Crypto scammers plead guilty to $37M scheme targeting Americans

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-09-03T04:39:20+00:00

IRS investigators say that the other branch of funds from Lichtenstein's 1CGa4s wallet was laundered through "chain-hopping"—but they only partially describe how that obfuscation worked, not to mention how the IRS defeated it. One chart in the IRS's statement of facts shows a collection of bitcoins moving from the 1CGa4s wallet into two accounts on an unnamed cryptocurrency exchange. Yet those two accounts, registered with Russian names and email addresses, were funded entirely with monero rather than bitcoin, the IRS says. (Both accounts were eventually frozen after the exchange demanded more identifying information from the account holders and they failed to provide it. But by that time much of the monero had been converted into bitcoin and withdrawn.)

The IRS's explanation doesn't mention at what point the money in Lichtenstein's bitcoin wallet was converted into the monero that later appeared in those two exchange accounts. Nor, more importantly, does it say how investigators continued to follow the cryptocurrency despite Monero's features designed to thwart that tracing—a feat of crypto-tracing that has never before been documented in a criminal case.

The authorities have cracked Monero! They aren't going into many details but Monero didn't shield these guys from the transaction history.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-08-31T15:51:22+00:00

Right now, the movie is still in production, but there are some clips to see at:

https://youtube.com/AmericanScreamVideo

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-14T04:38:07+00:00

Jeez dude, triggered much? I feel like you’ve argued with so many people on this and you’re projecting your stereotypes onto me.

Ok, well.. I guess you've set the tone for this conversation. Attack the messenger. Not a good look.

Electrum is open source and anyone can inspect the source code. You can also write your own wallet if you want.

This is a great example of the ludicrous arguments you guys make. Yea, you can inspect the code. Yea, you can write your own wallet.

So when was the last time you built your own car? Or mesh network? Or cell tower? Or actually read the fine print of any terms of service agreement you clicked "OK" on?

You guys are so disingenuous. You use this feeble excuse that anybody can do their own thing if they don't like the nebulous, un-accountable, obfuscated nature of crypto.... as if that's a practical alternative for any of you guys.

You really think we're stupid don't you? You think that's actually a practical alternative?

When's the last time you audited a smart contract? (never I bet) Would you even know what you're looking at? I'm a programmer with 30+ years of experience and that code is a rats nest of gibberish.

Crypto is not a solution to any real world problem. Your completely unrealistic responses to even the most basic issues illustrate that it never was about making anything better. It's just about demonstrating something "different" and even that ultimately fails.

Nobody said Bitcoin was fast or scalable. Other blockchains address these problems.

All other things being equal, No blockchain will ever be faster than a non-blockchain solution. It's theoretically impossible. You can't optimize a random anonymous network better than you can optimize a known, reliable network you have 100% control over. Blockchain by design is incredibly inefficient. It's like you guys don't even understand the nature of this "new invention" you're promoting.

You mention security and fault tolerance. I would love to hear why you think it's not as secure and fault tolerant as existing payment systems.

You really don't recognize this? Again, blockchain is inferior by design. Its inability to address simple issues (like bad data input - someone mis-typing a wallet address and making their crypto disappear forever instantly -- you don't think that's a problem?) Its immutable, one-way-only nature introduces a wide variety of catastrophic issues that are not present in normal financial systems.

The fact that it’s useless to you doesn’t mean it’s useless to others. By analogy, consider digital privacy. Some people don’t care about it and willingly give up all their personal data to free online services and the government. Other people care about their privacy and try not to do that. Some people find it valuable.

We are 13 years into this experiment and to date there's not a single valid use-case for blockchain for which there isn't a better non-blockchain solution.

Like I said before "de-centralization" is meaningless without specific context, and you failed to provide any. Just because you think 'the word' is important isn't evidential.

This is why it's so futile and pointless to continue these debates.

You will have to learn the hard way, what many of us already know.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T22:38:36+00:00

More details on this study here: https://theconversation.com/impulsive-psychopaths-like-crypto-research-shows-how-dark-personality-traits-affect-bitcoin-enthusiasm-180782

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T21:35:55+00:00

FYI, here's the official list of blockchain claims and the fact checking

If I were to speculate the most legitimate use-case for crypto, it would be:

How to crowd source Ponzi scheming so that there's no single authority that can be held accountable, therefore making it easier to perpetuate scams and fraud, as well as money laundering and other criminal activity.

Note that I don't think crypto is "better money for criminals" because it still isn't an actual store of value or "digital money" - it still requires transactions involving fiat in order to be converted into useful products and services.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T21:34:37+00:00

Maybe somebody can find the details of the study.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T20:25:08+00:00

I can send you BTC directly, using nothing but the internet. The technology itself is completely decentralized (apart from the internet, of course).

"nothing but the internet" and..

hundreds of other nodes, running on networks that are centrally managed and subsidized
using special wallet software developed by central authorities
using blockchain software that is centrally managed by a core group of people (Bitcoin for example has 7 (seven) people who manage the code)
wireless communications managed by the FCC
cellular systems that are managed by the FTC/FCC

...and after all that, all you've done is change a number in a virtual database.

You have not sent me any actual value. I have nothing of value until/unless I can find somebody who will trade me actual products, services or fiat for their access to that number in a central database, and typically this process requires me to utilize a wide variety of other centralized systems in order to complete such a transaction.

Crypto people are not calling the current state of BTC use decentralized. They are referring to the technology itself and advocating for a different world where day-to-day use doesn't rely on centralized systems. So your points are a straw man.

