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Keyz Darl
said:
Hello everyone,
A cryptocurrency is a digital currency that is created and managed through the use of advanced encryption techniques known as cryptography.
Bitcoin first released as open-source software in 2009, is generally considered the first decentralized cryptocurrency.
Alternatives to Bitcoin.
Litecoin was founded in October 2011 as "a coin that is silver to Bitcoin's gold.
Ripple was launched by OpenCoin, a company founded by technology entrepreneur Chris Larsen in 2012.
Mintchip is actually the creation of a government institution, specifically the Royal Canadian Mint.
Bitcoin attracted a growing following in subsequent years, it captured significant investor and media attention. Bitcoin free from government manipulation or interference, the flipside is that there is no central authority to ensure that things run smoothly or to back the value of a Bitcoin.
Bitcoin's main benefits of decentralization and transaction anonymity have also made it a favoured currency for a host of illegal activities including money laundering, drug peddling, smuggling and weapons procurement.
Major thefts involving bitcoin 2012 - 2017.
December 2017, NiceHash, a marketplace for crypto-mining reported $63 million worth of bitcoin stolen.
November 2017, $31 million worth of tether tokens reported stolen and converted to bitcoins.
April 2017, 4, 000 bitcoins stolen from the YouBit exchange in April.
August 2016, about $65 million worth of bitcoin stolen in the Bitfinex hack.
May 2016, $2 million worth of bitcoin and ether stolen from the Gatecoin exchange.
January 2015, $5 million worth of bitcoin stolen from the Bitstamp exchange.
February 2014, the Mt. Gox exchange reports $480 million worth of bitcoin missing.
September 2012, the BitFloor exchange reported about $250, 000 worth of bitcoins stolen.
Cyber attack in 2018.
In May 2018 Bitcoin Gold (and two other cryptocurrencies) were hit by a successful 51% hashing attack by an unknown actor, in which exchanges lost estimated $18m.
In June 2018, Korean exchange Conrail was hacked, losing US$37 million worth of altcoin. The fear surrounding the hack was blamed for a $42 billion cryptocurrency market selloff.
On 9 July 2018, the exchange Bancor had $23. 5 million in cryptocurrency stolen.
There are some limitations that cryptocurrencies presently face " such as the fact that one's digital fortune can be erased by a computer crash, or that a virtual vault may be ransacked by a hacker " may be overcome in time through technological advances.
But, if you are considering investing in cryptocurrencies, it may be best to treat as an investment option.
Thank you.