starts – Earlybirds Invest https://earlybirdsinvest.com Latest Crypto News Sat, 13 Sep 2025 16:42:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.7 https://i0.wp.com/earlybirdsinvest.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/cropped-New-Project-2024-12-17T235703.455.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 starts – Earlybirds Invest https://earlybirdsinvest.com 32 32 240146708 OSGrid’s annual fundraiser and auction starts in nine days https://earlybirdsinvest.com/osgrids-annual-fundraiser-and-auction-starts-in-nine-days/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/osgrids-annual-fundraiser-and-auction-starts-in-nine-days/#respond Sat, 13 Sep 2025 16:42:58 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/osgrids-annual-fundraiser-and-auction-starts-in-nine-days/
ECHO 1 region on OSgrid. (Snapshot by Maria Korolov.)

OSGrid, OpenSim’s largest and oldest public world, will hold its annual fundraiser and auction starting on September 22 in order to support the grid’s hosting environment and community operations.

“The future of OSgrid is powered by your passion and creativity,” organizers said in their call for donations last month.

The event wants creators to donate unique virtual items, including furnishings, avatars, services, jewelry, and entire regions in OAR format, the organizers said. All donated items must be created exclusively for the event and cannot be for sale or available elsewhere.

“ECHO 1 is starting to look fuller,” OSgrid staff member Caro Fayray said in a Facebook post this week. “But we still need more items. And the sooner I have them, the more time for people to view them before the auctions.”

And, of course, people can donate at any time via the grid’s donation page.

(Image courtesy OSgrid.)

Preview of auction items will be available on the Echo 1 as they are received. Contributors or those with questions can contact an admin or Caro Fayray in-world for more information.

Hypergrid link: hg.osgrid.org:80:ECHO 1

Running on volunteers and donations

OSGrid operates as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers, according to the grid.

All proceeds from the auctions go directly toward keeping the virtual worlds alive and thriving. The fundraiser celebrates community talent while providing crucial financial support for the grid’s operations.

OSGrid has a clear preference when it comes to donations. They’d rather have regular monthly donations of $10 to $15 than big one-time payments, according to their official donation page.

“We strongly prefer a regular donation of $10.00 or $15.00 per month to a one-off payment of $50.00,” administrators said. “This lets us better plan for the growth of the grid.”

Their math is simple: “If 10% of the active userbase paid us $10.00 per month, it would be sufficient to permanently keep the grid infrastructure online, and give us plenty of room to expand as required.”

Just turned 18 and ready to party

OSGrid recently hit a major milestone — its 18th birthday. The grid threw a week-long beach party celebration at the end of July and the beginning of August.

“For 18 years, we have been a cornerstone of the open metaverse, a hub for creators, explorers, and communities,” organizers said.

For the event, the grid transformed Event Plaza into a coastal paradise with “sun-drenched shores, swaying palm trees, cool tunes drifting on the virtual breeze, and a bonfire or two to gather around with old friends and new ones.”

OSGrid has been running almost continuously since 2007. The grid serves double duty — it’s both a testbed for developers and a creative sandbox for builders, scripters, educators, and explorers.

OSgrid’s LBSA Plaza is the crossroad of the metaverse. (Snapshot by Maria Korolov.)

In addition, its LBSA Plaza serves as the unofficial crossroads of the hypergrid, where newcomers get their first taste of virtual worlds and developers test cutting-edge features. That’s where I go if I need to ask someone a quick question about OpenSim, or to meet other people without having to run around for active regions or ongoing events.

Hypergrid link: hg.osgrid.org:80:LBSA Plaza

There’s also no charge to connect regions to the grid in any quantity. You can run a region on a home computer, and, as long as you’re online, anyone can visit the region. You just need to download and run the pre-configured OSgrid region installer. Besides having to have your computer on and the region running for anyone to visit, the other downside to self-hosted regions is that you can only support as many simultaneous visitors as your home computer’s bandwidth allows. However, there are OpenSim hosting providers that can run a region for you at a low cost, and attach it to OSgrid — or any other open grid — for better performance and always-on connectivity.

OSGrid is also hypergrid-enabled, meaning users can hop between hundreds of other grids, attend cross-grid events, and share creations across the entire OpenSim metaverse. In particular, OSgrid users can buy content from the Kitely Market and have it delivered directly to their avatars.

Back from a rough patch

Earlier this year, the grid had about a month of downtime during an extended maintenance nightmare.

“This slightly extended downtime has allowed us to come back stronger, offering a more professional and stable experience for the entire OSgrid community,” grid administrators said in an announcement in April, when the grid came back up.

The problem? Their database had become bloated and broken.

“The current database is a massive burden to the grid,” administrators said. “Sixty percent of it is probably never used, and it kills the performance of our state-of-the-art hardware.”

According to the latest Hypergrid Business data, January 2025 showed OSGrid as the largest grid by land area in the OpenSim ecosystem, with 35,873 standard-sized regions. Today, the grid’s stats page shows a total land area of more than 55,000 square kilometers. With more than 15 standard region equivalents per square kilometer, this means that the grid is now more than ten times bigger than it was then.

I’m checking with the grid managers now to see what’s up with that. Sometimes, people spin up huge tracks of land for roleplay activities — endless stretches of open ocean for naval warfare, or miles of deserts for quest adventures.

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How horrifying was Mussolini? New series starts today (video) https://earlybirdsinvest.com/how-horrifying-was-mussolini-new-series-starts-today-video/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/how-horrifying-was-mussolini-new-series-starts-today-video/#respond Thu, 11 Sep 2025 03:44:32 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/how-horrifying-was-mussolini-new-series-starts-today-video/

Last week, my local movie theater ran the first two episodes of the new limited television series, Mussolini: Son of the Century, and with all the recent fear about fascism threatening global democracy, it couldn’t have come at a better time.

It is, unsurprisingly, violent and gritty, highlighting Benito Mussolini’s rise to power that began in the year 1919, when he founded the National Fascist Party in Italy. But it’s also beautifully shot, with military and fight scenes stunningly choreographed to electronic music by Tom Rowlands of the Chemical Brothers. At times it feels like an intense musical — without the song and dance. (See trailer below.)

Director Joe Wright showed up to do a Q&A after the screening, where he admitted that he did not know too much about the world’s first fascist leader before the year 2016, because there really wasn’t much that depicted Mussolini in a way that didn’t feel cartoonish. “He was always just a bit of comical figure,” Wright told us. “I remember seeing some film of him when I was a teenager and impersonating him with these ridiculous gestures afterwards.”

But as “the word started to reemerge in the public consciousness,” Wright continued, he “felt it was sort of incumbent upon us all, really, to understand what fascism was, and the etymology of the word, where it came from, and so this was an opportunity to educate myself.”

The 8-part mini-series, all in Italian (with English subtitles), focuses on Mussolini’s early years, ending when the strongman gained full power over Italy in 1924. I don’t think it’s a spoiler to give away the series’ very last word, which Wright let slip: “Silenzio!” Of course, this refers to the enabling silence of those around Mussolini who did nothing to stop him from becoming Italy’s cruel and brutal tyrant. It also serves as a direct warning to viewers who might be noticing a rising fascist movement in their own society.

Adapted from Antonio Scurati’s 2018 novel, M: Son of the Century, Wright’s series stars Italian actor Luca Marinelli, who does an incredible job balancing Mussolini’s monstrous side with his more vulnerable, even charismatic side. The show first aired on the Sky network last January in Italy, Ireland, and the UK. Now, it is finally available in the United States on MUBI, where new episodes will stream on Wednesdays, starting today.

Originally published on It Is Happening

Previously: The headquarters of Mussolini’s Italian Fascist Party, 1934

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Nothing starts teasing an Ear 3 launch, says you’ll find it ‘soon’ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/nothing-starts-teasing-an-ear-3-launch-says-youll-find-it-soon/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/nothing-starts-teasing-an-ear-3-launch-says-youll-find-it-soon/#respond Sat, 06 Sep 2025 10:59:02 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/nothing-starts-teasing-an-ear-3-launch-says-youll-find-it-soon/

What you need to know

  • Nothing has started officially teasing a new product on X, called the “Ear (3).”
  • The company’s post says “Ear (3). Soon,” as well as an up close photo of the device, which seems to be its charging case.
  • Nothing didn’t give anything else to chew on, but considering it’s already teasing the device, we might not have to wait long for more.

It looks like Nothing is ending the week with a new product teaser, and it’s an addition to its audio lineup.

Early this morning (Sep 5), Nothing’s official X account posted an up close snapshot of its upcoming product, which seems to be a new Ear device. The company’s tagline reads, “Ear (3). Soon.” Moreover, the snapshot also confirms the Ear 3 is on the way; however, the photo seems to be of the product’s case, not the earbuds themselves.

User comments on X seem mostly positive, though some are questioning Nothing’s name for this upcoming product.

Little else was given on X about this upcoming product. Considering Nothing’s already kick-started its teaser engine, we probably won’t have to wait long for more.

Just like last year?

Given the latest teaser, perhaps we are “due” for another Nothing Ear product launch. Last year, the company’s Ear Open was spotted moving through Singapore’s IMDA certification database. While it was a surprise to most, especially since we weren’t expecting an open-ear style product, the company launched the device a month later in September 2024.

Currently, we’re closing out the first week of September, and Nothing’s officially teasing its upcoming Ear 3 product.

The Nothing Ear Open debuted in the middle of September last year, so maybe we’re looking at a similar choice this year with the Ear 3. As far as more traditional-looking buds go, the Nothing Ear launched in late April last year, part of the company’s name change rework to better focus on the “product” and “unique experience” for users. Those buds feature 11mm dynamic drivers, 46mAh in each bud, and a 500mAh battery case.

Funnily enough, we thought we were moving into the Ear 3 last year when the company first started teasing the Ear and Ear a, but that’s not what happened. Instead, in 2025, we’re seeing the Ear 3 finally come around. While the Nothing Ear can handle rumbling bass and sub-bass, with other such audio refinements, it remains to be seen how the Ear 3 takes things further.

