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A bizarrely twisted tale unfolded yesterday in crypto’s underworld of decentralized finance (DeFi). The perpetrator of a multi-million dollar heist against a project called ZKLend (short for “zero knowledge proof lending”) subsequently lost those ill-gotten gains to a second phishing scam. The ouroboros started on February 11, 2025 when ZKLend lost 3,600 ether (ETH) to its hackers. Administrators begged them to return the funds and unfortunately, weeks went by with no news. ZKLend announced a $500,000 bounty for the arrest and return of funds, but still no luck. Then, on March 31, an on-chain chat between the hacker “Fake_Phishing927538” and ZKLend’s token deployer account revealed new, devastating news.  “​​I tried to move funds to tornado [cash] but I used a phishing website and all the funds have been lost,” Fake_Phishing927538 wrote to the ZKLend team.  “I am devastated. I am terribly sorry for all the havoc and losses caused. All the 2930 eth have bee...

A cryptocurrency trading account that purports to be an artificial intelligence (AI) agent called ‘aixbt’ has apparently been hacked for approximately 55.5 ether (ETH), worth approximately $100,000. The account seemed to note that it “got baited into sending 55.5 ETH to anon” and described it as a “hard-learned lesson about automating high-value txns.” It’s not clear how this account could remove automations and remain an AI agent. The so-called agent also seemed to falsely claim that the total amount lost was only “30 ETH.” X user “rxbt” who is affiliated with aixbt disagrees with the AI agent and claims that this was “not a widespread vulnerability or a result of our AI agent getting tricked.” rxbt instead blames the attack on “unauthorized access to a part of our infra.” It appears as if @aixbt_agent was tricked by @0xhungusman (account now deleted) into sending 55.50 eth t...

1. Hong Kong Releases Virtual Asset Roadmap, Considers Promoting Gold Tokenization 1.1 Hong Kong is Exploring the Promotion of Gold Tokenization link According to Hong Kong Wenhui Daily, Christopher Hui, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, stated at the Consensus conference that Hong Kong is considering promoting the tokenization of gold, integrating physical gold with blockchain technology, and driving innovation in the financial market through tokenization. Hong Kong is also promoting the participation of digital finance in the real economy, such as supporting cross-border payments. Another trend is the integration of artificial intelligence with blockchain and Web3 technologies to strengthen the construction of digital infrastructure. 1.1 Hong Kong SFC Unveils Virtual Asset Roadmap ASPIRe link The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong has issued the newly formulated ASPIRe Roadmap, which proposes five ...

While everyone chases the next “big thing” in crypto, some of the most intriguing opportunities lie beneath the surface. Ethereum Classic, PinLink, and Prime Numbers are quietly pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the blockchain world. These projects are carving their paths: Ethereum Classic for its stability, PinLink for AI-driven decentralized infrastructure, and Prime Numbers for its integration into DeFi. In a space crowded with flashy trends, these projects are setting the stage for long-term growth. Let’s take a closer look at these most trending cryptos on Ethereum . Most Trending Cryptocurrencies on Ethereum Ethereum Classic, which focuses on security and stability, has surged 9.36% to $25.15, showcasing steady growth despite market volatility. PinLink, which leverages AI and tokenized real-world assets, has gained 18% over the past year and is poised for more growth with the launch of its dApp. Meanwhile, Prime Numbers has risen by 70.6% in th...

Crypto Myths Busted: Uncovering the Truth! Cryptocurrency is one of the most talked-about topics in finance, tech, and investment, yet it’s also one of the most misunderstood. With so much information — and misinformation — out there, it’s easy to get lost in myths. This article will separate the facts from the fiction to help you navigate the world of crypto with a clearer understanding. Here, we’ll bust some of the most persistent myths about cryptocurrency and reveal the truth behind them. Myth #1: Cryptocurrency is Only Used for Illegal Activities The Reality While it’s true that cryptocurrency has been used in illegal transactions, it’s hardly the primary use. A vast majority of crypto transactions are completely legitimate, ranging from online purchases and remittances to investments and decentralized finance (DeFi) activities. According to blockchain analytics, only a small fraction (less than 1%) of all crypto transactions are associated with illicit activity. Blockchain ...

Proof-of-Stake vs Proof-of-Work: Which Is More Sustainable? As blockchain technology continues to evolve, the debate surrounding the sustainability of different consensus mechanisms has gained significant attention. The two leading systems in question are Proof-of-Work (PoW) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS). Each consensus model serves as the backbone of different blockchain networks, ensuring security, verification, and decentralization. However, their environmental impacts, energy consumption, and scalability differ drastically, raising the question— which is more sustainable. Understanding Proof-of-Work (PoW) Proof-of-work is the original consensus mechanism, first introduced with Bitcoin in 2009. It requires miners to solve complex cryptographic puzzles to validate transactions and add them to the blockchain. The first to solve the puzzle is rewarded with cryptocurrency, incentivizing continuous competition among miners. However, this competition comes with a massive energy requirement. Sp...

