#cryptocurrency fraud recovery

[broadoakcapital12]

Broadoak Capital - CFD Trading Scam Recovery

Broadoak Capital provides expert assistance to help individuals recover funds lost in CFD trading scams. Our experienced team and tailored approach optimise your chances of a successful recovery, ensuring quick and cost-effective results. Let us help you reclaim your money and protect your financial future.

[whittakerassistance]

Unraveling the Web of Crypto Scams

Cryptocurrency investments have gained popularity in recent years, offering individuals new avenues for financial growth. However, this surge in popularity has also given rise to a parallel industry of crypto scams, leaving victims grappling with financial losses. As unsuspecting investors fall prey to fraudulent schemes, the demand for Crypto Scam Recovery Services has witnessed a corresponding surge. These services aim to assist victims in navigating the complex world of cryptocurrency fraud recovery.

The Pervasive Threat of Cryptocurrency Fraud

Cryptocurrency fraud takes various forms, including Ponzi schemes, fake ICOs, and phishing scams. Scammers often exploit the decentralized and pseudonymous nature of cryptocurrencies to perpetrate fraudulent activities. Victims find themselves entangled in a web of deception, with little recourse to reclaim their lost funds. In response to this growing concern, specialized Crypto Scam Recovery Services have emerged, offering a lifeline to those who have fallen victim to cryptocurrency fraud.

Understanding the Role of Crypto Scam Recovery Services

It plays a pivotal role in helping victims trace and recover their stolen assets. These services employ skilled professionals with expertise in blockchain analysis and legal proceedings related to cryptocurrency fraud. By leveraging their knowledge, they can identify the perpetrators and trace the flow of funds, increasing the chances of recovering lost assets. Engaging with these services is often the first step towards reclaiming financial losses incurred due to crypto scams.

The Challenges of Crypto Scam Recovery

Recovering funds lost in cryptocurrency scams has its challenges. The pseudonymous nature of blockchain transactions and the global reach of scammers make the process intricate and time-consuming. Moreover, victims might encounter difficulties in legal jurisdictions, hindering their ability to pursue justice. They act as a bridge, providing victims with the necessary expertise to navigate these complexities and improve the chances of a successful recovery.

The Role of Technology in Recovery Efforts

Blockchain technology, the very backbone of cryptocurrencies, also plays a crucial role in the recovery process. Advanced analytical tools enable Crypto Scam Recovery Services to trace transactions on the blockchain, identifying patterns and uncovering the identities of those behind fraudulent activities. This technological prowess enhances the efficiency of recovery efforts, offering hope to victims who may have initially felt powerless in the face of crypto scams.

Raising Awareness: A Preventive Approach

They offer post-fraud assistance, a proactive approach that involves raising awareness about common scams and precautionary measures. Educating investors about the red flags of potential scams and promoting security best practices can help prevent falling victim to Cryptocurrency fraud recovery in the first place. Vigilance is the first line of defense, and initiatives promoting awareness can contribute significantly to reducing the prevalence of crypto scams.

Conclusion: 

In conclusion, as the threat of cryptocurrency fraud continues to loom, Crypto Scam Recovery Services have become an indispensable ally for victims seeking restitution. Among these, whittakerassistance.com stands out as a reliable and efficient platform dedicated to aiding individuals in their quest for recovery. By combining technological expertise with a commitment to justice, these recovery services contribute to the ongoing battle against crypto scams, offering hope to those who have suffered financial losses in the volatile world of cryptocurrencies.

Source Url :-  https://sites.google.com/view/whittakerassistancegh/home

[trenddtrackr]

Is cryptogo365.com Legit?

Is cryptogo365.com legit? Is it a scam? Scam Detector analyzed this website, giving it a medium trust score on our chart. We aggregated 53 powerful factors to expose high-risk activity and see if cryptogo365.com is legitimate. Let's look at it and its industry through an in-depth review. You'll also learn how to detect and block scam websites and what you can do if you already lost your money.

Cryptogo365.com raises significant red flags, suggesting that it may not be a legitimate platform. Various reviews indicate that this broker is involved in questionable practices, including not being listed as a reliable trading provider and potentially engaging in scams.

