Malware uses Bitcoin blockchain to target victims

Cybersecurity firm TrendMicro has discovered a piece of malware that scans the Bitcoin blockchain for secret instructions that allow the infected computer to be controlled remotely. 

Glupteba, first discovered in 2011 by WeLiveSecurity, is a piece of malware that can be used to hijack someone’s computer in order to steal information or be used to carry out denial of service attacks (where thousands of computers are used to put strain on a website or network causing it to crash). It’s also been used to mine Monero, according to TrendMicro. 

But more recently Glupteba has mutated, and now uses the Bitcoin blockchain to reconnect to the hackers’ server without anti-virus software noticing.

According to TrendMicro, the hacker makes a Bitcoin transaction with a piece of encoded data hidden within one of its functions. Inside the encoded message contains the address for its server—giving the virus a new server location. All the virus has to do is scan the Bitcoin blockchain, identify the transaction and decode the hidden message. Then it can continue doing its evil deeds.

Crypto gold rush: Paxos launches gold-backed stablecoin

Stablecoin issuer Paxos—whose PAX token trails only Tether and USD Coin in market cap—today announced the launch of a regulated gold stablecoin, called PAX Gold (PAXG).

The New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) has approved the Ethereum-based token, according to a press release, which Paxos claims makes it the “first regulated digital gold product.”

Each PAX Gold token will be physically backed by one fine troy ounce (weighing at 31 grams) of gold that meets the London Good Delivery standard—ensuring the gold meets a set criteria for purity—and is stored in a London vault. The token can be redeemed on the Paxos website for fiat currency, unallocated gold—where a bank lends out its own gold—or for gold bars.

“In a digital and global financial system, owning physical gold is a cumbersome, outdated investment; it’s not easy to trade, divide, move or leverage against other investments,” Paxos CEO Charles Cascarilla said, in a statement.

Here are the biggest stories in the cryptoverse:

• Japan grants exchange license to Line messaging app.   
• Atletico Madrid is launching a fan token.
• McAfee's own team threatens him with $100 million lawsuit. 
• Tether exploring two new stablecoins. 

Bitcoin rap battle

What you need to know

Dash is now accepted at an additional 1,000 merchants and 250+ ATMs worldwide, the eponymous company behind the cryptocurrency announced today. 

Dash partnered with IQ CashNow, an e-commerce service provider that specializes in cryptocurrencies, to make it easier for Dash cryptocurrency be used in the U.S., Europe and Austria, Greece, Spain, Italy, Turkey, and Ecuador. 

Why it's important

Like most other cryptocurrencies, Dash touts transactions fees lower than credit cards—although the IQ CashNow cryptocurrency payment processing fee adds an additional 1 percent per transaction. But unlike most other cryptos, Dash offers instant payment settlements.

Joël Valenzuela, director of community outreach at Dash, told Decrypt that this makes it suitable for making purchases in real life, rather than just “hodling.”

And there’s some evidence people use Dash. In late July, the Dash Core Group said its coin was accepted at over 4,000 merchants, and at 700 ATMs around the world. Large online retailer Overstock.com accepts Dash payments directly, as does CheapAir.com. 

Founding fathers Hamilton, Nakamoto duke it out in epic Bitcoin rap battle

What would Alexander Hamilton, the original Secretary of the Treasury, think about cryptocurrency? 

It’s a question that tech entrepreneur and investor Reid Hoffman has seemingly been noodling around with for some time. And, gathering inspiration from the hit Broadway musical about the man who invented America’s banking system, Greylock Partners’ Hoffman decided the matter ought to be decided in song: A Bitcoin rap battle between Hamilton himself and the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto.

The video, which features EpicLLOYD from Epic Rap Battles as Hamilton and Timothy DeLaGhetto as Nakamoto, depicts Hamilton as arguing for central banking as a means of preventing fraud and building trust by forcing banks to assume liability when things go wrong.

Read more here.