The new head of Blockchain Australia, Steve Vallas, has announced that he will focus on building up confidence in blockchain and improving the image of blockchain technology among businesses and governments. Vallas replaces Nick Giurietto who led the association over the last five years. He has worked as an industry coach and mentor for multiple universities and accelerator programs and is the founder of Australian marketing firm Honey Digital. Vallas has also advised governments on the blockchain sector. A new vision Speaking to Cointelegraph, Vallas said he will focus on improving key industry leaders’ confidence in the technology by improving …

A branch of the Russian federal government has recently published a draft of new litigation called “On Digital Financial Assets,” which is focused on enforcing strict cryptocurrency laws in the country. The legislation has not been approved yet and has been in discussion since 2018. The new laws define Bitcoin as property but not legal tender, and propose, among many other things, that Bitcoin (BTC) miners register as individual companies so they can be appropriately taxed. President Putin is planning on developing and revealing a new tax for Bitcoin miners by July 1, but many are skeptical about the government’s …

The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) has further delayed its switch to blockchain after public lobbying from key stakeholders. According to a June 30 update from the ASX, the exchange has officially delayed the rollout of Distributed Ledger infrastructure to replace its current system for processing equity transactions. ASX will now release the project — the replacement for the Clearing House Electronic Subregister System (CHESS) — in April 2022, a one-year push from its most recent timetable. The exchange cited a number of reasons for the change including the current pandemic, accommodating changes requested by stakeholders, and providing a larger window …

The Australian Cyber Security Centre said a group of “state actors” hacked Australian networks on June 19 and one of the vulnerabilities they exploited is related to cryptojacking malware attacks. According to the 48-page report released on June 24, the threat actors exploited four critical vulnerabilities in Telerik UI, including CVE-2019-18935, which was recently leveraged by the Blue Mockingbird malware gang to infect thousands of systems with XMRRig, a Monero (XMR) mining software. Vulnerability mostly used for cryptojacking purposes Although the advisory didn’t say if hackers could have installed cryptojacking malware during the recent massive cyberattack, such vulnerability is the …

Australians can now pay for Bitcoin (BTC) at national post offices, thanks to a new collaboration. According to a June 24 announcement, customers of local cryptocurrency exchange Bitcoin.com.au will be able to pay for Bitcoin at more than 3,500 Australian Post offices. The firm’s CEO Holger Arians explained that he believes the new payment option will make some people more comfortable with buying crypto: “For many people, paying for Bitcoin at an Australia Post office feels safer than transferring funds online — particularly for first-time buyers. We’re proud of this partnership and would like to thank Australia Post for their …

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has identified a sharp rise in investment scams during the coronavirus pandemic and has singled out crypto-related fraud as a particular concern. Between March and May 2020, investment scams of all types have reportedly risen by 20% as compared to the same period in 2019, according to ASIC’s announcement on June 24. Criminals appear to be attempting to take advantage of the economic insecurity that many citizens are facing during the crisis. ASIC’s executive director for assessment and intelligence, Warren Day, warned that scammers are “using age-old tactics in new and sophisticated ways …

Australians filed 1,810 reports of cryptocurrency-related scams in 2019, collectively totaling more than $21.6 million AU ($14.9 million USD). According to a study by Scamwatch, an arm of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, younger Australians aged 25 to 34 were those most heavily affected by crypto investment scams. According to the report: “Cloud mining farms became a common adaptation of this type of scam. Most were Ponzi schemes, with no real cryptocurrency involved.” It goes on to characterize cloud crypto mining as an “an incredibly resource-intensive activity” that relies on powerful computing systems to mine a coin. This is …

Another ransomware attack has hit the Australia-based drinks manufacturer, Lion. This is the second attack on the company in less than one week. The cybercriminals behind the attack are threatening to double the ransom amount if Lion does not pay by the specified date. The currency of choice for the particular attack is Monero (XMR). A report published by The Sydney Morning Herald on June 18 said that Lion's staff were informed that the attack had disrupted its IT infrastructure. Initially, REvil has asked for a ransom of $800,000, to be paid in Monero. If Lion fails to send this …

An Australian government-backed trial of peer-to-peer solar trading using blockchain technology has found that the technology is popular with users and technically feasible. The trial, which ran between Dec. 2018 and Jan. 2020, was part of the RENeW Nexus Project, which investigated the potential of localized two-sided energy markets and blockchain technology to improve the energy system. Among those supporting the project were the Australian Government’s Smart Cities initiative, several Australian universities, Western Power and the Australian blockchain firm Power Ledger. The results, published on June 18, indicated that the multi-pronged approach pursued in the trial could increase localized energy …

A story about a young woman’s relationship with a Bitcoin (BTC) millionaire is making headlines in Australian media. It’s a tale of love, drugs and crime, ending in a court case in the Maroochydore District Court in Queensland. As reported by the Sunshine Coast Daily, 23-year-old Kaori Celine Nakase pleaded guilty on Wednesday to two counts of perverting the course of justice, two counts of possession of property suspected of being the product of a drug crime, and one count of driving with an illicit drug in her system. Bitcoin millionaire made a near-$10-million fortune According to the story, Nakase …

On-Demand Liquidity (ODL) for XRP paired with the Australian dollar reached a new all-time high of 15,640,530 AUD on the exchange BTC Markets. According to a recent tweet from the Liquidity Index Bot, the liquidity index for BTC Markets for XRP/AUD climbed to 15,640,530 AUD — approximately 10.6 million USD — on June 2, exceeding the previous ATH value. The XRP liquidity in Australian markets has seen a fairly steady rise since the beginning of 2020, despite the price remaining close to 0.20 USD since May 10. Source: LiquidityB ODL network more popular than ever Cointelegraph reported Ripple’s ODL payments …

RMIT University, an Australian public research university, is adding two new postgraduate programs in the field of cybersecurity and blockchain technology. The university announced May 26 that it was partnering with IBM, Palo Alto Networks, and Stone & Chalk to offer a graduate certificate in cyber security and graduate certificate in blockchain-enabled business. The programs are expected to start in October 2020 and will last for nine months. Meeting demand for blockchain jobs RMIT introduced the new programs in order to meet the rising demand for industry professionals in cybersecurity and blockchain. The announcement cited reports that showed the Australian …