Lack of Regulation: Cryptogo365 operates offshore and is not regulated by any recognized authority. This absence of oversight is a major concern, as it means there is no accountability for their practices​(Global Fraud Protection)​(Trading Fraud Reviews).

Questionable Business Model: Reports indicate that users are required to input a referral code to access the trading platform, which is only obtainable through their agents. This can lead to aggressive sales tactics aimed at pushing clients to invest more money​(Trading Fraud Reviews).

High Risk of Fraud: The broker reportedly charges high fees and offers an alarming leverage of up to 1:400, significantly increasing the risk of losing invested funds. Moreover, users have expressed concerns about difficulties in withdrawing money once deposited, which is a common tactic among fraudulent brokers​(Global Fraud Protection)​(Trading Fraud Reviews).

Negative User Feedback: There are many complaints regarding Cryptogo365, with users describing their experiences as deceptive and untrustworthy. The platform seems to prioritize profit over user safety, raising further concerns about its legitimacy​(Trading Fraud Reviews).

Given these factors, it is advisable to approach Cryptogo365 with caution or avoid it altogether. If you've already invested money and are facing issues, consider reaching out to experts in scam recovery for assistance. For more detailed insights, you can check the sources (Trading Fraud Reviews)ps://tradingfraudreviews.com/scam-brokers/cryptogo365-review/).

[aiolegalservices]

Understanding Fraud in Cryptocurrency and How AIO Legal Services Can Help

  Cryptocurrency has gained significant popularity and acceptance over the past decade. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and a host of other cryptocurrencies have revolutionised the financial landscape, offering decentralised and often anonymous transactions. However, this innovation has also opened new avenues for fraud. The unregulated nature of many cryptocurrencies, combined with their anonymity, has made…

[lionsgatenetwork]

At the heart of every fake ICO scam lies a web of deceit meticulously spun to lure unsuspecting investors. These scams often masquerade as legitimate Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), promising groundbreaking innovations and exponential returns on investment. However, beneath the glossy veneer lies a hollow core of falsified information, plagiarized whitepapers, and fictitious team members – a charade designed to dupe investors into parting ways with their hard-earned capital.

[ju6hy5gt4eftght]

RECOVERING LOST, HACKED, OR STOLEN CRYPTO - HACK-ANGELS

Hello, my name is Peter Hartman. I'm 56 years old from Germany. My family and I were left with nothing after falling prey to a cryptocurrency investment fraud that took $807,000 in USDT and Bitcoins from us. We were quite fortunate to stumble across a post about HACK-ANGELS, a cryptocurrency and funds recovery organization with extensive cybersecurity knowledge. HACK-ANGELS was able to recover all of our cash, and they were tracked down and reported to the right authorities using the information we gave. In my opinion, you should use HACK-ANGELS to recover your cryptocurrency.

Adr: 45-46 Red Lion St., London WC1R 4PF, UK Email: hackange@cyberdude.com Tel: +1 203-309-3359 Visit: https://thehackangels.com

[mariacallous]

As digital scamming explodes in Southeast Asia, including so called “pig butchering” investment scams, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) issued a comprehensive report this week with a dire warning about the rapid growth of this criminal ecosystem. Many digital scams have traditionally relied on social engineering, or tricking victims into giving away their money willingly, rather than leaning on malware or other highly technical methods. But researchers have increasingly sounded the alarm that scammers are incorporating generative AI content and deepfakes to expand the scale and effectiveness of their operations. And the UN report offers the clearest evidence yet that these high tech tools are turning an already urgent situation into a crisis.

In addition to buying written scripts to use with potential victims or relying on templates for malicious websites, attackers have increasingly been leaning on generative AI platforms to create communication content in multiple languages and deepfake generators that can create photos or even video of nonexistent people to show victims and enhance verisimilitude. Scammers have also been expanding their use of tools that can drain a victim’s cryptocurrency wallets, have been manipulating transaction records to trick targets into sending cryptocurrency to the wrong places, and are compromising smart contracts to steal cryptocurrency. And in some cases, they’ve been purchasing Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet systems to help power their efforts.

