TLDR Bitcoin News
Here is some TL;DR recent Bitcoin news because you know you lazy fucks only read the headlines.
ARTICLE 1
CREATING THE WORLD’S FIRST BITCOIN WALLET FOR THE BLIND by ASHOUR IESHO
https://bitcoinist.com/creating-worlds-first-bitcoin-wallet-blind/
Adam Newbold, a Kentucky-based developer, is currently developing a hardware wallet designed specifically for the blind called IcyWallet. IcyWallets web site is located at https://icywallet.com for those who want more info or would like to donate to the project.
From the article:
"The goal behind the IcyWallet is to offer a 100% free and open source hardware wallet for blind people to store their Bitcoin. The report suggests that the hardware wallet will be complete by 2018."
ARTICLE 2
A canny view: The bitcoin bubble by Hawkes Bay Today (By: Nick Stewart for Hawkes Bay Today)
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503458&objectid=11947524
It starts off as an intro to Bitcoin and crypto's for the laymen or non-user but does a great job of explaining what the technology actually is rather than just throwing buzzwords around and claiming its "the future".
From the article:
"Bitcoin is often seen as virtual money or an exchange of digital information that allows you to complete any transaction."
"Bitcoin miners are individuals who maintain the ledger and manage the Bitcoin process flow by chronologically adding new transactions (or blocks) to the chain and keeping them in the queue."
"Miners are rewarded with newly generated Bitcoin's as well as the fees paid by users for verifying transactions."
This is a two-part article, he urges you to check it out next week from the link above:
"Next week, I'll discuss if the Bitcoin is the brave future of transactions, particularly for investors, and what people need to know about regulatory risks and frauds with Bitcoin investment."
ARTICLE 3
Deutsche Banks Chief Strategist Wants You to Avoid Bitcoin by Rebecca Campbell
A bit of price speculation, who doesn't love that?:
"Billionaire hedge fund manager Mike Novogratz believes that it will reach $10,000 before the end of the year. Whereas, Ronnie Moas, analyst and founder of Standpoint Research, is of the opinion that it can reach $14,000 in 2018. Max Keiser, host of the ‘Keiser Report’ is more bullish in his price projections and thinks Bitcoin has the potential to reach $100,000."
The article then points out Deutsche Bank’s troubles with money laundering before going on to say that it advises us not to invest in Bitcoin. The best criminals always wear suits.
From the article:
"Interestingly, while the German bank doesn't recommend the use of Bitcoin as an investment option, neither does it appear to hold much faith in fiat monetary system either. Earlier this month, it was reported that a top strategist from the bank had said that we may be looking at the ‘start of the end of fiat money.’"
"According to Jim Reid, Deutsche Bank strategist, he envisions that the current monetary system could begin to collapse within the next decade. This in turn may provide the opportunity to create an alternative currency system."
ARTICLE 4
Zimbabwean Central Bank Considers Bitcoin ‘Illegal’ By Joshua Althauser
https://cointelegraph.com/news/zimbabwean-central-bank-considers-bitcoin-illegal
Although the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe declared Bitcoin illegal to use as a legal tender in the country, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s Director and Registrar, Norman Mataruka, (the article references the source http://www.chronicle.co.zw/bitcoin-is-not-legal-rbz/) says "It is not clear, however, if Bitcoin is just not officially recognized as an authorized currency or it is totally prohibited as a legal tender within the country."
"In Southern Africa, what we have done as regulators, we have said that we will not allow [Bitcoin] in our markets.""
The quoted source in the article, http://www.chronicle.co.zw/bitcoin-is-not-legal-rbz/, seems to say they are seeking some type of regulation framework for Bitcoin and technologies like it seems they are fearful it could undermine their monetary system if used as a currency or store of value.
ARTICLE 5
The Bitcoin Network Is Highly Susceptible to Internet Routing Attacks by JP Buntinx
https://themerkle.com/the-bitcoin-network-is-highly-susceptible-to-internet-routing-attacks/
The article points out that "the vast majority of Bitcoin nodes are hosted on just 13 different ISPs. Considering that there are over 50,000 Internet service providers worldwide, that is quite worrisome."
He notes the two most likely high-level routing attacks that are unlikely to happen due to the coordinated nature and the level of involvement from governments, businesses and regulation authorities. But, at this point, what is likely? Bitcoin is almost $10,000 and everyone is taking notice.
First attack scenario is how ISP's could take control of the network:
"...If that were to happen, this handful of ISPs could redirect traffic through fake announcements on the Internet routing system. Hijacks are nothing new in the world of online connectivity, and they've been happening quite a lot as of late. Some of these attacks have (allegedly) affected the Bitcoin network already. In fact, around one hundred Bitcoin nodes are reportedly hijacked every single month. "
The second attack would be basically spamming the network and attempting to raise fees and make transaction times longer in hopes it will be unusable. The article states: "A second type of attack might push the Bitcoin block time back by up to 20 minutes. ... A delay in block time would only compound these problems and result in the network grinding to a halt at some point."