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France starts bitcoin mining for nuclear power https://earlybirdsinvest.com/france-starts-bitcoin-mining-for-nuclear-power/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/france-starts-bitcoin-mining-for-nuclear-power/#respond Thu, 07 Aug 2025 17:51:10 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/france-starts-bitcoin-mining-for-nuclear-power/

France is moving on to a new phase in the introduction of cryptocurrency as the party of the extreme right-wing Lacembrement National (RN) is preparing a bill that will allow unused nuclear energy to be used for bitcoin mining. According to French newspaper Le Monde, the party leader and three-time President Marine Le Penn promoted the plan during a visit to the Freminil NPP on March 11, saying it was a reasonable way to turn lost electricity into “reliable and highly profitable” digital assets.

France Plan: A fine bitcoin with nuclear energy

The Rassemblyment National proposal has become one of France’s most debated cryptomen. The party argues that surplus should not be wasted because France often produces more electricity than it consumes. Lawmakers from RN Ornelien Lopes Ligoori have prepared a bill regarding the placement of equipment to mine Bitcoin at the nuclear facility of the state energy company Electricité de France (EDF). The idea is to direct unused nuclear energy (up to 1 gigabat excess) directly to mining farms. With over 70% of France’s electricity produced at nuclear power plants, excess electricity is sold in losses or sent to neighboring countries at the expense of France. Instead of selling excess energy to loss, France uses it for a more profitable business Bitcoin mining and profit savings. The bill, introduced in the French Parliament on July 11, 2025, provides for a five-year pilot program that will allow energy companies to directly create mining companies in nuclear power plants. According to internal estimates, this could result in revenues of between $100 million and $150 million a year.

Political Turn: From Skeptics to Cryptocurrency Supporters

Support for Bitcoin mining by Rassemblement National shows a sharp shift towards the party towards cryptocurrency. In 2016, Marine Le Pen was adamantly opposed cryptocurrency, believing that it would advocate for citizens to take control of the finances, increase the power of global banks, and ban them from use in France entirely. But by 2022, Le Pen had eased her position and began supporting the regulated use of cryptocurrencies in the financial sector. And by 2025, she had openly advocated Bitcoin mining as part of her national strategy. This reflects significant changes both within the party and in public political discourse on the topic of code. After such a proposal failed in June 2025, Deputy Lopezalori revised the bill, focusing on national infrastructure and economic recovery, claiming that the plan would help France become more economically independent and solve long-standing problems of excess energy. In the case of adoption, France will connect Bitcoin mining for the first time in Europe, supporting the state with nuclear energy, and set an example for other countries looking to acquire excess renewable or nuclear energy.

Bitcoin Price Chart on cordingView.com

The Bulls tend to have support at $114,000. Source: BTCUSD on tradingView.com

Token Maxi Doge (Maxi) raises $400,000 in advance sales as traders are showing interest

Maxi Doge (Maxi) is a new, bold meme coin built around a “only” culture that determines the encrypted market.

Tokens give the community the opportunity to “get out of the suffocating room,” escape restrictions and access potential X1000 transactions through the Maxi fund. 25% of the total problem aims to search for the most explosive tokens of the cycle using one rule without stop loss and without fear. Such investments are risky and confident for those who want to teach the greatest profits or leave the market empty. Maxi Doge is created for Real Crypto -Ethnic Extremes! Advance sales are still relevant. The non-assembled lots were collected as much as $400,000. To purchase $Maxi tokens now, go to Maxi Doge’s official website and connect Crypto-Coolant (for example, the best wallet). You can exchange USDT or ETH for tokens, or use your bank card to invest in your projects.

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Cardano sidechain Midnight starts token distribution to ADA, XRP, BTC holders https://earlybirdsinvest.com/cardano-sidechain-midnight-starts-token-distribution-to-ada-xrp-btc-holders/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/cardano-sidechain-midnight-starts-token-distribution-to-ada-xrp-btc-holders/#respond Tue, 05 Aug 2025 22:29:22 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/cardano-sidechain-midnight-starts-token-distribution-to-ada-xrp-btc-holders/

Cardano privacy-focused sidechain Midnight Network has opened the Claim Phase of its NIGHT tokens.

Dubbed “Glacier Drop,” this phase will distribute NIGHT tokens to eligible wallets across eight blockchain ecosystems, according to an August 5 announcement. The launch follows publication of Midnight’s tokenomics paper earlier this summer, which set out the network’s distribution model and role for NIGHT. 

Midnight stated that Glacier Drop will be a multi-phase, community-focused distribution intended to broaden access while resisting manipulation. 

After the current Claim Phase, a 30-day “Scavenger Mine” will let newcomers perform on-chain work for unclaimed tokens, and a four-year “Lost-and-Found” will enable late claims from original eligible wallets following mainnet launch.

Eligibility was determined by a June 11 snapshot. Wallets holding at least $100 in native tokens on Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, BNB Chain, Brave, Ripple (XRP Ledger), or Avalanche can connect to the official claim portal and redeem an allocation. 

The window to claim remains open for 60 days, according to the project’s announcement and portal guidance. 

Midnight Foundation president Fahmi Syed stated: 

“This airdrop is a rethink of how value and access can be distributed across chains, communities, and use cases and is designed to resist manipulation and encourage long-term engagement.”

Participants can access the claim process via Midnight’s official Glacier Drop portal by connecting a qualifying wallet and following the non-custodial flow.

Tokens remain locked

Claimed NIGHT does not unlock immediately. Once the mainnet is live, tokens will enter a Redemption Period that releases holdings in four random “thaw” events over 360 days, a structure designed to smooth supply and reward longer-term participation. 

Midnight TGE, the entity responsible for the initial NIGHT distribution in line with the network’s decentralization plan, will administer the rollout. The team reiterated that users should verify they are using the official URL before connecting a wallet. 

Midnight positions itself as a privacy-first network that uses zero-knowledge proofs and selective disclosure to let users share data when necessary while keeping sensitive information protected. 

The project is being developed as a sidechain within the Cardano ecosystem, providing interoperability while targeting data-protection use cases.

Mentioned in this article
Posted In: Avalanche, Basic Attention Token, Bitcoin, Cardano, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, Crypto, Featured, Technology, Tokens
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Tokyo Exchange-Listed Remixpoint Starts Paying CEO Fully in Bitcoin https://earlybirdsinvest.com/tokyo-exchange-listed-remixpoint-starts-paying-ceo-fully-in-bitcoin/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/tokyo-exchange-listed-remixpoint-starts-paying-ceo-fully-in-bitcoin/#respond Tue, 08 Jul 2025 10:51:25 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/tokyo-exchange-listed-remixpoint-starts-paying-ceo-fully-in-bitcoin/

Crypto Journalist

Amin Ayan

Crypto Journalist

Amin Ayan

About Author

Amin Ayan is a crypto journalist with over four years of experience in the industry. He has contributed to leading publications such as Cryptonews, Investing.com, 99Bitcoins, and 24/7 Wall St. He has…

Last updated: 


Why Trust Cryptonews

Cryptonews has covered the cryptocurrency industry topics since 2017, aiming to provide informative insights to our readers. Our journalists and analysts have extensive experience in market analysis and blockchain technologies. We strive to maintain high editorial standards, focusing on factual accuracy and balanced reporting across all areas – from cryptocurrencies and blockchain projects to industry events, products, and technological developments. Our ongoing presence in the industry reflects our commitment to delivering relevant information in the evolving world of digital assets. Read more about Cryptonews

Japanese energy consulting firm Remixpoint has begun paying its CEO and President entirely in Bitcoin, becoming the first Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed company to do so.

Key Takeaways:

  • Remixpoint is now paying its CEO entirely in Bitcoin, a first for a Tokyo-listed firm.
  • The company adopted Bitcoin over stock due to insider trading restrictions.
  • This move strengthens its crypto-focused strategy and aligns leadership with shareholders.

The move, announced Tuesday, is part of a broader strategy to align executive incentives with shareholder outcomes and reinforce commitment to the company’s financial performance.

In its press release, Remixpoint said the initiative aims to ensure the leadership “shares the same economic fate as shareholders,” a response to previous shareholder requests that executives hold company stock.

Remixpoint Executives Chose Bitcoin Over Company Stock

Due to restrictions related to insider trading laws, however, holding equity was not a viable option for executives.

Instead, the firm turned to Bitcoin, citing the cryptocurrency’s close price correlation with its own stock as a way to mirror the financial ups and downs of its investors.

CEO Yoshihiko Takahashi described the decision as a “clear signal” of his commitment to corporate value and shareholder-focused governance.

Remixpoint’s Bitcoin compensation policy builds on its crypto-forward strategy launched last year.

In September last year, the company began investing in digital assets as a hedge against yen depreciation and to diversify currency exposure.

Its crypto portfolio includes over 1,000 BTC, 900 ETH, nearly 14,000 SOL, 1.2 million XRP, and 2.8 million DOGE, according to its website.

Notably, the crypto-keen auto and electricity trading company is the former owner of the crypto exchange BITPoint, which it sold to the securities giant SBI in 2023.

Despite the BITPoint sale, Remixpoint has continued to pursue crypto-related business avenues. The firm began its crypto-buying strategy in 2024.

Following the announcement, Remixpoint’s stock rose 0.71% on Tuesday.

Japanese Firms Double Down on Bitcoin Strategy

Japanese firms show no sign of slowing their Bitcoin-buying fervor. The famously Bitcoin-keen Metaplanet has been consistently boosting the size of its own BTC holdings.

On Monday, Metaplanet expanded its Bitcoin treasury strategy with the purchase of 2,205 additional BTC.

The latest acquisition brings Metaplanet’s total Bitcoin holdings to 15,555 BTC, worth approximately 225.8 billion yen ($1.7 billion) at an average purchase price of 14.5 million yen per coin.

The purchase, valued at 34.5 billion yen, comes amid Metaplanet’s aggressive accumulation since designating Bitcoin treasury operations as an official business line in December 2024.

Metaplanet’s BTC Yield, a key metric tracking the percentage change in Bitcoin holdings per fully diluted share, rose 15.1% between July 1 and July 7, adding 2,017 BTC worth 31.7 billion yen in the quarter-to-date period.