“Agile criminal networks are integrating these new technologies faster than anticipated, driven by new online marketplaces and service providers which have supercharged the illicit service economy,” John Wojcik, a UNODC regional analyst, tells WIRED. “These developments have not only expanded the scope and efficiency of cyber-enabled fraud and cybercrime, but they have also lowered the barriers to entry for criminal networks that previously lacked the technical skills to exploit more sophisticated and profitable methods.”

For years, China-linked criminals have trafficked people into gigantic compounds in Southeast Asia, where they are often forced to run scams, held against their will, and beaten if they refuse instructions. Around 200,000 people, from at least 60 countries, have been trafficked to compounds largely in Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos over the last five years. However, as WIRED reporting has shown, these operations are spreading globally—with scamming infrastructure emerging in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and West Africa.

Most prominently, these organized crime operations have run pig butchering scams, where they build intimate relationships with victims before introducing an “investment opportunity” and asking for money. Criminal organizations may have conned people out of around $75 billion through pig butchering scams. Aside from pig butchering, according to the UN report, criminals across Southeast Asia are also running job scams, law enforcement impersonation, asset recovery scams, virtual kidnappings, sextortion, loan scams, business email compromise, and other illicit schemes. Criminal networks in the region earned up to $37 billion last year, UN officials estimate. Perhaps unsurprisingly, all of this revenue is allowing scammers to expand their operations and diversify, incorporating new infrastructure and technology into their systems in the hope of making them more efficient and brutally effective.

For example, scammers are often constrained by their language skills and ability to keep up conversations with potentially hundreds of victims at a time in numerous languages and dialects. However, generative AI developments within the last two years—including the launch of writing tools such as ChatGPT—are making it easier for criminals to break down language barriers and create the content needed for scamming.

The UN’s report says AI can be used for automating phishing attacks that ensnare victims, the creation of fake identities and online profiles, and the crafting of personalized scripts to trick victims while messaging them in different languages. “These developments have not only expanded the scope and efficiency of cyber-enabled fraud and cybercrime, but they have also lowered the barriers to entry for criminal networks that previously lacked the technical skills to exploit sophisticated and profitable methods,” the report says.

Stephanie Baroud, a criminal intelligence analyst in Interpol’s human trafficking unit, says the impact of AI needs to be considered as part of a pig butchering scammer’s tactics going forward. Baroud, who spoke with WIRED in an interview before the publication of the UN report, says the criminal’s recruitment ads that lure people into being trafficked to scamming compounds used to be “very generic” and full of grammatical errors. However, AI is now making them appear more polished and compelling, Baroud says. “It is really making it easier to create a very realistic job offer,” she says. “Unfortunately, this will make it much more difficult to identify which is the real and which is the fake ads.”

Perhaps the biggest AI paradigm shift in such digital attacks comes from deepfakes. Scammers are increasingly using machine-learning systems to allow for real-time face-swapping. This technology, which has also been used by romance scammers in West Africa, allows criminals to change their appearance on calls with their victims, making them realistically appear to be a different person. The technology is allowing “one-click” face swaps and high-resolution video feeds, the UN’s report states. Such services are a game changer for scammers, because they allow attackers to “prove” to victims in photos or real-time video calls that they are who they claim to be.

Using these setups, however, can require stable internet connections, which can be harder to maintain within some regions where pig butchering compounds and other scamming have flourished. There has been a “notable” increase in cops seizing Starlink satellite dishes in recent months in Southeast Asia, the UN says—80 units were seized between April and June this year. In one such operation carried out in June, Thai police confiscated 58 Starlink devices. In another instance, law enforcement seized 10 Starlink devices and 4,998 preregistered SIM cards while criminals were in the process of moving their operations from Myanmar to Laos. Starlink did not immediately respond to WIRED’s request for comment.

“Obviously using real people has been working for them very well, but using the tech could be cheaper after they have the required computers” and connectivity, says Troy Gochenour, a volunteer with the Global Anti-Scam Organization (GASO), a US-based nonprofit that fights human-trafficking and cybercrime operations in Southeast Asia.

Gochenour’s research involves tracking trends on Chinese-language Telegram channels related to carrying out pig butchering scams. And he says that it is increasingly common to see people applying to be AI models for scam content.

