𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐦 𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞 fraudsters impersonated #china business journal yesterday, using proton mail accounts to extort companies by threatening fake damaging investigative reports. scammers demanded #bitcoin payments to suppress the fabricated stories. the state-associated newspaper denied authorization, warned of fraud and reserved rights to pursue civil and criminal action. the scheme targets businesses with little exposure to media literacy and so exploits fears of reputational damage. bitcoin’s pseudonymity is making it virtually impossible for authorities to trace payments. china business journal said it was collecting evidence against the attackers, but victims will probably never come back to recover funds. my opinion: this reveals bitcoin’s double-edged sword - while it can be used for financial freedom, it is a scammer’s paradise. fraudsters use anonymity to conduct extortion while legitimate users lose access to banking. these kinds of schemes are why governments are going after #cryptocurrency. and until we address the extortion problem, crypto will be tainted with the image of criminals’ currency. #VrReports