BTC Yield highlights the net Bitcoin growth relative to share dilution, which the firm views as a measure of shareholder accretion.

Furthermore, Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed gaming firms like Enish and Gumi have also launched ambitious BTC-buying strategies.


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Russian Ministry Starts Compiling National Registry of Crypto Mining Rigs https://earlybirdsinvest.com/russian-ministry-starts-compiling-national-registry-of-crypto-mining-rigs/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/russian-ministry-starts-compiling-national-registry-of-crypto-mining-rigs/#respond Mon, 07 Jul 2025 00:03:45 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/russian-ministry-starts-compiling-national-registry-of-crypto-mining-rigs/

Author

Tim Alper

Author

Tim Alper

About Author

Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked…

Last updated: 


Why Trust Cryptonews

Cryptonews has covered the cryptocurrency industry topics since 2017, aiming to provide informative insights to our readers. Our journalists and analysts have extensive experience in market analysis and blockchain technologies. We strive to maintain high editorial standards, focusing on factual accuracy and balanced reporting across all areas – from cryptocurrencies and blockchain projects to industry events, products, and technological developments. Our ongoing presence in the industry reflects our commitment to delivering relevant information in the evolving world of digital assets. Read more about Cryptonews

The Russian Energy Ministry has begun compiling a national registry of crypto mining rigs as it looks to crack down on illegal mining and boost tax revenues.

The state-run newspaper RIA Novosti reported that the ministry is working on the plan with the Federal Tax Service and the Ministry of Digital Development.

The registry, the ministry claims, will serve as a central database of all the equipment used for cryptocurrency mining in the nation.

Crypto Mining Rigs: Russians Must Register Hardware

Russia’s Deputy Minister of Energy, Petr Konyushenko, told RIA Novosti that the ministry has sent its draft document to regions with high levels of crypto mining activity.

A power station in Moscow, Russia.

Konyushenko said the registry will let Moscow “precisely identify” who in the nation is “using electricity to mine cryptocurrencies.”

This will allow regulators and tax officials to ensure miners are complying with mining-related laws. It will also help boost tax revenues, the ministry claimed. Konyushenko said:

“This is a step toward legalizing the industry and reducing illegal energy consumption.”

While legal crypto mining is on the rise in Russia, so too is the illegal sector. Scores of industrial crypto miners are known to be operating all across the country.

Many use illegal connections to power grids. And others use subsidized power intended for residential households to power their data centers.

The database will require all miners to submit rig serial numbers and device models. They will also have to submit details on other mining-related equipment.

The Energy Ministry and the Industry Ministry first proposed creating a national crypto mining equipment registry back in February this year.

A Russian crypto miner shows off his equipment.

Critics Unsure About Ministry Plans

Government officials said a unified registry of “equipment without which cryptocurrency mining is impossible” was needed.

The idea is not without its vociferous critics. These include the lawmaker Anton Gorelkin, one of the architects of Russia’s crypto mining laws. Gorelkin said it was “unclear how exactly this registry will help combat illegal mining.”

He added that Moscow already has the “necessary tools to identify miners who use electricity illegally.”

Legalize Black-market Rigs, Says Lawmaker

The lawmaker also explained that Moscow needed to focus its efforts on helping miners legalize crypto mining equipment bought using sanctions-evading “shadow schemes.”

This would help miners “legalize” mining rigs they buy on the black market and “quickly add them to the registry,” Gorelkin said.

The media outlet RBC reported that officials (including customs officers) are considering issuing an “amnesty” for crypto miners who have “no other choice” than to buy rigs through underground channels in a bid to evade sanctions regimes.

Earlier this month, police in Sayansk announced they had shut down an illegal crypto mining farm fitted with 240 mining rigs. Officers said the farm was using enough electricity to power 2,000 apartments.

Also this month, police in St. Petersburg said they seized an undisclosed number of crypto mining rigs operating in a warehouse in an industrial zone near the iconic Mitrofanievsky Highway.


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Comment on Distributed Ledger Technology: Where Technological Revolution Starts by Graham Dunn https://earlybirdsinvest.com/comment-on-distributed-ledger-technology-where-technological-revolution-starts-by-graham-dunn/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/comment-on-distributed-ledger-technology-where-technological-revolution-starts-by-graham-dunn/#respond Sun, 22 Jun 2025 06:25:26 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/comment-on-distributed-ledger-technology-where-technological-revolution-starts-by-graham-dunn/

This guide offers a comprehensive view on Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). Learn the definition, basic features, history, types, platforms, applications, challenges, and possible future of this technology.

We’ve heard a lot of buzzes lately revolving around – Distributed Ledger Technology. If you’ve been tackling with cryptocurrencies and blockchain, you must’ve already heard about it. The distributed ledger implementation is unquestionably one of the ingenious inventions of all time.

Since then, the technology came a long way, evolved into something of much more value. By allowing distributions of information with greater transparency, DLT did indeed evolve the internet. Initially, this technology was only devised for transactions and digital currencies. But now tech community found many potential use cases that can change our lifestyle for good.

However, there’s still a lot of confusion around distributed ledger solutions. Many of you still confuse distributed ledger implementation with blockchain. But distributed ledger technology is not only blockchain but something of much more significance.

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Table of Contents

Chapter-1: Evolution of Ledger Technology

Chapter-2: What is a Distributed Ledger?

Chapter-3: Different Types of DLTs and How They Work

Chapter-4: Features of Different DLTs

Chapter-5: Notable DLT Platforms

Chapter-6: Applications of Distributed Ledger Technology

Chapter-7: Challenges DLT Needs To Overcome

Chapter-8: Future of Distributed Ledger Technology

Chapter-9: Final Words

Evolution of Ledger Technology

Did you know that the centralized ledger system prevailed from a really long time ago? More than 5000 years ago, clay tablets were used as a record keeping centralized ledger. Here, the ancient Mesopotamians would draw pictures in row and columns along with punching holes to keep track of how many items they had in store. Quite fascinating, isn’t it?

But about 700 years ago, a newer kind of centralized ledger system emerged in northern Italy. Here, merchants tried to accomplish a logical connection between all the entries. Every item on the centralized ledger would have a debit and credit entry. So, you would have to enter the item twice. Apparently, this new form of the centralized ledger was the pathway to “capitalism.”

The typical banking systems and keeping records came long after that. Where people used to keep everything record on paper. But after the invention of computers, everything started to digitize. In the 1980s and 90s computer system started to take over the typical banking centralized ledger systems.

And just ten years ago, a new form of decentralized database structure emerged. In 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto introduced the first distributed ledger technology that gets rid of the whole authoritative environment and promotes a fairground.

And this is how the revolutionary centralized ledger technology came into being.

What is a Distributed Ledger?

A distributed ledger is a form of digital database that is updated and held by every member independently in a large network space. In this type of ledger there’s isn’t any central authority to broadcast the records to every member.

Instead, all the nodes will hold the ledger and construct it independently. But in that case, the nodes on the network will need to have access to the transaction lists and giving out their own conclusion before adding it on the distributed ledger.

Usually, every node on the network tends to go through an agreement process to come to a single conclusion. The system actually differs from distributed ledger to distributed ledger.

After the agreement, the distributed ledger gets updated, and all the node on the network will update their every own ledger as well. The system makes the overall architecture of the interface quite complex compared to typical database systems.

Distributed Ledger

Please include attribution to 101blockchains.com with this graphic.  Distributed Ledger= 

Distributed ledgers come with a special dynamic system that can outdo the capabilities of typical paper-based ledger systems. In short, with different types of DLTs, you will be able to form new technologies and enable security across the whole digital world.

Usually, in this kind of typical systems, there’s always a matter of trust. However, this new DLT is introducing a new kind of technology that gets rid of the “trust” issues and builds everything on total transparency.

With this new invention of the distributed ledger system, now you can experience the revolution of information gathering and communicate beyond the traditional ways. You can apply it to both dynamic data and static data schemes.

Distributed ledgers simply put the power back in your hands. It’s more about managing the whole system rather than merely a simple database.

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Myth Buster: Not All DLTs are Blockchain

With the sudden rise in popularity of Bitcoin and many cryptocurrencies, the word “blockchain” has become a favorable choice of topic. People now use this word as a synonym for everything associated with cryptocurrencies and the token economy.

Even the crypto movement is sometimes referred to as the “blockchain movement.”

So, you see in a way blockchain happens to be used a lot in many contexts. There’s only a handful of people out there that really wants to distinguish blockchain and distributed ledger solutions from one another.

However, it’s best not to mismatch both of them as DLT and Blockchain can’t be interchanged.

Distributed Ledger Technology vs Blockchain: The Main Differences

The term distributed ledger technology is one kind of Umbrella-Term that covers the technologies where the ledger system is distributed among everyone using it. Here, different types of DLTs can be either private or public; it depends on the characteristics of the technology.

The blockchain is one kind of distributed ledger implementation and more preciously the first ever functional one. The technology kind of stormed the new digital world and many people started to believe it’s the only form of distributed ledger system.

So, people often used them interchangeably, which led the whole misconception that DLT is another name of Blockchain.

In simple terms, blockchain is just one of the subcategories of the distributed ledger system. For example, there are different kinds of fruits and one of them is “Apple.” Here, the term “Apple” falls in the fruit category. So, the apple is one kind of fruit, but not all fruits are apple.

In the same way, blockchain is one kind of DLT but not all DLTs are blockchain. For further information, check out the article on blockchain vs distributed ledger technology

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Why Distinguish Blockchain and DLT?

The crypto world just came into being a few years back, meaning it’s still an immature technology. Over the next few years, we will see exponential growth as it has the potential to change the typical ways completely.

There are many projects out there that are dealing with the whole concept of different types of DLTs rather than only sticking with blockchain. Distributed ledger implementation is a vast category, and if we really want more innovation, we have to come out of our “blockchain” shell.

There are already many different types of DLTs into play, and hopefully, we will be able to see more additions in the newer future. But for now, shifting to distributed ledger implementation would be the wisest choice for any kind of growth.