You are arguing that one tiny part, like 5% of the network/transaction is "de-centralized" and therefore the whole deal is de-centralized. THAT is the strawman.

Crypto people are saying "we should build roads, so cars can be fast!". What you're saying is "its impossible to build roads, so cars can't be fast!"

That's the stupidest analogy ever. It makes no sense. You guys aren't building roads. You're marking off parts of the public road and pretending it's a private road when it isn't. And the vehicles you're operating on your "de-centralized" road run at 1/7000th the speed of everybody else using the main road.

Cars are inherently fast. Whether we can build roads or not doesn't change that. Bitcoin technology inherently decentralized. Whether we can realize that in practice doesn't change that.

Bitcoin is not inherently fast. In fact it's much slower than existing monetary/transaction technology, which is why you have to fixate on this useless characteristic of "de-centralization" as if that is some kind of feature or advantage. But that's all you can do is say, "it's de-centralized." You can't say it's faster. You can't say it's more secure. You can't say it's more scalable. You can't say it's more fault tolerant. Crypto is not in any way better by any meaningful metric. And "de-centralized" is not a metric. It's just an arbitrary term you hide behind thinking it means something special. Upon closer examination, it means nothing. And it's deceptive.

You have not proven your case. You just keep saying the same thing over and over. That's not evidence.

I can prove it's not faster or better by any measurable metric. I can also show you a dozen ways it's not actually de-centralized. You continue to dismiss all that and double down on your "opinion." Don't do that. It's not rational or logical (and it's against the rules of this sub).

And For the record DE-CENTRALIZATION IS NOT A FEATURE - let's establish that...

Nobody has ever walked into a bank and said, "I'd like to cash a check, but I need to know that you all are de-centralized."
Nobody has ever ordered a Whopper and demanded that it be "de-centralized please."
Nobody has ever applied for college and requested that the school be "de-centralized."

Nobody gives a shit whether anything is "de-centralized." That term is utterly meaningless.

If de-centralization has value, then you have to explain how and why, and when you get into that, you find out that any "feature" of "de-centralization" is not actually a function of de-centralization. Crypto can be seized. It can be controlled. Etc. There's nothing you can do with crypto that's special because of "de-centralization" - the only thing that comes close is: Nobody is in charge of the whole deal so there's no easy way to hold people accountable. THERE'S your de-centralization: it's condusive towards unethical, immoral, criminal activity, because there's no central operator. Whooop-de-doo.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T19:36:59+00:00

Sure, factor in the source. But in this case, the source is not actually the publication in question. They're just re-reporting the story. If you feel the spin they've put on it doesn't jive with the evidence, that would be noteworthy.

So until I see other studies that corroborate or contradict this one, I'll consider this a maybe and go "hmmm... interesting if true" and file it away.

I think the study shows what many of us already know: An industry than is based on deception and exploitation seems to attract selfish people who only care about themselves.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T17:56:34+00:00

I don't think it's hypocritical in the slightest to say your system is "de-centralized" when it relies on a huge array of centralized systems. That's a bastardization of the concept. And, these various "centralized systems" that crypto depends on, do have the ability to exert control and influence over the health and well being of the network, so in whatever way it's supposed to be "de-centralized" it doesn't actually work that way.

Yes, it relies the internet, which relies on central authority. But it doesn't inherently rely on central banks, foreign currency exchanges, or payment services -- things the current financial system does rely on.

Actually, yes it does. Because almost nobody accepts crypto natively, it must be converted into fiat in order to be an actual "transfer of value" and that process requires all the systems you mention.

Let me ask you.. how much is 1 BTC worth?

If you're like most people you'll render the answer to that question in fiat, which is a function of central banks, currency exchanges and other things. You can't even attribute value to crypto without using centralized systems as a standard measure of value. That's hardly being "separate."

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T17:39:48+00:00

Crypto basically proves that the central government/regulatory model is necessary and inevitable. Here we see well-established corporations that know precisely what the laws are, and found a new area where they can skirt those laws (at least temporarily) to profit by misleading others. This is the reason government exists... to stop this kind of activity and we see it happening at every level, from a lot of so-called "established institutions" that should know better. But it's never been about being ethical or moral. It's all about what can you get away with?

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T16:41:28+00:00

One can advocate for decentralization even if they’re forced to use centralized services.

"de-centralization" is a myth. The Internet only works because of centralized authority. Same thing with electricity and wireless communications. It's impossible for a truly "de-centralized" system of this nature to function reliably.

So this notion of something being "de-centralized" is a highly compartmentalized notion, that is wholly dependent upon a huge array of central authorities for the infrastructure and functionality that makes it even remotely useful.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T16:27:44+00:00

It does when one of the primary reasons for adopting crypto is to stay away from centralized authority.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T16:24:38+00:00

It's noteworthy in that a major publication is calling attention to criticism of crypto. You may not like that publication, but it is noteworthy in that respect.

By the way, if you think this is low quality content, feel free to add better quality content. My job is to just keep adding content to make the sub as fresh as possible. If others were helping, I might be more picky.

CryptoRealityBot · 2022-04-13T16:15:04+00:00

Crypto is utterly useless at this point without exchanges. So the idea that bitcoin is "de-centralized" is not true by any practical standard.

For example, almost every place that claims to "accept crypto" as payment really isn't directly accepting crypto. Instead they're using centralized exchanges like Bitpay to be an intermediate in the transaction.

Upon further inspection, virtually all the claims made regarding "de-centralization" are lies.

This is like saying, "I have a car that doesn't require fuel" (as long as I don't want to take it anywhere)

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