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Blockchain media authentication app eyes news journalism as primary use case

Tapping into underlying blockchain infrastructure, Nodle’s Click application allows users to authenticate media content for various use cases.

Decentralized infrastructure network provider Nodle has released the first version of its blockchain-based media authentication application called Click, which could prove useful in combatting artificially generated media and fake news. 

As previously reported by Cointelegraph, Nodle has developed a software development kit (SDK) for its ContentSign solution, which cryptographically proves the integrity of data captured by mobile devices using blockchain technology.

The Click application supports the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) and is a member of the Content Authenticity Initiative (CAI). The latter is a project led by Adobe and the Linux Foundation to create a future standard for media attestation.

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More details emerge on Twitter Coins — and crypto’s not included

Tech blogger and app researcher Nima Owji said he didn’t find any indication that cryptocurrencies were involved.

References to crypto or blockchain technology are nowhere to be found in newly leaked images concerning “Twitter Coins” — the platform’s secret in-development digital asset. 

Many in the community have been hoping that the secret “Twitter Coins” project would involve cryptocurrency in some way after the project was first leaked in early December by tech bloggers Jane Manchun Wong and Nima Owji.

Members of the Dogecoin (DOGE) community have been especially hopeful given Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s affiliation with the token. In a Dec. 4 Twitter Spaces event, Musk said he was still interested in integrating crypto with the social media platform.

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However, newly leaked images of the project’s development shared by Wong and Owji on Jan. 10 are devoid of any mention of crypto or blockchain technology.

Owji tweeted that no leaks so far have provided any indication that crypto will be involved in Twitter Coins:

“It seems to be an in-app currency to support the creators. I didn’t find anything that relates it to *crypto* currency.”

The leaked images instead provide more light into the planned uses of the in-app digital currency.

One of the images is a screenshot of the purported purchasing splash page for Twitter Coins, which explains that the in-app currency will allow users to “support creators who Tweet great content.”

This appears to be in reference to the platform’s “Twitter Awards,” which was also leaked by Manchun Wong a week earlier, on Jan. 5.

According to a tweet by Wong, awards such as “Mind Blown,” “Bravo” and “Super Like” can be sent to content creators on the platform — at a cost denominated in Twitter Coins.

Screenshot of the list of Twitter Awards. Source: Jane Manchun Wong on Twitter

The feature bears similarities to Reddit’s tipping and rewards system, where Redditors use “Reddit Coins” to send awards to other users who make a post, comment or live video broadcast that they have enjoyed.

Related: Twitter data breach: Hacker put 200M users’ private information up for grabs

Even purchasing Twitter Coins won’t involve crypto payments at this stage. According to Wong, purchasing Twitter’s digital currency will be enabled through fiat using Stripe.

Stripe is a fiat-based payment processing platform that lets merchants accept credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and cash-based vouchers.

However, that’s not to say that crypto may not eventually play a part in the equation.

On April 22, Stripe announced it had begun supporting payouts to select Twitter content creators in USD Coin (USDC) with payouts taking place over the Polygon network.

FBI issues public warning over fake crypto apps

Fake crypto apps appear to be part of an ongoing game of whack-a-mole with app store operators.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has issued a public warning about fraudulent cryptocurrency applications, which have swindled U.S. investors out of an estimated $42.7 million so far. 

According to an advisory published on Monday by the securities and intelligence agency, cybercriminals have created apps using the same logos and identifying information as legitimate crypto companies to defraud investors. The FBI noted that 244 people had already fallen victim to these fake apps.

One case saw cyber criminals convincing victims to download an app that used the same logo as an actual U.S. financial institution, encouraging them to deposit cryptocurrency into wallets purportedly related to their accounts.

When victims attempted to withdraw from the app, they would be asked to pay taxes on their withdrawals. However, this was just another ruse to part more funds from victims, as even if they made the payments, the withdrawals would continue to be unavailable.

Around $3.7 million was defrauded from 28 victims between December 2021 and May 2022, said the FBI.

Another similar operation saw cybercriminals operating under the company name “YiBit,” defrauding at least four victims of around $5.5 million between October 2021 and May 2022, using a similar method of deceit.

A third case involved criminals operating under the name “Supay” in November 2021. They defrauded two victims by encouraging them to deposit cryptocurrency into their wallets on the app, which would then be frozen unless more funds were deposited.

Warnings about fraudulent apps have also made the rounds on Crypto Twitter.

One user said a friend recently fell victim to a scam that started on the online messenger service WhatsApp, which encouraged the victim to download a fake crypto app and load funds into the app’s wallet. A week later, the crypto app vanished.

Another user says they have fallen victim to a fake Ledger Live crypto wallet app, reportedly called “Ledger Live Plus,” in the Microsoft app store. The user claims the fraudulent app has already stolen $20,000 from him. 

Earlier this year, cybersecurity firm ESET uncovered a “sophisticated scheme” that would distribute Trojan applications disguised as popular cryptocurrency wallets. These applications would then attempt to steal crypto assets from their victims. 

Related: More than $4.7M stolen in Uniswap fake token phishing attack

Last year, a scam cryptocurrency app dressed up as a mobile Trezor app on Apple’s App Store reportedly led to one user losing $600,000 in Bitcoin (BTC) at the time.

A report from the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in June 2022 found that as much as $1 billion in crypto has been lost to scammers since 2021, with nearly half of all crypto-related scams originating from social media platforms.

The FBI has recommended crypto investors be wary of unsolicited requests to download investment apps, verify an app (and the company) is legitimate, and treat apps with limited and/or broken functionality “with skepticism.”