Different Types of Distributed Ledger Technology and How They Work

There are different types of DLTs, and all of them have different ways to operate. To understand the major differences among them, you’ll need to compare them.

1. Blockchain

First, we need to take a look at the blockchain definition. It’s one of the most popular types of DLTs out there. Blockchain is a type of DLT where transaction records are kept in the ledger as a chain of blocks. Think of it as a long list of records. But not literal blocks, here when we are saying the chain of blocks, we mean any kind of digital information that is stored in the database.

Here, digital information makes up the blocks. Usually, they have three different kinds of parts – Let’s say someone made a transaction. The transaction block will contain the time, date and the amount the sender sent.

The block will also have the sender’s information in it. But to maintain the anonymity the technology will not be using your real name, but rather it will contain your unique “digital signature.”

To differentiate or synchronize the transactions every block will contain a special ID known as the hash. This hash function helps to distinguish between all the transaction blocks on the ledger. Mainly the function includes characters that are alphanumeric and every hash function is a unique and random selection.

Which means, no one can just predict it or have any way to hack their way to alter it.

How Does Blockchain Work?

In blockchain there are multiple blocks that get added to the ledger system, but how does this process happen exactly? There are four stages of how the “block” gets added to the blockchain. Let’s see what they are:

Firstly, someone on the network has to make a transaction. Let’s say; you sent some money to your friend Mike.

Once you’ve made the transaction it needs to get verified. There are also different ways how the blockchain verifies a transaction. It mostly depends on the nodes on that network. The nodes would have to come to an agreement that the transaction indeed took place.

For that, they check out whether the transaction did occur as you declared it did. The consensus on that network allows most of the members to come in agreement, and if the majority thinks it’s true, your transaction will get stored in a block.

After your transaction gets the green signal, all information regarding your transaction such as time, amount, your digital signature, mike’s digital signature gets stored in the block. You will see the amount gets deducted from your wallet and Mike will see the amount being added to his.

However, before it gets a spot on the ledger, the block gets a unique ID. It’s an identifying code for that specific transaction. The block will also contain the recent block’s hash to maintain the chain of blocks structure.

After your transaction is added to the ledger, you will be able to see it and based on the characteristics of the network, others may or may not see it as well. If these types of DLTs are public, then everybody on the network would be able to see it, and if they are private or federated, it will depend on that distributed ledger system rules.

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2. Hashgraph

In Hashgraph there can be multiple transactions stored on the ledger on the same timestamp. All transactions are stored in a parallel structure. Here every record on the ledger is called an “Event.”

This distributed ledger without blockchain is absolutely fair as no node on the network will be able to manipulate the information or transactions. It means no one on the DLT system can actually alter or postpone all the instructions that are going to happen or control the process of the transaction.

If we compare it to the blockchain, you’ll see how a miner can choose which transaction to include in the “block.” For example, you and Mike both made transactions and now they are waiting to be verified. Other nodes on the network can selectively choose Mike’s transaction to verify first rather than you, even though you may have transacted a bit earlier than Mike.

For Hashgraph, the verifier nodes have to include both your and Mike’s transaction in the manner you guys transacted, so no one will be left behind. So, in this distributed ledger without blockchain, the faster connection you have, the better. That way, you’ll be able to transact faster and would be in the first line to get verified.

Smaller Storage Units

In this type of distributed ledger implementation, all the transaction in the network is provable. How? Well, as any transactions occur on the network, within a few minutes everyone on the network will know where the transaction would be placed in the ledger.

On top of that, everyone on the network will know that the whole network knows about the existence of the transaction and thus, make the changes accordingly. It means the nodes will do the changes and then discard the transaction.

You won’t have to keep this information in your ledger for eternity. That’s why it only needs a few gigabytes of a storage unit to store all the information of the Hashgraph distributed ledger database platform.

Byzantine and ACID Nature of the Network

This is one of the essential features of Hashgraph distributed ledger implementation. A system is Byzantine means that no small group or entity can influence the pathway to reach consensus. Also, after the consensus has been reached, no one can do anything to stop it. Every member will know that the consensus has been reached and it will remain like that.

In this distributed ledger without blockchain, every node on the network will agree on how the transaction occurred and list it out accordingly.

The whole community in this DLT will have a distributed yet single database system sharing similar properties. If we compare the blockchain DLT, you’ll notice how nodes on the network are never certain if a consensus has been reached.

However, in Hashgraph, it’s possible. So, it’s also ACID compliant.

How Does Hashgraph Work?

How Hashgraph works is quite interesting actually. This distributed ledger system uses a Gossip protocol to relay all kinds of information mainly about transactions across the network. Each node on the network can send out information (known as “event” and they are pre-signed) on a new transaction.

Every node will randomly choose the neighboring node to relay this information. A node will then aggregate the event with other received information and then relay it out to other neighboring nodes.

So, in simple terms, once a transaction takes place, the neighboring nodes share that information with other nodes, and after some time all the nodes would know about the transaction. The process is quite rapid, so it would only take a few minutes for everyone on the network to know about the event.

With the help of the “Virtual Voting” protocol, every node validates the transaction and then it gets added to the ledger.

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3. DAG

Another ambitious addition to the distributed ledger without the blockchain family is the DAG (Directed Acyclic Graph). DAG was invented as an alternative approach to Blockchain DLT. That’s why this distributed ledger without blockchain does offer all the features of blockchain but with greater improvement.

Even though it’s an alternative, the structure of this ledger is really different. One of the major advantages of DAG distributed ledger implementation is the ability to offer fee-less Nano-transactions. It’s because the scalability improves as the network grows.

In simple terms, the more transaction occurs on the network, the faster it will be able to settle them. To clear things up, let’s see how DAG really works.

How Does DAG Work?

DAG happens to go on a different route regarding reaching a consensus. The distributed ledger system stores transaction processes on the nodes. Here, every member on the network is called a “node” just like a blockchain.

All the nodes on the network validate transactions on the ledger and also is represented by validated transactions. Any node can initiate transactions, however, to validate them they have to verify at least two of the previous transactions on the ledger.

After he/she validates them, his/her transaction will get confirmed. The more a person validates, the more his/her transactions become a valid transactions on the distributed ledger database.

So, if a transaction has a long branch of previously validated transactions, it will carry the most weight in the ledger. However, an algorithm will randomly select the previous two transactions for each member to validate.

Because if it doesn’t the members will only validate their transactions and leave another behind.

This is actually a wonderful new form of consensus to achieve greater scalability. Due to the nature of the distributed ledger implementation, companies that require a greater volume of transactions every second should use this.

4. Holochain

It’s one of the recently distributed ledgers without blockchain – Holochain DLT is said to be one of the most advanced levels of ledgers out there. The company Holochain that created this new form of DLT is giving the tech developers a new way to create decentralized apps.

One major change from other distributed ledger without blockchain is that this one is agent-centric instead of data-centric structure. This network avoids using any global consensus protocol by providing every agent with their very own forking system. Just this change solves all issues with scalability and keeps the network intact even after network growth.

How Is This Distributed Ledger Technology Different?

In traditional ways, all the other nodes on the network are forced to have a global consensus and verify the whole network. However, Holochain changes that nature. The process is similar to its name. The name of this distributed ledger database came from the concept behind this architecture, and that is a hologram.

In the hologram, if you want to create a 3D pattern, you’ll need specific light beams and interact them in a way to create the image. Holochain is similar. It uses individual modules to create the whole ledger system.

Here, every node keeps their very own distributed ledger and communicates with it through its own unique signature. For example, think of the whole network as a river following in a direction. Here, every node is feeding into the river of ledgers through their small streams and creating the river as a whole. If one of the streams gets offline, the distributed ledger database won’t be affected by it.

How Does Holochain Work?

It’s simple, every node will have their very own ledger, but that ledger will revolve around a specific set of values called the “DNA.” According to the developers, this DNA ensures that any node on the network trying to add new information on the public ledger will get validated.

A node will be sent out information to other nodes to get them validated on the network. If other nodes on the network can verify his/her information with the DNA, then they relay this message to other nodes on the network.

However, if someone tries to hack into the network and would try to store false data on the network, they will have different DNA. So, if someone wants to falsify a transaction, it will hard code itself off the chain and operate from a different change chain with different rules. Other nodes on the network will now verify it with the DNA before accepting the information.

And once they find dissimilarities, they will reject it and broadcast it across the network and warn others of this malicious node.

The process is pretty neat and foolproof. And this is why it’s gaining so much popularity.

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5. Tempo (Radix)

Like other distributed ledger without blockchain, Tempo is said to be a relatively new contribution to the system. Like any other platform, it will preserve the sequence of the information on the ledger. However, it also offers to timestamp along with other functionalities as well.

Radix DLT is the company that came up with this brilliant new tech. You can use this distributed ledger without blockchain for private and public modules as it doesn’t require any modification at all. One of the plus points is that you won’t be needing any heavy hardware component either. It’s extremely light and can even work on your mobile devices.

With Tempo you will be able to create your own decentralized applications, token, coins, transact extremely fast, and many more.

The distributed ledger database runs on three major principles:

  • Have a cluster of networked nodes
  • Global ledger distributed among the cluster of nodes
  • Special algorithms for timestamping events on the ledger

Every instance on this distributed ledger database is known as the Universe. Within the Universe, every event is called an “Atom.”

How Does Tempo DLT Work?

It’s a bit different than other distributed ledger database on the market. Any node can choose to carry a subset of the full global ledger with him/her. The subset of the ledger is called shards, and every node carrying a shard will get a unique ID for their subset of the ledger. So, the nodes aren’t required to carry the burden of the global ledger on the network.

This ensures that the network can carry a larger amount of load, thus increasing scalability.

When a node wants to validate transactions, it uses Logical Clocks do that. The usual timestamping of the distributed ledger database isn’t capable of reaching consensus on its own. It’s because the perspective of time changes from person to person.

So, instead of matching when it occurred, it sees what occurred before it. If a previous transaction was A and now a new transaction B happened, the nodes will see whether there was transaction A before B.

So, here, nodes will record the event sequence rather than the actual time of that event. The properties of distributed ledger technology are really evolved for its time and slowly gaining popularity.

