented that the decision to leave Coinbase might be due to the need to avoid a conflict of interest between the two companies.

At the same time, the Facebook blockchain team has been consolidating itself in recent months, by the incorporation of personnel trained in the area, among them Evan Chang, appointed director of blockchain engineering last July.

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Crypto News Tech

The Professional Golfers’ Association of America Is The Latest Victim Of A Bitcoin (BTC) Ransomware Attack

On the eve of the start of the 100th-anniversary championship, the Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA) became the latest new victim of hackers, whose methodology is to seize sensitive information and ask for ransom in return. In this practice, it is widespread for cybercriminals to demand payments in Bitcoin (BTC) or other cryptocurrencies, in what is called a ransomware attack.

According to the specialized media, Golf Week, the attack was perpetrated on Wednesday, August 8th, when employees were unable to access the server. Instead, they received a message announcing the encryption of all files and threatening to make them unrecoverable from any attempt at decryption.

The attackers made it clear from the beginning that their target was Bitcoin (BTC) extortion

However, although the ransomware message includes the address of a Bitcoin (BTC) wallet, the hackers did not specify the amount of Bitcoin they wanted to get for unlocking the PGA servers.

However, according to an anonymous source, the Professional Golfers Association of America, the PGA, will not pay ransom for the archives, and that they took steps to ensure that the development of the anniversary championship won’t be impaired.

At the time of writing, no information has been released on the recovery of PGA servers or payment of the Bitcoin (BTC) ransom, the start of the PGA Championship 2018 tournament took place as usual.

Ransomware attacks involving cryptocurrency decline in popularity, while cryptojacking takes the lead

According to several studies carried out by various computer security companies worldwide, ransomware attacks involving cryptocurrency are declining in popularity, as the cybercriminals have gradually migrated to a more effective and lucrative business model, such as the use of hidden crypto mining malware. This method is known as cryptojacking and uses the computational power of victims’ devices to mine cryptocurrencies for the hackers.

A report released by Kaspersky Labs about a month ago confirmed the increase in cryptojacking attacks. Cybercriminals are developing increasingly sophisticated forms of crypto mining malware programs, using techniques such as file-free contamination or placing malware directly on routers.

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