Xcel Token

We often see Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like the Wild West : no rules, no social norms, only greed, selfishness and mining. This professed lack of law and order makes the crypto world scary to many people. Nevertheless, in reality, there are rules that govern decentralized peer-to-peer (p2p) networks such as Bitcoin . These rules are coded into procedures and deliver the framework for how contributors of a network interact with each other. They help us create a secure, trustworthy and valuable system, just like laws deliver a framework for a better society. Cryptoeconomics asks the question of how we can design these rules and incentives, so that the networks stay secure and create value for everyone. Cryptoeconomics uses cryptographic tools, game theory and economic incentives to achieve this goal. The Two Pillars of Cryptoeconomics Cryptography: techniques that keep messages secure Economic incentives : rules and rewards that encourage you to add value to t...

This blog is a continuation of the previous blog that introduces the act of social engineering. It would be wise to read that blog before we can go ahead and explain how social engineering works in cryptoeconomics. Phishing for Bitcoins Social engineering attackers are also targeting cryptocurrency. Researchers at Cisco's Talos security group have identified a malicious advertising campaign they dub Coinhoarder, which appears to be based out of Ukraine and to have netted about $50 million in the past three years, including $10 million alone in the last three months of 2017. For this campaign, which began last February, the researchers say attackers purchased Google Adwords to "poison user search results" and direct them to attacker-controlled phishing sites designed to separate them from their cryptocurrency . "Cisco identified an attack pattern in which the threat actors behind the operation would establish a 'gateway' phishing link ...