Features of Different Types of DLTs

Distributed Ledger

Please include attribution to 101blockchains.com with this graphic.  Distributed Ledger= 

Blockchain Features –

Blockchain distributed ledger database is surprisingly super immutable. It’s one of the best features of this ledger system. Immutability means no one on the network can corrupt it in any way. In this distributed ledger, once you add anything to the ledger, you won’t be able to alter it, delete it or even reverse it.

So, it will stay as a permanent record, and no one will be able to touch it. But before adding anything to the ledger, it will go through a consensus process and get validated.

Hacking this DLT is nearly impossible due to its decentralized nature and cryptographic encryption. The level of security this DLT offers is astonishing. The nodes make transactions using cryptography where every record on the network gets encrypted. Utilizing public and private key the transacting party ensures no one can intercept between a transaction.

There are several validation models, and as no one has access to modify it, Blockchain becomes a solid ledger to store personal information without worrying about the consequences.

Typical banking systems can take several days to make transactions. But with these properties of distributed ledger technology, you’ll be able to make faster settlements. The technology came a long way and can now offer a relatively faster amount of time for anyone to send money.

Using these people can make global payments whenever they can. They won’t have to wait for several days for their loved ones to get the money. Also, the minimalistic fee will save you a huge amount of money in the long run.

Blockchain supports a wide range of consensus algorithms for blockchain to validate a transaction. Consensus mechanisms are a way to reach an agreement between nodes on the network. When you are dealing with millions of nodes on the network, it gets extremely difficult to reach an agreement without the help of consensus.

As this is a trustless environment, only the algorithms can help them maintain the distributed ledger. It’s one of the special features of Blockchain.

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DAG Features –

  • Near Infinite Scalability

Due to the distinctive nature of the properties of distributed ledger technology, this one offers new infinity scalability. If you look at other DLTs, you’ll notice how the scalability decreases when the network starts to grow. But not in this ledger.

Here, the scalability will increase with the network growth. Every node has to validate at least two of its previous transactions in order for their transaction to get confirmed. The more the node validates, its transaction becomes more valid. Also, it lowers the hashing power needed to validate previous transactions.

  • Micro and Nano-transactions

As the nodes on the network will need to validate previous transactions, it results in fee fewer transactions on the network. Therefore, with DAG distributed ledger solutions the opportunity of micro-transactions over this decentralized channel becomes an everlasting concept.

No one could introduce micro-transaction in blockchain DLT for their relatively growing transaction fees. However, DAG offers a transaction fee free protocol, so anyone on the network would be able to make Nano to Microtransactions in an instant. This is one of the profound features of this tech.

Comparing to other properties of distributed ledger technology DAG is quantum-resistant. Other technologies are secure, but with technological innovations, they will most likely be susceptible to quantum computers. Quantum computers offer a superior level of computing technology, and with this, it’s possible to attack even the strongest security systems.

However, DAG comes with Winternitz One-Time signature scheme to have a firewall that even the quantum computer can break into. However, this feature may vary from different DAG companies.

  • Masked Authenticated Messaging (MAM)

For now, I’ve only seen this feature specifically in Tangle’s DAG. However, it’s a splendid way to exchange information with other nodes without worrying about security checks. As the properties of distributed ledger technology are quantum-resistant, nodes can exchange information with specific parties through encryption and authentication.

  • Parallelly Lined Transactions

Once a transaction gets validates, it will align parallel with other transactions. Usually, these transactions are relatively new on the ledger. Typically, every transaction on the network has a link to with previous transactions. But in doing so, the ledger will become too much complicated and big and would be hard to maintain it.

The network has a width target and will regulate it in order for the system to compensate for a large growing network base.

You will also be able to transact really fast with this type of nature.

Hashgraph Features –

Anyone on the network is free to create a signed transaction anytime they want. After they create it, other nodes will know about it and using a Byzantine process they will be able to reach a consensus with the order of the event.

The higher level of fairness makes this distributed technology susceptible to influencers. No one can influence other nodes into changing their agreement before the nodes agree on it. Once they agree on a specific transaction, the influencer won’t have any power over it whether he likes it or not.

Once a node initiates a transaction, it will let randomly choose a neighboring node and relay that information. So, it’s kind of like random gossip sequence where you would select the node nearest to you and tell him/her all about what you know.

Once random gossip occurs and the transacting node notifies its closest node about it, the node will relay that information to one of its neighboring nodes is a similar manner. This process will continue until all the nodes on the network know about the information. This process is Gossip about Gossip because here you’ll be gossiping about a previous random gossip.

It should only take a few minutes for everyone on the network to know about the transaction.

The ledger logs down every gossip sequence on the network in an orderly fashion. This is to make sure that everyone on that network knows about the changes. The ledger will log down the starting point to the end point to compare if every node knows about the transaction.

This unique distributed ledger uses Virtual Voting system to validate each transaction. If 2/3 of the whole network agrees with the transaction, then it’s considered valid. However, there are other elements in play here. Virtual Voting may happen more than once, and it will count how many Famous witnesses are in that count. After that, it will get fail or passing mark.

In this case, the network would choose some transactions and ask for each one if they had occurred in a sequential matter or not? If most of the witnesses answer yes then that event is called Famous witness as most of the nodes knew about it relatively faster.

These witnesses can then later be used to validate new transactions.

This concept ensures that the probability of consensus is always one. Nodes have multiple paths connecting to one another, and if two people can see other people strongly, then they can know what that person will vote. Therefore, they will vote the same.

Holochain Features –

One of the most eye-catching features of this distributed ledger is that it’s agent-centric. In a typical data-centric structure every node on the network is forced to verify single transactions from the transaction queue and add that up in the chain. However, in this structure, the more it keeps adding, the slower it gets.

However, in agent-centric systems like Holochain, you will be able to maintain your own history log and share independently without having nay forced consensus. Every node has their own ledger, and they can maintain them all by themselves.

The different nature of the ledger makes the system much more energy efficient than others. Why? Because here you won’t be needing any mining equipments to run heavy consensus mechanisms to validate transactions.

As you need to only maintain your version of the distributed ledger, it will take only a minimalistic device to store it. You can even run Holochain from your phone, and it won’t take more energy than usual use.

That’s why it ensures energy efficiency, which will save you a lot of money in the long run.

What does a true distributing ledger mean? In most cases, you’ll see all the nodes on the network carrying the load of the whole ledger on their devices. But does that reach the true distribution we need?

One of the major features of the Holochain is that it can reach the true level of distribution across the network. As its agent-centric, everyone runs their own ledger on their devices, and when needed they can communicate with the main ledger using their private key. Here, every node works as a separate entity and in the end forms a whole new functioning unit.

By utilizing the holographic model for the architecture, any developer can now invent decentralized applications that can scale in many ways leading to true properties of distributed ledger technology. It will ensure every node to operate independently. They will only need to synchronize when needed and if other users agree.

It means that the user will get the full control over their actions and data. No one would be able to access them and take advantage of it. This gets rid of the third-party schemes where companies sell out information to other companies for their own gain. It also promotes healthy user empowerment.

Holochain distributed ledger offers the highest level of security due to their special feature called the “DNA.” In case of any malicious person trying to send out malicious or invalid information to other nodes, he would have to go through the DNA of this system. Before accepting any new information, all nodes are prompted to verify the DNA of the sender with their own set of DNAs.

As the malicious person would have to change the DNA in order to send out invalid data, it won’t match with the existing one and thus will get banned from the chain. Other nodes will also get a warning about his actions and will remain cautious before accepting any new information.

Also, the network is highly scalable, as the personal ledger of every node will only be stored in a limited fashion. Therefore, it would increase the scalability. In a theoretical approach, if there are enough nodes on the network, this distributed ledger is able to handle unlimited transactions.

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Tempo Features –

This is a unique method to make sure that the distributed ledger solutions Tempo is able to store every Atom exiting in the Universe. The ledger is designed in a way to be scalable in a horizontal way, support a wide range of semi-structured information and be able to update all entries.

Let’s talk about the sharding process. The global ledger on the network will be chopped up into smaller subsets of that ledger. These smaller parts are called “shards.” Every shard comes with its own unique identification code and is distributed among the nodes.

The local ledger operating on individual devices can choose to store shards or all of it. The process guarantees that every shard will contain all the Atom in a correct sequence and it will also determine which node will take which Atoms.

It’s kind of like pieces of a puzzle, that once put together will reveal something spontaneous. Here, in this case, the puzzle pieces are shards, and the result is the globally distributed ledger.

To make sure every shard has up-to-date information about the distributed ledger, the Tempo DLT initiates a Gossip protocol. With this protocol, the nodes on the network communicate with each other and relay information regarding their shards.

This protocol of the properties of distributed ledger technology has been proven to be one of the most efficient ways to propagate information in this type of architecture. Gossip protocol is similar to Hashgraph’s random gossip sequence.

The nodes on the network information about any new configuration and relay the information to other nodes. Other nodes then optimize the information and synchronize their shards accordingly.

This process is necessary as nodes will need updates shards to validate any new transactions happening on the network. Gossip protocol may as well announce metadata about other nodes they are directly connected with.

Another one of the great properties of distributed ledger technology is the Logical clock. Logical clocks are at the core of this ledger system. Here, it means an ordering sequence of the relative events on the network, and using this a node can validate a transaction.

In this ledger, every node contains a logical clock locally, with increasing integer value that will represent the overall number of the events which that specific node witnessed. They will increase this number every time they see a new event that they didn’t see before. When storing any event, it will also store the logical clock number with it. This number helps to validate new transactions with past transactions.

However, only new Atoms on the network will be considered as an event.

Notable DLT Platforms

Blockchain

This is one of the most popular DLT blockchain examples on the market nowadays. Ethereum runs on blockchain distributed ledger. Even though many might think Ethereum is similar to bitcoin, but there are tons of differences.

This DLT blockchain example performs much better in any field compared to bitcoin. Instead of having limited options, you’ll be able to create any kind of operations on Ethereum. It’s mostly for implementing decentralized apps. Ethereum first introduced their very own Ethereum Virtual Machine. This software runs solely on the platform and will allow developers to run any kind of programs. Lately, Enterprise Ethereum is getting heavy traction from different companies.