In addition to AI services, attackers have increasingly leaned on other technical solutions as well. One tool that has been increasingly common in digital scamming is so-called “crypto drainers,” a type of malware that has particularly been deployed against victims in Southeast Asia. Drainers can be more or less technically sophisticated, but their common goal is to “drain” funds from a target’s cryptocurrency wallets and redirect the currency to wallets controlled by attackers. Rather than stealing the credentials to access the target wallet directly, drainers are typically designed to look like a legitimate service—either by impersonating an actual platform or creating a plausible brand. Once a victim has been tricked into connecting their wallet to the drainer, they are then manipulated into approving one or a few transactions that grant attackers unintended access to all the funds in the wallet.

Drainers can be used in many contexts and with many fronts. They can be a component of pig butchering investment scams, or promoted to potential victims through compromised social media accounts, phishing campaigns, and malvertizing. Researchers from the firm ScamSniffer, for example, published findings in December about sponsored social media and search engine ads linked to malicious websites that contained a cryptocurrency drainer. The campaign, which ran from March to December 2023 reportedly stole about $59 million from more than 63,000 victims around the world.

Far from the low-tech days of doing everything through social engineering by building a rapport with potential victims and crafting tricky emails and text messages, today’s scammers are taking a hybrid approach to make their operations as efficient and lucrative as possible, UN researchers say. And even if they aren’t developing sophisticated malware themselves in most cases, scammers are increasingly in the market to use these malicious tools, prompting malware authors to adapt or create hacking tools for scams like pig butchering.

Researchers say that scammers have been seen using infostealers and even remote access trojans that essentially create a backdoor in a victim’s system that can be utilized in other types of attacks. And scammers are also expanding their use of malicious smart contracts that appear to programmatically establish a certain agreed-upon transaction or set of transactions, but actually does much more. “Infostealer logs and underground data markets have also been critical to ongoing market expansion, with access to unprecedented amounts of sensitive data serving as a major catalyst,” Wojcik, from the UNODC, says.

The changing tactics are significant as global law enforcement scrambles to deter digital scamming. But they are just one piece of the larger picture, which is increasingly urgent and bleak for forced laborers and victims of these crimes.

“It is now increasingly clear that a potentially irreversible displacement and spillover has taken place in which organized crime are able to pick, choose, and move value and jurisdictions as needed, with the resulting situation rapidly outpacing the capacity of governments to contain it,” UN officials wrote in the report. “Failure to address this ecosystem will have consequences for Southeast Asia and other regions.”

[evasblog1]

Navigating the Maze of Crypto Scams: Effective Strategies for Prevention and Recovery

Introduction: The Rising Threat of Cryptocurrency Scams

As cryptocurrencies gain widespread acceptance, the lure of quick profits has not only attracted investors but also cybercriminals, leading to a surge in crypto-related scams. Protecting your digital assets against these threats requires a proactive approach, encompassing awareness, prevention, and recovery strategies.

Understanding Crypto Scams: The Basics

Identifying Common Types of Cryptocurrency Scams

Cryptocurrency scams can take various forms, each designed to part unsuspecting victims from their digital assets. Some prevalent types include:

Investment Scams: These scams promise extraordinary returns through crypto investments and are often structured like traditional Ponzi schemes.

Exchange Scams: Victims are tricked into using fake cryptocurrency exchanges, which may disappear overnight.

Wallet Scams: Scammers create fake wallets to steal user credentials and drain their holdings.

ICO Scams: Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) that are fraudulent, where the crypto token is either non-existent or the ICO itself is based on false promises.

Red Flags and Warning Signs

The key to avoiding cryptocurrency scams is recognizing warning signs, such as:

Promises of guaranteed high returns with little risk.

Anonymous teams or unverifiable developer identities.

Pressure to invest quickly or offers that seem too good to be true.

Techniques for Investigating Crypto Scams

Unraveling crypto scams requires a blend of technical expertise and investigative rigor. Effective techniques include:

Blockchain Analysis: Tools and software are used to analyze transactions and track the flow of stolen funds across the blockchain.

IP Address Tracking: Identifying the IP addresses associated with fraudulent activities can help pinpoint the scammer’s location.

Collaboration with Regulatory Bodies: Working with cryptocurrency exchanges and regulatory authorities can help in freezing fraudulent accounts.

