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Environmental damage of producing cryptocurrency averages 35% of its market value over past five yearsBitcoin is less “digital gold” and more “digital beef”, according to a study that suggests the cryptocurrency has a climate impact greater than that of gold mining and on the level of natural gas extraction or rearing cattle for meat.The research from the University of New Mexico, published in the journal Scientific Reports, assessed the climate cost of various commodities as a portion of their overall market cap. Continue reading...

In the days since Optus first reported that potentially millions of its customers’ private information – from birth dates to Medicare numbers – had been breached, it has faced threats of blackmail, a potential class action and a public spat with the home affairs minister.Reporter Josh Taylor and Jane Lee discuss the fallout from the data breach and whether this was a ‘sophisticated attack’ on the telco, or a failure of the company’s own security systemsFollow the day’s news, liveRead more: Continue reading...

Search for crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon after Luna and UST collapse drags down rival currenciesThe crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon has denied being in hiding, even as Interpol issued a “red notice” for his arrest after the collapse of the Terra project he founded.After South Korean prosecutors said he was “obviously on the run”, Kwon tweeted that he was making no attempt to evade law officers. “I’m writing code in my living room … I’m making zero effort to hide,” he said. “I go on walks and malls, no way none of [crypto Twitter] hasn’t run into me the past couple weeks.” Continue reading...

Proposed reforms previously delayed by Boris Johnson reannounced amid accusations Tories are soft on ‘dirty money’Companies House will be given new powers to challenge incorrect or fraudulent claims made by kleptocrats and their agents in an economic crime bill that was previously delayed by Boris Johnson a few weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine.The new bill – the second of two that had to be hurriedly reannounced amid accusations the government had gone soft on dirty money – is backed by the new security minister, Tom Tugendhat. Continue reading...

The regulator’s potential move to classify cryptocurrencies as financial products would make selling them much more difficultFollow our Australia news live blog for the latest updatesGet our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcastThe Australian Securities and Investments Commission has bolstered it cryptocurrency team as it looks to regulate more digital assets by classifying them as financial products, a move that would make selling them to Australians more difficult.Asic has yet to decide whether to classify Ethereum, the second most popular cryptocurrency after bitcoin, as a financial product after the way the currency operates changed last week.Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning Continue reading...

Do Kwon denied he was ‘on the run’ as cryptocurrency sector slides in wake of ethereum mergeSouth Korean authorities have asked Interpol for a red notice to prevent the crypto entrepreneur Do Kwon from fleeing extradition, days after the Terra founder denied being “on the run” in a message posted to his Twitter account.The international cat-and-mouse chase comes amid another collapse in the value of the sector, apparently prompted by the “merge”, an unprecedented alteration in the technical infrastructure that underpins ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency. Continue reading...

Do Kwon’s whereabouts are still unknown since a South Korean court issued an arrest warrant earlier this weekDo Kwon, the South Korean founder of the failed cryptocurrency Terra wanted by police, has denied he was on the run after Singapore investigators said he was not in the city-state as had been believed.Kwon’s whereabouts have been thrown into question after a statement from Singapore police late on Saturday, and his tweets did not reveal where he was. Continue reading...

The second biggest blockchain has changed the way it validates transactions on its decentralised ledger• Ethereum cryptocurrency completes move to cut CO2 output by 99%Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency, has completed a plan to drastically reduce its carbon emissions through a software upgrade known as “the merge”.Here we explain what has changed and what the implications might be. Continue reading...

Software upgrade, known as ‘the merge’, will change how transactions are managed on its blockchain• How does ethereum’s ‘merge’ make the cryptocurrency greener?Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency, has completed a plan to reduce its carbon emissions by more than 99%.The software upgrade, known as “the merge”, will change how transactions are managed on the ethereum blockchain, a public and decentralised ledger that underpins the cryptocurrency and generates ether tokens, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency after bitcoin. Continue reading...