A database with the personal information of over 5 million Salvadorans was recently leaked in a data breach forum. The database, which has been around since August and has recently been linked to Chivo, El Salvador’s national cryptocurrency wallet, has 144GB of data, including the full name, unique identity number, date of birth, address, and […]
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People with obesity-related heart failure and diabetes can get substantial heart-health benefits from weight-loss drug Wegovy, even if they don’t shed many pounds on the medication, according to new research.
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The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has taken legal action against three individuals—Robert Powell, Carter Rohn, and Emily Hernandez—for their involvement in a Sim-swapping scam in November 2022. The charges brought against them include fraud and identity theft.
This case has raised eyebrows due to its potential connection to the 2022 FTX hack, where the crypto exchange suffered a significant $400 million loss around the period it declared bankruptcy. Initial suspicions pointed towards the possibility of an insider job, with founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) even facing accusations.
The indictment reveals that Powell, Rohn, and Hernandez obtained personal information from approximately 50 individuals. Subsequently, they manipulated service providers into transferring the victims’ details to their own devices. Armed with this information, the trio accessed authentication codes for financial accounts and crypto wallets.
Notably, Hernandez employed a fake ID belonging to an FTX employee to impersonate the individual at AT&T, successfully gaining access to their account. This move allowed them to obtain verification codes for accessing FTX’s crypto wallets and transferring over $400 million in digital assets.
While the indictment did not explicitly mention FTX, it highlighted that the $400 million theft took place between November 11 and 12, 2022—coinciding with the timeline of the FTX incident.
Blockchain analytical firm Elliptic stated that “FTX is [likely] the ‘Victim Company-1′” named in the indictment, adding that the recent movements of the stolen crypto assets may indicate they are no longer in the possession of the accused trio.
FTX bankruptcy managers have yet to respond to CryptoSlate’s request for comment as of press time.
This indictment emerges at a time when sim swap attacks are on the rise, mainly targeting prominent entities within the cryptocurrency space. Threat actors use these attacks to exploit social media accounts to promote phishing campaigns.
“It’s 2024 and we are still seeing far too many teams getting SIM swapped or phished on a regular basis resulting in millions stolen,” blockchain investigator ZachXBT said.
More recently, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) experienced a sim-swap incident, leading to an exploit on its X account just last month.
Several U.S. lawmakers have approached the Biden administration, requesting an investigation into the alleged use of cryptocurrency by terrorist groups. This request came in the form of a letter dated Nov. 15.
The letter refers to earlier reports alleging that crypto wallets linked to Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad have received upwards of $41 million and $93 million, respectively. However, it also acknowledges the existence of “conflicting reports” from blockchain analytics firms that challenge these numbers.
The estimates originated on Oct. 10 in a Wall Street Journal article that cited statistics from two blockchain analytics firms. One primary source, Elliptic, later said that the $93 million estimate actually applied to a crypto exchange serving many customers rather than a single terrorist group. The $41 million amount originated with a separate analytics firm called BitOK; the company has seemingly not reassessed that estimate.
Now, in their current letter, lawmakers are asking the U.S. government to disclose the number of digital wallets linked to Hamas and other terrorist organizations that it has identified as well as the cryptocurrency balance of those wallets. Furthermore, the letter asks whether the U.S. government has blocked or seized any of those cryptocurrency assets or any non-crypto assets and asks for other related details.
Furthermore, the letter points out that the U.S. government has seized substantial amounts of illicit funds, suggesting a need for transparency about these procedures. It asks when those funds might be forfeited, to whom they might be distributed, and whether any funds seized from terrorist organizations could be distributed to Israel in order to offset the cost of other government spending packages.
The lawmakers addressed their letter to U.S. President Joe Biden and Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, asking the administration to find and disclose the above facts.
The letter is signed by more than 50 lawmakers. Signatures from Republican lawmakers include those from Majority Whip Tom Emmer, Chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services Patrick McHenry, and Congressman French Hill.
One Democratic lawmaker who has signed the letter is Congressman Ritchie Torres, well-known for his past support for pro-cryptocurrency legislation.
Notably, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who had previously led an effort to cite these contested statistics in an earlier letter, was absent from the list of signatories. Her earlier letter asked the government to impose measures to prevent the use of crypto in terrorist funding.