Strategies for Recovering Lost Cryptocurrencies

Losing cryptocurrency to a scam can be devastating, but there are ways to attempt recovery:

Act Quickly: Immediate action can increase the chances of recovering stolen assets.

Crypto Recovery Services: Specialized services can assist in tracing lost or stolen cryptocurrencies and negotiating their return.

Legal Recourse: In some cases, legal intervention might be required to recover large sums.

Preventative Measures to Secure Your Assets

Implementing robust security measures is crucial in safeguarding your cryptocurrencies:

Utilize two-factor authentication (2FA) for all transactions.

Store large amounts of cryptocurrency in cold storage solutions.

Educate yourself continually about new types of scams in the crypto space.

Conclusion: Staying One Step Ahead of Crypto Scammers

As the crypto market continues to evolve, so too do the tactics of scammers. Staying informed, vigilant, and proactive is your best defense against these digital threats. For victims of crypto fraud, recovery may be challenging but not impossible, with the right guidance and support. For comprehensive support in crypto fraud investigation and recovery, visit www.einvestigators.net, your trusted partner in protecting and recovering your digital wealth.

[cryptoexpert2024]

Recover Your Crypto with the Best Crypto Recovery Experts

Are you in distress after falling victim to a cryptocurrency scam or losing access to your digital assets? Don't despair – help is at hand! Welcome to Broker Complaint Alert, your trusted partner in the realm of crypto recovery.

Why Choose Broker Complaint Alert?

At Broker Complaint Alert, we understand the complexities and risks associated with the cryptocurrency market. Whether you've been a victim of fraudulent schemes, phishing attacks, or technical mishaps, we have the expertise and dedication to assist you in recovering your lost funds.

Here's why we stand out as the best crypto recovery experts:

1. Extensive Experience:

Our team comprises seasoned professionals with years of experience in dealing with crypto-related issues. We have successfully handled a myriad of cases, ranging from simple account recovery to complex fraud investigations.

2. Tailored Solutions:

We recognize that every case is unique, and we approach each situation with a fresh perspective. Our experts will work closely with you to understand the specifics of your predicament and devise a personalized recovery strategy.

3. Proven Track Record:

Over the years, we have garnered a reputation for delivering results. Our track record speaks for itself, with numerous satisfied clients who have reclaimed their lost assets with our assistance.

4. Transparent Process:

We believe in transparency and keep our clients informed at every step of the recovery process. You can trust us to provide honest assessments and realistic expectations regarding the outcome of your case.

How We Can Help You:

Our comprehensive range of services includes:

Fraud Investigation: If you suspect fraudulent activity or unauthorized transactions involving your cryptocurrency holdings, our experts will conduct a thorough investigation to uncover the truth.

Account Recovery: Locked out of your crypto wallet or unable to access your funds? We specialize in facilitating the recovery of lost or inaccessible accounts, ensuring that you regain control of your assets.

Legal Assistance: In cases involving legal complexities or disputes with exchanges or trading platforms, our legal team will provide expert guidance and representation to safeguard your interests.

Risk Assessment: Worried about the security of your crypto investments? We offer risk assessment services to identify potential vulnerabilities and recommend proactive measures to mitigate risks.

Get in Touch Today!

Don't let despair overshadow your hopes of crypto recovery. Take the first step towards reclaiming your assets by reaching out to Broker Complaint Alert. Our dedicated team of experts is here to support you every step of the way.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation and let us be your trusted partner in crypto recovery. With Broker Complaint Alert by your side, your journey to financial restitution begins here.

Trust the best – choose Broker Complaint Alert for all your crypto recovery needs.

[broadoakcapital12]

Broadoak Capital Solutions Provides Top CFD Scam Recovery Services in the UK

Recover your losses from CFD scams with the unmatched experience of Broadoak Capital Solutions. Our committed group of professionals has a track record of successfully recovering money and negotiating the complex world of Frauds . At Broadoak Capital remedies, we combine cutting-edge technology with seasoned personnel in a seamless manner to offer victims CFD Scam Recovery Services with quick and effective remedies. Visit our website for all the information you need.

[whittakerassistance]

Maximize Your Revenue with Our Chargeback Recovery Services

In financial transactions, charge backs provide a crucial layer of protection for consumers. Charge-backs allow individuals to dispute the charges and recover their funds when unauthorized or fraudulent transactions occur. However, navigating the charge-back process can be complex and time-consuming. Additionally, we will examine the offerings of Whittaker Business Assistance Limited, a company that provides charge-back recovery services.