So, you could think it as a development zone for a new decentralized application. Other than this Ethereum also introduced Smart Contracts, which is the perfect tool to settle payment automatically. Vitalik Buterin is the founder of this technology.

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This is also another wonderful enterprise-level DLT blockchain example. Hyperledger Fabric is one of the renowned blockchain distributed ledger platforms with a modular architectural design. They provide enterprise-level solutions with greater scalability, flexibility, resiliency, and confidentiality.

This DLT blockchain example was designed to support a lot of pluggable applications using different types of components. It will also accommodate a large number of intricacies and complexities of the typical economic system.

Hyperledger Fabric isn’t a permissionless distributed ledger, but it’s permissioned. So, not everyone will be allowed on the network. Here, they also offer to store multiple formats of data in the distributed ledger. Using them, you will also be able to create different ledgers for your personal channel; it’s mainly for competitors that don’t want to reveal their pricing to their intermediate competitor. Linux is currently backing up this new distributed ledger technology.

It started back in 2015, with the open sourced R3’s Corda platform. Corda blockchain is a distributed ledger platform that is based on the blockchain. R3 is one of the world leading consortium DLT blockchain example where some of the biggest financial companies have come together.

The numbers for their partners have gone high in the 60+ zone. Even though this platform was purely designed for banking purposes only, you can also use this in other sectors such as – government, supply chain, healthcare and many more.

Corda offers one of the fastest and reliable outputs out there in the market.

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DAG:

You could think it as a pioneer of a new distributed ledger technology – The DAG. IOTA came into being back in 2016 when blockchain DLT started taking over the world but wasn’t able to quite fulfill all the requirements.

With DAG IOTA manages to solve one of the most significant issues – Micro-transactions. Paying too much to get our transaction verified was putting a negative impact on the whole distributed ledger technology. However, IOTA managed to save the day.

IOTA calls the DAG distributed ledger system their Tangle network, and it’s in the core of their platform. Even if the nodes keep growing there won’t be any effect on the micro-transaction scheme. With DAG DLT, higher scalability could be reached.

IoT sectors will largely benefit from this platform, and it would be perfect for a large IoT network.

There’s another platform that utilized the DAG distributed ledger technology – Byteball. Though the DAG platform IOTA offered free transactions that are not the case here. In Byteball, you’ll have to pay a very small amount of fee. However, you would be able to enjoy extreme fast transaction speed.

In Byteball there is no risk of 51% attack, and you will be able to transact privately. Something that you won’t see in other DAG platforms. To keep everything running fair, Byteball uses a validation mechanism. This mechanism has the supreme influence over the network. It also offers a great deal of scalability, so you won’t have to worry about slower output in any scenario.

Hashgraph:

With another popular form of distributed ledger technology Hashgraph, you’ll see Hedera Hashgraph ruling the market. Originally, Swirlds actually came up with the idea of the Hashgraph. However, they don’t have any running network based on that. Instead, Hedera Hashgraph bought the technology from them. Learn more about Hashgraph and Hedera Hashgraph here.

Hedera Hashgraph is super light and extremely fast. Other than that, this company boasts about their fairness and security. Other features include their very own digital currency, storage units, and smart contracts.

Using this platform, developers can build extremely different kind of decentralized apps, which will outperform blockchain DLT quite easily. The transaction fees are extremely low, and you will be able to do micropayments with it.

A network of Internet Acceleration or NOIA is another popular Hashgraph distributed ledger technology platform on the market. However, this platform is rather unique. They offer a distributed CDN (Content Delivery Network) using the nodes to offer a better internet performance.

With their integration of distributed ledger technology, you will be able to enjoy every feature available on the Hedera Hashgraph platform. Well, it’s because the Hashgraph DLT is based on the Hedera Hashgraph company.

Other than that, NOIA is completely permissionless, meaning anyone can join the network and utilize the bandwidth as they need. It’s still a relatively new platform based on Hashgraph.

Even wonder how distributed ledger technology would be if we use it in our daily social media life? Mingo is a great example of that. It uses Hashgraph DLT to build up its framework. Think of it as a messenger aggregation platform where most popular chat apps will come together as one.

As far as we know all the messaging software can’t communicate with each other till now. It means you can’t message someone from Skype to Facebook. But with this unique platform, now you’ll be able to do a lot more than that. This platform supports a wide range of popular apps such as – Twitter, Facebook, Slack, Discord, Stream, Skype and many more.

It will also have a utility crypto coin to back up any in-app purchases. Other plugins include Gaming or roaming plugins. As of now, it’s live on Android; the IOS version is still in process. This could be the life-changing distributed ledger technology usage we have been looking for.

Holochain:

This platform introduced an entirely different type of distributed ledger technology in the tech world. It utilizes Holochain DLT, just like its name. Holochain is a fantastic platform, to begin with. To preserve users’ right this distributed ledger platform introduced a different kind of model architecture.

It utilizes a holographic data storage structure, which ensures every node on the network will get to maintain their own data. So, there isn’t any risk of third-party companies to steal other people personal information.

Mainly the platform revolves around agent-centric agreement and provides each node with their individual ledger system. This process ensures the truly distributed nature that every distributed ledger technology should have.

Using Holochain, you’ll be able to create new and improved decentralized applications. Supply chain management, sharing apps, vendor relationship management, government, social media and resource management are few of the use cases of this new platform.

Reaching consensus is extremely easy and depends mostly on the nodes. You would only have to synchronize the data in the DLT when you need. That’s why this platform is quite suitable for mobile devices too.

Tempo:

Another relatively new player changing the traditional distributed ledger technology scene is – Radix DLT. Radix DLT runs on Tempo distributed ledger technology. Unfortunately, it’s the only one currently running on Tempo. The company claims to offer a more scalable and faster output than any other DLTs in the market.

Their completely different approach will finally be able to give users the ability to mine from any kind of devices such as television, modem or even mobile phones! Mining will be accessible to everyone, so it’s safe to say the platform is public.

The distributed ledger technology is relatively more efficient than blockchain and DAG. However, it’s still quite an immature phase, so it’s best to wait to see the final output of this new DLT.

Applications of Distributed Ledger Technology

Distributed Ledger

Please include attribution to 101blockchains.com with this graphic.  Distributed Ledger= 

Trading is one of the crucial distributed ledger use cases. The DLT is best known as the trading ground of cryptocurrencies. Typically, the trading business is risky and somewhat involves emotional decisions too. And when you have to deal with typical banking systems, it leaves a lot of paperwork and therefore becomes quite obsolete over the time.

Not to mention the bad players on the market who always sabotages the marketplace for their personal gain. Distributed ledger solutions here can provide a transparent method to trade. Not mention eliminating the paper works and reliability on banking system would surely reduce a lot of processing time in the long run.

Also, these DLTs are quite full proof, so no one would be able to manipulate them as they please.

The distributed ledger solutions, in this case, will stop your irrational decisions and help to preserve your assets in a better way. It will also provide a secure wallet source where you will be able to store all your digital assets without any risks.

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Distributed ledger solutions can really change the typical scene of entertainment industries. Nowadays a good artist doesn’t actually benefit that much while they work under a company. Many artists make money through streaming, and the process can be quite hectic. It’s one of the popular distributed ledger use cases.

Along with Distributed ledger solutions, any artist can get their earned money through smart contracts where the network will look over the process. The DLT can also ensure better value for the artists and help him get connected to other entertainment channels.

Distributed ledger technology projects can also be a significant factor in gaming. The gaming industry is growing simultaneously, and a DLT-based network will help gamer achieve a better user experience.

Distributed ledger technology projects can truly shine in the world of production. A network that links to all workers can ensure larger outputs in a short amount of time. You may already notice that distributed ledger solutions fit in the manufacturing niche quite profoundly and can make the system most efficient and cost friendly. It’s another popular distributed ledger use cases.

However, the whole process of connecting these workers along with the manufacturing is still not on the table. What distributed ledger technology projects can do here is to provide an ecosystem to look over the workers and take rational decisions based on the output.

Companies will benefit even more and will be able to meet up with the customer demand. Learn more about the companies using blockchain technology here.

Supply chain management is a crucial part of the production industry. Many organizations are now investing in algorithms that offer a better solution. However, they are still struggling with 100% customer satisfaction.

Powered by the distributed ledger technology projects organizations would be able to administrate every process from manufacturing to shipping. Logistics processes will ensure full customer satisfaction every time. The Distributed ledger technology would be able to track the raw materials and luxury goods.

It can also assess the customer requirements better. In a way, everything will be more streamlined.

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Another one of the best distributed ledger use cases is the cybersecurity. Now everyone is connected through the internet. People are moving towards a total digital lifestyle.

Therefore, cybersecurity now is the top priority of any company or individual. Hackers are becoming more and more stealth, and billions of money get hacked away just for the lack of security.

With the help of Distributed ledger technology projects, now any people can feel safe roaming around the internet. The network is already almost hack proof. And with DLT in the mix, no hacker will be able to penetrate your firewall. The network itself will become the firewall and won’t need additional software to look over it.

The technology is capable of storing all the patient information, and the doctors would be able to make a good diagnosis based on the information. It can support the doctors in analyzing the symptoms and start the treatment right away. Healthcare is one of the greatest distributed ledger use cases. Read more about blockchain for healthcare here.

It would also be able to assists in scientific discoveries utilizing a great deal of data within a short time. It can also connect the patients with their doctors through distributed ledger technology-powered apps. The technology is also capable of protecting any patient information and provide the sole control to the patient only.

We all know how we are leading towards next-generation power – “Smart Cars.” But a distributed ledger technology will be able to take it to a whole another level. Not only the technology will be able to help you connect to drivers completely, but it will also ensure anti-theft processes. It’s another popular distributed ledger use cases.

Every data on your car will be available on the network. Using distributed ledger technology projects, the owner then be able to track down the car very easily just by debugging the information from the network. It will also be able to look over the hardware parts of your smart car. Wouldn’t that be awesome?

The drivers would be able to get a fair trade when they are meeting up with their clients. Due to the disruptive impact on the supply chain, blockchain in logistics is getting much traction.