Wallets linked to bankrupt crypto firms Alameda Research and FTX transferred over $10 million worth of cryptocurrency to exchange deposit accounts in five hours from Oct. 24 to 25, according to data from blockchain analytics platform Spot On Chain. The movement of these funds may indicate that the firms plan to sell some assets to pay back creditors.
#FTX and #Alameda related addresses are depositing tokens to exchanges!
Via address 0xde9, #FTX 0x97f and #Alameda 0xf02 have transferred
2,904 $ETH ($5.21M)
1,341 $MKR ($2.01M)
11,975 $AAVE ($1.02M)
198,807 $LINK ($2.27M)to #Binance and #Coinbase in the past 5 hours.… pic.twitter.com/MQxCySp8g0
— Spot On Chain (@spotonchain) October 25, 2023
According to Spot on Chain data, an address listed as “likely” belonging to FTX transferred 2,904 Ether (ETH), worth over $5 million at the time, to another address at 8:18 pm UTC on October 24. This address then sent $3.4 million of the funds to a Binance deposit address and $1.8 million to a Coinbase deposit address. Thirty-nine minutes later, a wallet identified as belonging to Alameda Research sent $95 worth of tokens to this address, including some LINK (LINK), MKR and AAVE (AAVE).
Related: FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried will testify at criminal trial, say defense lawyers
Over the next five hours, an additional $5 million worth of cryptocurrency was sent to this address by FTX and Alameda wallets, including some COMP (COMP) and RNDR. At around 2:00 am UTC on Oct. 25, this address sent approximately $2 million worth of LINK, $2 million worth of MKR and $1 million worth of AAVE to a Binance deposit address. The total value of cryptocurrency sent to exchange deposit addresses during this period was $10,362,403, according to Spot on Chain data.
On Sept. 13, a Delaware Bankruptcy Court approved a plan to liquidate $3.4 billion worth of crypto assets that FTX and Alameda Research held. The announcement sparked fears that liquidating such a large amount of crypto may cause a slump in the market. However, experts have argued that the gradual, phased nature of the liquidation should limit its influence on the market.
The world’s biggest stablecoin, tether, saw more than $10 billion in redemptions in May, fueling fears of a 2008-style “bank run.”
Justin Tallis | AFP via Getty Images
Tether froze 32 virtual wallets linked to crypto-funded terrorism and warfare in Israel and Ukraine, according to a media release published Monday.
Tether, which issues the world’s largest stablecoin of the same name, says it has been collaborating with the National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing of Israel in its efforts. The collective value of the frozen addresses is $873,118.34.
Tether’s U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin, dubbed tether or USDT, has a market cap of $83.5 billion and offers dollar exposure to those in many markets across the world who wouldn’t otherwise have access. The company has also battled troubling allegations of wrongdoing for years with Tether’s business practices having been called into question, as well as the state of its reserves.
Tether’s newly named CEO, Paolo Ardoino, said in a statement, “Contrary to popular belief, cryptocurrency transactions are not anonymous; they are the most traceable and trackable assets. Every transaction is recorded on the blockchain, making it feasible for anyone to trace fund movements. Consequently, criminals foolish enough to employ cryptocurrencies for illegal activities will inevitably be identified.”
Tether has periodically frozen and returned stolen funds to rightful holders. The company says it has helped 31 agencies across 19 global jurisdictions to freeze $835 million in assets connected to crime. Also, in November 2022, the company complied with a request by law enforcement to freeze $46 million worth of USDT belonging to bankrupt crypto exchange FTX.
“Tether remains committed to promoting responsible blockchain technology use and standing as a robust defense against cybercrime,” continued Ardoino.
“We eagerly anticipate continued collaboration with global law enforcement agencies as part of our commitment to global security and financial integrity.”
Still life of Wegovy an injectable prescription weight loss medicine that has helped people with obesity. It should be used with a weight loss plan and physical activity.
Michael Siluk | UCG | Getty Images
Blockbuster weight loss and diabetes drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic may be associated with an increased risk of three rare, but severe, stomach conditions in non-diabetic patients, according to a new epidemiological study released Thursday.