Cryptocurrency fraud recovery

[aemilius-cupero]

We provide services for individuals who have been defrauded by fake investment platforms such as Binary Options, Forex, Cryptocurrency, and Container Leasing Services. We’re continuing to explore successful investigative techniques, finding world-class legal associates, and gaining the trust and admiration of our clients. We establish long-term relationships with some of the best attorneys in the realm of financial fraud, allowing us to expedite the financial recovery process.

[riotouseaterofflesh]

I posted 18,676 times in 2022

46 posts created (0%)

18,630 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@tangent101

@hunterhufflepuff

@uuuuutan

@bogleech

@cowards-sorcery

I tagged 1,223 of my posts in 2022

#yes - 14 posts

#lmao - 7 posts

#life is strange - 6 posts

#😭 - 5 posts

#til - 5 posts

#same - 5 posts

#oh my - 4 posts

#catholic - 4 posts

#holy shit - 3 posts

#yes please - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#does anyone else read this imagining someone yelling and getting dragged away from the mic and gagged while still yelling out their sentence

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

The crypto project has had 13 years to try and find a problem to solve. It has not found one.

A dynamic money supply is a fundamental necessity for a modern economy. A small amount of inflation discourages hoarding and incentivizes investment into productive enterprises which grow the economy and produce prosperity. Conversely a static fixed money supply encouages hoarding, and is inflexible in times of crisis because it does not allow intervention. Economies do not stabilize themselves and require active intervention to curb recessions.

Even playing devil’s advocate and assuming cryptocurrency could function as money—which they can’t—we come up against the hard limitation that everytime private money has been tried in history it creates a form of corporate feudalism coupled to a toxic environment that encourages fraud and discourages commerce.

When we logically deconstruct the crypto narrative by tossing out the phoney populism and cult-like structure of faith in economic absurdities, we end up with an inescapable conclusion that fits firmly within our existing regulatory framework. Crypto assets are simply unregistered securities on ventures whose stated aspiration is to develop technology to become digital wildcat banks. They’ve just synthesized their corporate equity and alleged notes into one financial product.

12 notes - Posted January 2, 2022

#4

“We too have seen our share of anti-choice women, ones the counselors usually grit their teeth over. Just last week a woman announced loudly enough for all to hear in the recovery room, that she thought abortion should be illegal. Amazingly, this was her second abortion within the last few months, having gotten pregnant again within a month of the first abortion. The nurse handled it by talking about all the carnage that went on before abortion was legalized and how fortunate she was to be receiving safe, professional care. However, this young woman continued to insist it was wrong and should be made illegal. Finally the nurse said, ‘Well, I guess we won’t be seeing you here again, not that you’re not welcome.’ Later on, another patient who had overheard this exchange thanked the nurse for her remarks.” (Clinic Administrator, Alberta)

(Far from being a bloodless liberal gotcha, I’m reading these examples as a demonstration of how necessary abortion is. Everyone getting an abortion here is blameless for that - the only issue is their refusal to acknowledge it.)

15 notes - Posted June 26, 2022

#3

This duplicity on Tesla’s part, I reasoned, couldn’t be a mere accident. To borrow the folksy saying favored by Warren Buffett: There is never just one cockroach. So I began digging into every aspect of Tesla’s business, and in the years that followed, my investigations turned up no shortage of cockroaches.

The following year, in 2016, I discovered some of the ways Tesla maintained this gap between public idealism and private cynicism, when I found the company had been requiring customers to sign nondisclosure agreements in return for free repairs to defects. This practice not only propped up Tesla’s buoyant stock price by keeping bad news away from investors’ ears, but also cut off auto safety regulators from their only independent source of information about defects. Then, even after major media outlets picked up the story and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called the practice “unacceptable,” Tesla published a blog post saying I had fabricated the story, implying I had done so because I was short selling their stock in order to profit from the declines caused by my story.