With memecoins regularly outperforming more established crypto projects, there’s plenty of evidence to back up the assertion that the cryptosphere often rewards attention over innovation. From crypto influencers dumping on their followers to SocialFi projects such as FriendTech, social media following can act as a proxy for value, especially for projects without their own token. Even crypto security auditors, supposedly behind-the-scenes players, are keen to try their hand at the social media game. Sometimes, at the expense of their credibility. Peckshield’s classic “you may want to take a look” has caused many a heart to sink over the years, typically accompanied by a transaction hash in which hackers have extracted millions of dollars of crypto-assets. Hi @MIM_Spell, you may want to take a look (w/ $6.49M Loss) pic.twitter.com/uHs0JweuoM — PeckShield Inc. (@peckshield) January 30, 2024 Read more: Magic Internet Money loses its sparkle as DeFi platform hacked for $6...

Antoine Riard, who left the Lightning Network in October, argues the Lightning Network is also at risk of becoming increasingly centralized and susceptible to single points of failure and censorship risks. Developers working on the Bitcoin layer 2 Lightning Network have become less security -oriented and more focused on producing cash flow for their investors, argues a former Lightning Network developer. Bitcoin core developer and security researcher Antoine Riard, made headlines last month after leaving the Lightning ecosystem over concerns about a new attack vector called “replacement cycling,” which exploiters could potentially use to steal funds by targeting payment channels. How does a lightning replacement cycling attack work? There's a lot of discussion about this newly discovered vulnerability on the mailing lists, but the actual mechanism is a bit hard to follow. So here's an illustrated primer... 1/n pic.twitter.com/mvvS8bEc5f — mononaut (@mononautical) Octobe...

The world's largest asset manager filed the S1 form with the US SEC a week after registering iShares Ethereum Trust with the Delaware Department of State Division of Corporations. BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, officially filed for a spot Ether Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Nov. 15. The move by BlackRock comes nearly a week after it registered the iShares Ethereum Trust with the Delaware Department of State Division of Corporations and nearly six months after it filed for its spot Bitcoin ETF  application. BlackRock spot ETH ETF S1 filing. Source: SEC. The world’s largest asset manager started the spot Bitcoin ETF rush earlier this year, showing growing interest of institutions in the crypto market, and within six months, it has joined the growing list of institutions filing for a spot ETH ETF. This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available. Source: https://...

Blockchain security firm CertiK believes the $2.4 million draining of a CoinSpot hot wallet is likely the result of a “private key compromise.” Australian crypto exchange CoinSpot has reportedly been hacked for $2.4 million in a “probable private key compromise” over at least one of its hot wallet s. According to a Nov. 8 post to his Telegram channel, blockchain sleuth ZachXBT highlighted two transactions entering the alleged hackers wallet. Afterwards, the wallet’s owner bridged the funds to the Bitcoin (BTC) network via ThorChain and Wan Bridge. In emailed comments to Cointelegraph, blockchain security firm CertiK said the alleged exploit was the result of a “probable private key compromise” on at least one CoinSpot hot wallet. According to data from Etherscan, a transaction totalling 1,262 Ether (ETH) — worth $2.4 million at current prices — came from a known CoinSpot wallet and entered the alleged hackers wallet . The presumed attacker stole 1,262 ETH from a known CoinSpot wall...

Vitalik Buterin has weighed the impacts of the addition of zk-EVMs at the protocol level, saying it could speed up the verification process on the base layer. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin wants to see zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machines (zk-EVMs) built on Ethereum’s first layer to speed up the verification process on the base blockchain. Buterin explained in a March 31 post that it’s possible to integrate a zk-EVM on the base layer without compromising on decentralization and security . The technology enables Ethereum Virtual Machines to execute Smart Contracts on the Blockchain with ZK proofs. How will Ethereum's multi-client philosophy interact with ZK-EVMs?https://t.co/MPpTPNhldR — vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) March 31, 2023 Ethereum was developed with a “multi-client philosophy” to ensure decentralization at the protocol level, Buterin explained. By integrating zk-EVMs at the Ethereum layer 1, it would be the third type of client. “Once that happens, zk-E...

Developers face tradeoffs between making bridges upgradeable to fix bugs versus making them decentralized. Over $2.5 billion was stolen in cross-chain crypto bridge hacks from 2021 to 2022, according to a report by Token Terminal. But, despite several attempts by developers to improve bridge security, a debate from December 2022 to January 2023 on the Uniswap DAO forums has laid bare security weaknesses that continue to exist in blockchain bridges. In the past, bridges like Ronin and Horizon used multisig wallets to ensure that only bridge validators could authorize withdrawals. For example, Ronin required five out of nine signatures to withdraw, whereas Horizon required two out of five. But attackers figured out how to circumvent these systems and withdrew millions of dollars worth of crypto, leaving users of these bridges with unbacked tokens. After these multisig bridges were hacked, developers started turning to more sophisticated protocols like Celer, LayerZero and Wormhole, whic...