The study, published in the research journal JAMA, comes as Novo Nordisk‘s Wegovy, Ozempic and similar treatments skyrocket in popularity in the U.S. for their ability to cause dramatic weight loss over time. But those drugs, known as GLP-1s, are also facing increased scrutiny after some patients reported experiencing stomach paralysis and suicidal ideation while taking them.
GLP-1s work by slowing digestion to suppress a person’s appetite but can cause problems if that process slows down too much.
Researchers at the University of British Columbia said the conditions in the study include one disorder not named in the warning labels for those drugs: stomach paralysis, which slows or completely stops the movement of food from the stomach to the intestine and can cause symptoms like persistent vomiting.
The study also notes an increased risk of bowel obstruction, a disorder where food is blocked from passing through the small or large intestine, and pancreatitis, which refers to pancreas inflammation. The labels for the drugs already include warnings about pancreatitis and certain types of bowel obstruction.
The researchers specifically examined semaglutide – the active ingredient used in Wegovy and Ozempic – and another GLP-1 called liraglutide against another weight loss treatment called bupropion-naltrexone, which works differently to help patients lose weight. Wegovy is specifically approved for weight loss in the U.S., while Ozempic is only approved for diabetes.
Their research is the first large, population-level study to examine the risk of serious stomach conditions in non-diabetic patients specifically using GLP-1s for weight loss.
Previous studies have highlighted the risk of those conditions in diabetic patients taking GLP-1s, according to the researchers. People with diabetes are also at increased risk of experiencing stomach paralysis and pancreatitis overall, even without the treatments.
“That’s why we kind of wanted to take diabetes out of the equation,” said Mohit Sodhi, one of the authors of the study. “In addition to the fact that millions of people around the world are using these drugs to help them lose weight.”
A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk noted that some of the gastrointestinal side effects in the study are already included on the labels for its GLP-1s, adding that the company “stands behind the safety and efficacy of all of our GLP-1 medicines when used consistent with the product labeling and approved indications.”
“We recommend patients take these medications for their approved indications and under the supervision of a healthcare professional,” the spokesperson said. “Treatment decisions should be made together with a healthcare provider who can evaluate the appropriateness of using a GLP-1 based on assessment of a patient’s individual medical profile.”
The study findings are based on an analysis of health insurance claim records for roughly 16 million U.S. patients.
Researchers specifically looked at people with a recent history of obesity who were prescribed semaglutide or liraglutide between 2006 and 2020. They excluded those with diabetes or patients who had been prescribed another diabetes drug.
Most patients in the study were prescribed liraglutide, but researchers said the increased risks they observed could apply to the entire GLP-1 drug class.
“Our data end date was the end of 2020, while the recent boom in semaglutide happened in the last year,” Sodhi said. “Nonetheless, we believe it is a class effect.”
The researchers measured the rate at which patients developed four different serious stomach conditions while taking semaglutide, liraglutide and bupropion-naltrexone, which are stomach paralysis, pancreatitis, bowel obstruction and biliary disease, a group of conditions affecting the gall bladder.
Compared with bupropion-naltrexone, GLP-1s were associated with a 9 times higher risk of pancreatitis, a 4 times higher risk of bowel obstruction and a more than 3 times higher risk of stomach paralysis, according to the study. The findings suggest the risks of those conditions are higher in patients specifically taking GLP-1s rather than other weight loss medications that work differently.
Around 7 out of every 1,000 patients experienced stomach paralysis while taking liraglutide, and nearly 10 out of every 1,000 patients experienced that condition while taking semaglutide.
And Sodhi noted, “the number just continues to climb when you blow it up to the population level.”
“When you have more than a million people taking the medication worldwide, that’s 10,000 people who could potentially experience gastroparesis according to the incidence rate for semaglutide,” he told CNBC. “It’s rare, but that’s still a lot of people.”
This recent archive picture, taken 17 August 2023 and distributed Tuesday 26 September 2023, shows a package with Ozempic medicine at a hospital in Bonheiden. T
Dirk Waem | AFP | Getty Images
Almost 5 out of every 1,000 patients experienced pancreatitis while taking semaglutide, while roughly 8 out of every 1,000 patients experienced that condition while taking liraglutide.