Despite having not even known what short selling was up to that point, I was mobbed by an online army of angry fans who repeated these smears. Here was the turducken of Tesla’s information control strategy: NDAs for customers, smears against critical reporters, a vicious pack of online enforcers, and a total disregard for facts holding it all together. It didn’t matter how much evidence I had and how little Musk had, there was always a large and growing “community” willing to assert that I had to be wrong, biased, and outright evil to contradict their hero.

28 notes - Posted May 27, 2022

#2

Today, evangelicals make up the backbone of the pro-life movement, but it hasn’t always been so. Both before and for several years after Roe, evangelicals were overwhelmingly indifferent to the subject, which they considered a “Catholic issue.” In 1968, for instance, a symposium sponsored by the Christian Medical Society and Christianity Today, the flagship magazine of evangelicalism, refused to characterize abortion as sinful, citing “individual health, family welfare, and social responsibility” as justifications for ending a pregnancy. In 1971, delegates to the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, passed a resolution encouraging “Southern Baptists to work for legislation that will allow the possibility of abortion under such conditions as rape, incest, clear evidence of severe fetal deformity, and carefully ascertained evidence of the likelihood of damage to the emotional, mental, and physical health of the mother.” The convention, hardly a redoubt of liberal values, reaffirmed that position in 1974, one year after Roe, and again in 1976.

When the Roe decision was handed down, W. A. Criswell, the Southern Baptist Convention’s former president and pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas—also one of the most famous fundamentalists of the 20th century—was pleased: “I have always felt that it was only after a child was born and had a life separate from its mother that it became an individual person,” he said, “and it has always, therefore, seemed to me that what is best for the mother and for the future should be allowed.”

29 notes - Posted June 25, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

The website "Have I Been Trained?" taps into the LAION-5B training data used to train Stable Diffusion and Google's Imagen AI models, among others. To build LAION-5B, bots directed by a group of AI researchers crawled billions of websites, including large repositories of artwork at DeviantArt, ArtStation, Pinterest, Getty Images, and more. Along the way, LAION collected millions of images from artists and copyright holders without consultation, which irritated some artists.

When visiting the Have I Been Trained? website, which is run by a group of artists called Spawning, users can search the data set by text (such as an artist's name) or by an image they upload. They will see image results alongside caption data linked to each image. It is similar to an earlier LAION-5B search tool created by Romain Beaumont and a recent effort by Andy Baio and Simon Willison, but with a slick interface and the ability to do a reverse image search.

Any matches in the results mean that the image could have potentially been used to train AI image generators and might still be used to train tomorrow's image synthesis models. AI artists can also use the results to guide more accurate prompts.

Spawning's website is part of the group's goal to establish norms around obtaining consent from artists to use their images in future AI training efforts, including developing tools that aim to let artists opt in or out of AI training.

41 notes - Posted September 16, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[lionsgatenetwork]

Crypto recovery agencies employ a multifaceted approach to tackle the complexities of crypto-related crimes. At the heart of their operations lies advanced blockchain analytics, allowing them to trace the flow of funds across the decentralized ledger. By meticulously analyzing transaction patterns and network data, they can identify suspicious addresses and entities involved in illicit activities.

[mariacallous]

A US judge has cleared the way for billions of dollars to be refunded to former customers of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX.

At a court hearing in Wilmington, Delaware, on Monday, judge John Dorsey gave final approval to FTX’s reorganization plan, the terms of which had previously been put to creditors and voted through by a landslide.

“I think this is a model case for how to deal with a very complex Chapter 11 proceeding,” said Dorsey. “I applaud everyone involved in the negotiation process.”

FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022 after running out of funds to process customer withdrawals. Billions of dollars’ worth of FTX customer deposits were missing. The money, a jury later found, had been swept into a sibling company and spent on high-risk trading, venture bets, debt repayments, personal loans, political donations, luxury real estate, and other illegitimate dealings.

A year later, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted of multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy, then sentenced to 25 years in prison. In September, coconspirator Caroline Ellison received a two-year prison term after testifying against Bankman-Fried at trial.

First proposed in May, the FTX bankruptcy plan charts a path to a full refund, plus interest, for former FTX customers—a level of recovery rarely seen in bankruptcies. “Generally, anything over 100 cents on the dollar is close to miraculous,” says Yesha Yadav, associate dean and a bankruptcy specialist at Vanderbilt University Law School. “What tends to happen is that unsecured creditors get cents on the dollar, if they’re lucky. The expectation is that it is a process of scarcity.”