Utilizing contractual documentation with distributed ledger technology projects is another great use case. The network provides a greater deal of security to store all legal contractual documentation on that, such as wills, bank statements, property bills and many more. The DLT is more than capable of preserving it from outside hackers.

Another great aspect is to use it to validate inheritances. Smart contracts on this type of network can make this process hassle-free.

Distributed ledger technology can be the next generation platform for election. Transparent elections are necessary, but under human authority, things get tampered. Illegal activities, in this case, will be stopped if everyone uses a distributed ledger technology network to vote.

Every vote will get added to the network where it can’t get tampered with, and the algorithm then can dissect them and make the call. Every process will be transparent, and all the citizen will get the fairness of voting they deserve.

Other activities such as the law department will also benefit from distributed ledger technology. Together with a decentralized distributed ledger technology neural network, there won’t be any scope for illegal activities.

Internet of things actually indicates a lot of connected devices with one network. Usually, this service providing companies to provide the users with a common network where they connect their network and relay useful information from one device to another.

However, IoT mostly revolves around a centralized environment, which is risky in the long run as it can easily steal your personal information. Here, distributed ledger technology can provide security for the Internet of Things with its decentralized system. It’s another popular distributed ledger use case as blockchain and IoT goes hand-in-hand.

It can also offer a better ecosystem to deal with operational challenges. Using it, people can freely connect their devices to the network and relay information without having to worry about security issues.

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Distributed ledger technology projects and e-commerce is a match made in heaven. Both of them deal with transactional information, so it seems a perfect fit to introduce DLT as the main technology. Mainly e-commerce plays a huge role in the marketplace; however, it’s mostly influenced by big players and doesn’t promote fairness in the game.

DLT has the ability to offer better options for good merchandiser and promote fairness. It can connect users with better merchandisers. Also, tamper proofing this industry would increase more interest in common people.

It’s another popular distributed ledger use cases. This technology has the ability to become a global payment ecosystem. It already offers and can indeed meet with the demands of the growing financial demands. Global payments in a typical banking system require a lot of time, and at most time many people can’t send money overseas in times of need.

Also, you can’t pay for everything with just a single source of the payment system. To eliminate this problem, DLT can become the bridge between the sender and the receiver. It can provide faster, safer transactions. The best part is that it can also provide a source to include digital currencies and fully transform the financial sectors, eliminating fiat currencies.

Challenges DLT Needs to Overcome

  • Uncertainty of Regulations

Distributed ledger technology has always dealt with regulatory issues. It’s not an uncommon scene here. Most of the distributed ledger platforms don’t include any specific law or regulation on their networks. This lack of regulation or limited regulation is compromising user rights on the network.

Uncertainty is making the DLT more volatile, and people are investing in cryptos associated with DLTs are falling victim. Not to mention that these platforms don’t actually hand out rights to their nodes. So, even if somehow you lose your token on the network due to a hack, there won’t be any backup for it.

Due to the circumstances, distributed ledger technology is largely failing to attract people and innovators. If this technology wants to shine, then it has to integrate any sorts of regulatory rules that will provide protection for the people’s assets.

  • Limited Evidence of Global Impact

Even though DLT is making is the way in the market it still lacks the one much-needed ingredient – Globalization. For any technology to evolve, there needs to be a craze or demand in the market from the common people. How DLT can be globally implemented is still a theoretical approach. There isn’t much hard evidence of present global impact.

But the lack of marketing is making this new technology remain in the dark. Even though there’s a lot of people that know about distributed ledger technology, it’s still not enough. Many countries banned using this technology as it doesn’t necessarily abide by the law.

Also, people don’t quite understand the mechanisms behind it due to the lack of proper understanding. If distributed ledger technology wants to step into the limelight of the tech world, it needs to be globally accepted and implemented. Targeting only specific market in the world can’t promise a 100% success rate.

  • Immaturity of the Technology

The first distributed ledger technology was the blockchain, and it was introduced through the Bitcoin back in 2009. Well, it’s been a very long time, but due to the systems complex nature, many developers couldn’t fully grasp the technology yet.

Moreover, the blockchain had quite a few shortcomings. Improving them and offering better technology has been the priority in the last few years. Many companies did come a long way. But as the distributed ledger technology is a vast field, many are trying to come up with a more efficient model.

However, perfecting these models need time. Also, as the DLTs will keep growing how it will impact the network? Yes, many DLTs promise infinite scalability, but still, it’s only in theory.

If in practice, things don’t work out, then they would have to improve it again and again. That’s why distributed ledger technology is still considered to be immature, and most people are avoiding it due to this nature.

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  • Protecting Data and Maintaining Security

Data protection and maintaining security is another major drawback that distributed ledger technology needs to overcome. The purpose of every new tech is to put a global impact. But if it gets integrated into the global aspect, more people will join the network. However, maintaining security and protecting data becomes a much more difficult task as the network grows.

There have been multiple scenarios where blockchain distributed ledger couldn’t handle the security issues. As a result, there have been reports of many vulnerabilities. Also, after the DAO hack and blockchain security concerns, many started refraining themselves from distributed ledger systems altogether. As this framework doesn’t have any governing authority, security is the most needed feature here.

So, for future development of this technology, the DLT needs to maintain security and protect all sorts of data on the network at any means.

  • Overcoming Privacy Issues

Privacy is another concern for the mass people. Various enterprises are shying away from integrating distributed ledger technology. A most prominent reason is the public ledger system. These companies feel that sharing their activities on the ledger with the public or their competition would result in their downfall.

However, there have been permissioned or federated distributed ledgers too. Another fact is that, even though some of the distributed ledgers is permissioned, still the people getting access to the ledger will be able to see each other’s transactions.

This way individual privacy gets ruined. But as of now, there has been some distributed ledger technology that focuses more on the user’s right and privacy. If they can fully utilize this scheme, then DLT will surely prevail in the future.

  • Conflict with Traditional Approaches

Distributed ledger technology doesn’t really go with the traditional ways. Most people consider it as a good alternative to typical banking systems. As the whole network is quite a transplant, there’s very little chance of fraudulent activities on the network.

However, the lack of law is making this system directly clashing with the traditional approaches. Government institutions are questioning the integrity of the technology. There’s a big chunk of distributed ledger technology companies that don’t even have proper license to avoid any governmental influences.

It can be both ways – No governmental force can exploit the network, and it would be a fairground, on the other hand, the people would be deprived of their legal rights. The whole concept of DLT conflicts with the already existing approaches. The technology needs to prove its worth to be fully acceptable.

Future of Distributed Ledger Technology

You must be wondering, what the future of this new technology is? Let’s shine some light on possible outcomes. If distributed ledger technology keeps blooming like this, then we would probably see a lot more intensification in terms of today’s integrations.

What it means is that there are already many high-end organizations trying to implement this new technology and changing the typical ways of the tech world. However, if distributed ledger technology can actually manage to overcome its limitations, then globalization would be possible.

Data is the new type of oil right now, and these ledgers are meant to provide a great way to collect them in a sequential manner. The internet is changing our lifestyle, and with DLT we will be able to have greater control over it.

Other protocols such as streaming, encrypting and sending billions and billions of data through this channel is the primary outcome. Obviously, to convert everything into a digital system, we would need to work with cryptocurrencies as well.

So, there should be a cryptocurrency marketplace on the rise very soon. It’s safe to say we’ll also see –

  • Government systems based on DLT
  • Need for the crypto banking system.
  • Full transparency in industries.
  • Ecosystem connecting different social chains.
  • Security protocols based on DLT

These are just a few of the futuristic analysis of this growing technology. However, everything will depend on how much this technology can actually fulfill all our needs and whether it’s capable of handling a global impact.

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Final Words

With the invention of distributed ledger technology, a new form of revolution has started – communication and information gathering. Using this tech, we can gather both static and dynamic data sequences. So, it can be a huge step for us. Distributed ledger technology can allow us to go beyond the typical database system and utilize it in everyday applications.

It would be less about only collecting information but more about how we can utilize that information for economic growth. A greater DLT with more efficiency is yet to be invented. Obviously making this new tech perfect would take time but we can hope for a better outcome soon.

Who wouldn’t love living in a world where transparency prevails, right? Let’s just see what the future holds for us.

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*Disclaimer: The article should not be taken as, and is not intended to provide any investment advice. Claims made in this article do not constitute investment advice and should not be taken as such. 101 Blockchains shall not be responsible for any loss sustained by any person who relies on this article. Do your own research!

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You’re Hired! North Korea’s new crypto scam starts with a job offer https://earlybirdsinvest.com/youre-hired-north-koreas-new-crypto-scam-starts-with-a-job-offer/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/youre-hired-north-koreas-new-crypto-scam-starts-with-a-job-offer/#respond Fri, 20 Jun 2025 11:35:42 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/youre-hired-north-koreas-new-crypto-scam-starts-with-a-job-offer/

A new wave of cyberattacks shows the DPRK is exploiting the crypto industry’s recruitment funnel, using fake LinkedIn job offers, deep‑fake Zoom calls, and backdoored interview files to access Web3 developers’ wallets and repositories.

With seasoned developer talent already thinning and open‑source protocols increasingly reliant on individual contributors, the stakes have never been higher.

North Korean hackers developer infiltration

On 18 June , cybersecurity firm Huntress reported a campaign attributed to BlueNoroff, a notorious Lazarus Group subgroup targeting a developer at a major Web3 foundation.

The ruse began with a polished recruiter pitch on LinkedIn, followed by what appeared to be a Zoom interview with a senior executive. In reality, the video feed was a deep‑fake, and the “technical‑assessment” file the candidate was asked to run, `zoom_sdk_support.scpt`, deployed cross‑platform malware dubbed BeaverTail that can harvest seed phrases, crypto‑wallets, and GitHub credentials.

These tactics represent a sharp escalation. “In this new campaign, the threat‑actor group is using three front companies in the crypto consulting industry … to spread malware via ‘job‑interview lures,’” researchers at Silent Push wrote in April, referring to companies such as BlockNovas, SoftGlide, and Angeloper. All three maintained U.S. corporate registrations and LinkedIn job posts that easily passed HR sniff tests.