Meanwhile, around 8 out of every 1,000 patients experienced bowel obstruction while taking either of those GLP-1s.
The researchers also found a high rate of biliary disease in patients taking either liraglutide or semaglutide, but they said the difference was “not found to be statistically significant.”
The researchers hope the study will inform health-care providers prescribing GLP-1s about the potential drawbacks of taking the drugs.
“We’re all big proponents for informed patient consent,” Sodhi said. “If someone has decided they would like to take a GLP-1 for weight loss, we encourage them to have a conversation with their provider about how it may help them achieve their goals. But they should also be made aware of the potential drawbacks of taking this medication.”
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has flagged six Bitcoin (BTC) wallets linked to North Korean state-backed hacking group Lazarus. The six wallets contain 1,580 BTC worth $40 million believed to be hoarded from various cryptocurrency hacks over the past year.
The FBI in its investigation found that Lazarus Group moved approximately 1,580 BTC linked with several crypto exploits. These funds are currently sitting in the following Bitcoin addresses:
The FBI warned crypto companies that the movement of funds linked to the infamous North Korean hacking group could be a sign that they are looking to sell. The federal investigation agency advised crypto companies to keep an eye out for the six BTC wallets and use blockchain data to keep track of any movement of funds.
“Private sector entities should examine the blockchain data associated with these addresses and be vigilant in guarding against transactions directly with, or derived from, the addresses.”
The North Korean hacking group has been actively involved in multiple crypto-linked exploits over the years, stealing billions of dollars worth of crypto assets. A recent report from TRM Labs suggests that the North Korean hackers have stolen nearly $2 billion in crypto since 2018. The group was most active in 2022, having stolen nearly $1 billion worth of crypto assets last year alone.
2022 saw some of the biggest decentralized finance (DeFi) exploits, and Lazarus Group was identified as the mastermind behind Harmony’s Horizon bridge and Sky Mavis’ $625-million hack on Ethereum-linked sidechain Ronin Bridge last year.
Related: ‘Nobody is holding them back’ — North Korean cyber-attack threat rises
Although crypto-linked exploits due to code vulnerabilities in platforms and protocols have increased due to the sophistication in methods used by these hackers, blockchain technology still makes it problematic for exploiters to launder or move their ill-gotten gains due to the public ledger that makes it possible to track the movement of funds.
Law enforcement agencies like the FBI, along with crypto companies, have worked together on several occasions in the past to freeze funds linked to such exploits. Earlier in February this year, Huobi and Binance froze $1.4 million worth of crypto assets linked to North Korea. Similarly, $63 million worth of assets linked to the Harmony Bridge hack was also frozen by crypto exchanges.
Collect this article as an NFT to preserve this moment in history and show your support for independent journalism in the crypto space.
Magazine: Deposit risk: What do crypto exchanges really do with your money?
Depression, whether diagnosed during early or mid-adulthood, more than doubles your chances of getting dementia later in life, according to a study in JAMA Neurology.
In the study of more than 1.4 million adult Danish citizens evaluated from 1977 to 2018, those with depression were 2.4 times more likely to have dementia later in life compared to those without depression. The risk of dementia was higher for men than women.
“The persistent association between dementia and depression diagnosed in early and middle life suggests that depression may increase dementia risk,” the study said.
Dementia is not a specific disease but rather an umbrella term for the impaired ability to remember, think, or make decisions that interferes with doing everyday activities, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The study also looked at those treated with an antidepressant and found no difference between the treated and untreated groups.
Previously, diagnoses of depression later in life were seen as an early symptom or response to the preclinical stage of dementia.
However, this study looked at whether depression diagnoses in early and middle-life was linked to dementia findings. This study asserted there is a link between depression at any stage of adulthood and dementia. It does not explain the reasons why.
“In our analyses, the risk of dementia was more than doubled in both men and women diagnosed with depression, although the hazard of dementia was greater in men. One possible explanation for this finding is that men are less likely to seek health care than women,” the study said. As a result, men’s cases may be more severe when finally diagnosed.
The CDC said that about 5.8 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. By 2060, the number of Alzheimer’s disease cases is predicted to rise to an estimated 14 million people, with minority populations being affected the most.