In this case, though, the administrators of the FTX estate were able to recover billions of dollars by liquidating investments made by the exchange’s venture capital arm, FTX Ventures, and its sister company, Alameda Research, along with other assets. A rise in the price of cryptocurrencies in the period since FTX filed for bankruptcy, meanwhile, raised the value of the coins left in exchange coffers.

Under the plan, government bodies in the United States—including the Internal Revenue Service and the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission—have agreed to suspend high-value claims against FTX until creditors had been repaid (although the IRS will receive a $200 million upfront payment as part of the settlement).

Even FTX equity holders, typically the last to be repaid in a bankruptcy, stand to make back a portion of their initial investment—a maximum of $230 million between them—paid for using funds recovered by the Department of Justice through the prosecution of FTX insiders.

But despite the abnormally high expected recovery, some creditors believe they are still getting a raw deal by virtue of the way their claims have been valued.

Many customers held crypto assets like bitcoin on the FTX platform, but through a process called dollarization common to bankruptcies, their claims have instead been assigned a dollar value based on the price of those assets on the date of the bankruptcy filing. When FTX fell, the crypto market was in the doldrums, but it has since lurched to new all-time highs, meaning some customer claims would be far more valuable if the refund were mapped to the present value of crypto assets. Therefore, though dollarization is proper under the bankruptcy code, “saying [the return] is over 100 percent is just wrong,” says Yadav. “For the average person, it’s very far from that.”

Among the parties that stand to gain the most from the approval of the plan, meanwhile, are investment firms that spent millions of dollars purchasing claims from people with assets stuck in FTX, who either preferred to take a haircut and reinvest the money or had urgent need of the funds. Those claims were typically purchased at a cut-price rate before a handsome recovery was considered likely—some for less than 10 cents on the dollar—but are now worth multiples of that.

“In terms of internal rate of return—holy shit. It’s the best trade I’ve seen in my lifetime,” says Thomas Braziel, cofounder of 507 Capital, an investment firm that specializes in buying up bankruptcy claims and took a large position in FTX, and 117 Partners, which brokers claim sales. (In July, Braziel was ordered by a Delaware court to repay $1.9 million that he misappropriated as receiver of failed financial services company Fund.com to make investments and luxury purchases.)

In August, a number of former FTX customers filed formal objections to the plan with the bankruptcy court. The customers objected, variously, to the legal immunity provided under the plan to those that have administered the bankruptcy, the likelihood that cash payments would trigger costly taxable events for creditors, and other elements of the plan. “I felt vindicated when Bankman-Fried went to jail—and I believed that would flow through to bankruptcy court,” says Sunil Kavuri, one FTX customer to cosign an objection. “I’ve been unpleasantly surprised.”

In the course of the five-hour hearing, Brian Glueckstein, an attorney at law firm Sullivan & Cromwell and counsel to FTX, responded to each objection in turn. “There is no evidence on the record that somehow these debtors are not providing maximum value—none,” said Glueckstein.

In providing his approval, the judge rejected the pending objections and cleared the way for FTX administrators to begin to execute the plan.

It remains possible to lodge an appeal against the plan after its confirmation in limited circumstances. Logistical complications may also delay repayments to creditors, expected to begin late this year at the earliest. But few realistic options now remain for parties hoping to change the course of the FTX bankruptcy.

The confirmation hearing “is the last chance in a practical sense for changes to be made,” says Yadav. “This is the defining day.”

[lycanretrieve]

Lycan Retrieve: Expert Asset Recovery Services

Lycan Retrieve is a solutions-driven company that specializes in recovering lost funds from cryptocurrency fraud, investment fraud, forex scams, and binary options scams. Using advanced technology and a thorough process, we review cases, gather evidence, confront responsible entities, and work tirelessly to recover stolen assets. Our expertise extends to scam broker reviews, providing vital insights to prevent future losses. Whether you are a victim of cryptocurrency theft, fraudulent investments, or fraudulent trading platforms, Lycan Retrieve is committed to assisting individuals and organizations in regaining financial stability and peace of mind. Trust us to handle your recovery process with precision and care.