The FBI seized the BlockNovas domain in April . By then, multiple developers had reportedly sat through fake Zoom calls where they were urged to install custom apps or run scripts. Many complied.

These aren’t simple smash‑and‑grab scams but part of a well‑funded, state‑directed campaign. Since 2017, North Korean hacking groups have stolen over $1.5 billion in crypto, including the $620 million Ronin/Axie Infinity hack.

The stolen assets are routinely funneled through mixers such as Tornado Cash and Sinbad, laundering Pyongyang’s take and ultimately bankrolling its weapons programme, according to the U.S. Treasury.

“For years, North Korea has exploited global remote IT contracting and crypto ecosystems to evade U.S. sanctions and bankroll its weapons programs,” said Sue J. Bai of the DoJ’s National Security Division. On 16 June, her office announced the seizure of $7.74 million in crypto tied to the fake‑IT‑worker scheme.

Crypto developer focus

The targets are carefully selected. The open‑source nature of crypto protocols means that a single engineer, often pseudonymous and globally distributed, may hold commit privileges to critical infrastructure, from smart contracts to bridge protocols.

Electric Capital’s most recent publicly available Developer Report counted about 39,148 new active crypto developers, with total developers down roughly 7% year‑on‑year. Industry analysts say the supply of seasoned maintainers has only tightened, making each compromised developer disproportionately dangerous.

That imbalance is why the hiring pipeline itself has become a cybersecurity battleground. Once a front‑company recruiter gets past HR, engineers, eager for stability in a bearish market, may not spot the red flags in time. In several cases, the attackers even used Calendly links and Google Meet invites that silently redirected victims to attacker‑controlled Zoom look‑alike domains.

The malware stack is advanced and modular. Huntress and Unit 42 have catalogued BeaverTail, InvisibleFerret, and OtterCookie variants, all compiled with the Qt framework for cross‑platform compatibility. Once installed, the tools scrape browser extensions such as MetaMask and Phantom, exfiltrate `wallet.dat` files, and search for terms like “mnemonic” or “seed” in plaintext files.

Yet despite the technical sophistication, law‑enforcement pressure is mounting. The FBI’s domain seizures, the DoJ’s financial forfeitures, and Treasury sanctions on mixers have begun to raise the cost of doing business for Pyongyang’s hackers. The regime, however, remains adaptive.

Each new shell company, recruiter persona, or malware payload arrives wrapped in more convincing packaging. Thanks to generative‑AI tools, even the fake executives in live calls now look and move credibly. DeFi’s trustless systems still rely on a surprisingly small and vulnerable circle of trusted human maintainers.

North Korean crypto target onslaught

Recent CryptoSlate coverage paints a broader canvas of Pyongyang’s crypto onslaught. One year-end analysis found that North Korea-linked groups siphoned $1.34 billion from 47 hacks in 2024, which was a total of 61 % of all crypto stolen that year.

A big slice of that tally came from the $305 million breach of Japan’s DMM Bitcoin, which the FBI says started when a TraderTraitor operative posed as a LinkedIn recruiter and slipped a malicious “coding test” to a Ginco wallet engineer.

The same playbook escalated this February when the bureau attributed a record $1.5 billion Bybit exploit to Lazarus, noting the thieves had already laundered 100,000 ETH through THORChain within days.

North Korean operatives are impersonating venture capitalists, recruiters, and remote IT workers, using AI-generated profiles and deep-fake interviews, to earn salaries, exfiltrate source code, and extort firms in what Microsoft researchers call a “triple-threat” scheme.

In a world where jobs can be remote, trust is digital, and software runs the money, the subsequent state‑sponsored breach may begin not with an exploit but with a handshake.

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AI can’t scale without trust. Trust starts with the data layer https://earlybirdsinvest.com/ai-cant-scale-without-trust-trust-starts-with-the-data-layer/ https://earlybirdsinvest.com/ai-cant-scale-without-trust-trust-starts-with-the-data-layer/#respond Sat, 31 May 2025 11:08:51 +0000 https://earlybirdsinvest.com/ai-cant-scale-without-trust-trust-starts-with-the-data-layer/

The following article is a guest post and opinion of Johanna Rose Cabildo, Founder and CEO of Data Guardians Network (D-GN).

The Illusion of Infinite Data

AI runs on data. But that data is increasingly unreliable, unethical and tied with legal ramifications.

Generative AI’s growth isn’t just accelerating. It’s devouring everything in its path. OpenAI reportedly faced a predicted $7 billion bill in 2024 just to keep its models functional, with $2 billion in annualized revenue. All this was happening while OpenAI and Anthropic’s bots were wreaking havoc on websites and raising alarm bells about data usage at scale, according to a report by Business Insider.

But the problem runs deeper than costs. AI is built on data pipelines that are opaque, outdated and legally compromised. The “data decay” issue is real – models trained on unverified, synthetic or ‘old’ data risk becoming less accurate over time, leading to flawed decision-making.

Legal challenges like the 12 US copyright lawsuits against OpenAI and Anthropic’s legal woes with authors and media outlets highlight an emerging crisis: AI isn’t bottlenecked by compute. It’s bottlenecked by trustworthy data supply chains.

When Synthetic Isn’t Enough And Scraping Won’t Scale

Synthetic data is a band-aid. Scraping is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

Synthetic data has promise for certain use cases – but is not without pitfalls. It struggles to replicate the nuance and depth of real-world situations. In healthcare, for example, AI models trained on synthetic datasets can underperform in edge cases, risking patient safety. And in high-profile failures like Google’s Gemini model, bias and skewed outputs are reinforced rather than corrected.

Meanwhile, scraping the internet isn’t just a PR liability, it’s a structural dead end. From the New York Times to Getty Images, lawsuits are piling up and new regulations like the EU’s AI Act mandate strict data provenance standards. Tesla’s infamous “phantom braking” issue from 2022, caused in part by poor training data, shows what happens when data sources go unchecked.

While global data volumes are set to surpass 200 zettabytes by 2025 according to Cybersecurity Ventures, much of it is unusable or unverifiable. The connection and understanding is missing. And without that, trust – and by extension, scalability – is impossible.

It’s clear we need a new paradigm. One where data is created trustworthy by default.

Refining Data with Blockchain’s Core Capabilities

Blockchain isn’t just for tokens. It’s the missing infrastructure for AI’s data crisis.

So, where does blockchain fit into this narrative? How does it solve the data chaos and prevent AI systems from feeding into billions of data points, without consent

While “tokenization” captures headlines, it’s the architecture beneath that carries real promise. Blockchain enables the three features AI desperately needs at the data layer: traceability or provenance, immutability and verifiability. Each contribute synergetically to help rescue AI from the legal issues, ethical challenges and data quality crises. 

Traceability ensures every dataset has a verifiable origin. Much like IBM’s Food Trust verifies farm-to-shelf logistics, we need model-to-source verification for training data. Immutability ensures no one can manipulate the record, storing critical information on-chain. 

Finally, smart contracts automate payment flows and enforce consent. If a predetermined event occurs, and is verified, a smart contract will self-execute steps programmed on the blockchain, without human interaction. In 2023, the Lemonade Foundation implemented a blockchain-based parametric insurance solution for 7,000 Kenyan farmers. This system used smart contracts and weather data oracles to automatically trigger payouts when predefined drought conditions were met, eliminating the need for manual claims processing.

This infrastructure flips the dynamic. One option is to use gamified tools to label or create data. Each action is logged immutably. Rewards are traceable. Consent is on-chain. And AI developers receive audit-ready, structured data with clear lineage.

Trustworthy AI Needs Trustworthy Data

You can’t audit an AI model if you can’t audit its data.

Calls for “responsible AI” fall flat when built on invisible labor and unverifiable sources. Anthropic’s lawsuits show the real financial risk of poor data hygiene. And public mistrust continues to climb, with surveys showing that users don’t trust AI models that train on personal or unclear data.

This isn’t just a legal problem anymore, it’s a performance issue. McKinsey has shown that high-integrity datasets significantly reduce hallucinations and improve accuracy across use cases. If we want AI to make critical decisions in finance, health, or law then the training foundation must be unshakeable.

If AI is the engine, data is the fuel. You don’t see people putting garbage fuel in a Ferrari.

The New Data Economy: Why It’s Needed Now

Tokenization grabs headlines, but blockchain can rewire the entire data value chain.

We’re standing at the edge of an economic and societal shift. Companies have spent billions collecting data but barely understand its origins or risks. What we need is a new kind of data economy – one built on consent, compensation and verifiability. 

Here’s what that looks like.

First is consensual collection. Opt-in models like Brave’s privacy-first ad ecosystem show users will share data if they’re respected and have an element of transparency. 

Second is equitable compensation. For contributing to AI through the use of their data, or their time annotating data, people should be appropriately compensated. Given it is a service individuals are willingly or unwillingly providing, taking such data – that has an inherent value to a company – without authorization or compensation presents a tough ethical argument. 

Finally, AI that is accountable. With full data lineage, organizations can meet compliance requirements, reduce bias and create more accurate models. This is a compelling benefit.

Forbes predicts data traceability will become a $10B+ industry by 2027 – and it’s not hard to see why. It’s the only way AI scales ethically.

The next AI arms race won’t be about who has the most GPUs—it’ll be about who has the cleanest data.

Who Will Build the Future?

Compute power and model size will always matter. But the real breakthroughs won’t come from bigger models. They’ll come from better foundations.

If data is, as we are told, the new oil – then we need to stop spilling it, scraping it, and burning it. We need to trace it, value it and invest in its integrity.

Clean data reduces retraining cycles, improves efficiency and even lowers environmental costs. Harvard research shows that energy waste from AI model retraining could rival the emissions of small nations. Blockchain-secured data – verifiable from the start – makes AI leaner, faster and greener.

We can build a future where AI innovators compete not just on speed and scale, but on transparency and fairness.

Blockchain lets us build AI that’s not just powerful, but genuinely ethical. The time to act is now – before another lawsuit, bias scandal or hallucination makes that choice for us.

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