Crypto advocate and internet security pioneer John McAfee faces a number of different criminal charges, based on a new statement from the United States Department of Justice, or DoJ. The department accused McAfee of “conspiracy to commit commodities and securities fraud, conspiracy to commit securities and touting fraud, wire fraud conspiracy and substantive wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy offenses stemming from two schemes relating to the fraudulent promotion to investors of cryptocurrencies qualifying under federal law as commodities or securities,” the DoJ’s statement from the Southern District of New York said on Friday. Jimmy Watson Jr. is also listed …

The Cointelegraph YouTube channel had some of its wilder moments in 2020: from getting hit with the YouTube ban hammer to witnessing firsthand the antics of crypto’s most eccentric personalities. Here are some of our favorite blooper moments from this year — we hope you enjoy them more than we did! Bitcoin Halving Party livestream YouTube strike 2020 has been a year of firsts for many: the first year of the new decade, an unprecedented global pandemic, and Cointelegraph’s first ever YouTube strike. And, honestly, we’re still quite puzzled by it. The strike came in the final minutes of a …

Every industry, group, clique and conclave has its own share of weirdos — cryptocurrency and blockchain are no exception. Considering that cryptocurrency is the so-called “native” currency of the internet — the repository of the sum of human knowledge and the eccentricities there contained — the crypto sector is home to perhaps even weirder moments and personalities than more established and traditional industries. Outside of crypto’s inherently odd character, 2020 itself has shaped up to be a bizarre, if not downright terrible year. Existing socioeconomic problems in countries around the globe were exacerbated by the appearance of the novel coronavirus …

John McAfee, an eccentric millionaire, crypto enthusiast, and anti-virus expert, was recently detained in Spain on charges of U.S. tax evasion. He also faces charges arising from a series of questionable crypto promotions, from which he allegedly profited millions of dollars. Though he is currently in a Spanish prison, it did not stop him from sharing a few of his thoughts on recent developments in the crypto industry. With regard to PayPal's recent announcement, McAfee said “PayPal's acceptance of cryptocurrency signals, I believe, a new wave of cryptocurrency acceptance worldwide. Governments around the world will have to get used to …

Every Friday, Law Decoded delivers analysis on the week’s critical stories in the realms of policy, regulation and law. Editor's note Historians typically date the birth of international policing as we know it today to the 1800s, a response to the explosion in nationalist movements and non-governmental political radicalism in Europe. Just as new linking technologies like the telegraph and the steam engine aided and abetted new networks of political deplorables and any number of Sherlock Holmes plots, the explosion of communications tech of the last quarter-century has brought about new forms of crime. Which is, y’know, something everyone passively …

Update: The Justice Department reports John McAfee has been arrested in Spain for tax evasion and is awaiting extradition to the United States. On Monday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed suit against John McAfee for allegedly promoting initial coin offerings (ICOs) without disclosing that the ICO issuers were paying him, a violation of U.S. securities law. Per the complaint: "From at least November 2017 through February 2018, McAfee leveraged his fame to make more than $23.1 million U.S. Dollars ('USD') in undisclosed compensation by recommending at least seven “initial coin offerings” or ICOs to his Twitter followers." The …

Several days ago, technology pioneer and crypto advocate John McAfee departed his own privacy-focused asset, Ghost. He has since clarified, however, that he did not leave the endeavor entirely. "I have not abandoned the Ghost privacy ecosystem, only the GHOST privacy coin," McAfee told Cointelegraph in an email following his exit. "The ecosystem is centered on our Ghost cell phone service," he explained, noting that the service will continue. McAfee seemingly left the endeavor in a huff on Aug. 19, stating "I am abandoning the the Ghost project" His tweet cited inept management and forecast the project's doom. McAfee explained …

Technology pioneer and cryptocurrency advocate John McAfee has just announced his departure from his own privacy asset project, Ghost. "I am abandoning the the Ghost project," he said in an Aug. 19 tweet. "Management is incapable of making a success of the project," he explained, adding, "It will, without a doubt fail." He elaborated: "I tried to explain the fundamental principles of management, but they fell on deaf ears. My apologies to those that I led astray. Sorry." McAfee has bashed Bitcoin in recent months for its lack of privacy. The tech expert set out to make his own proof-of-stake, …

John McAfee, the crypto enthusiast who once said he would ‘eat his own dick’ if Bitcoin did not surge to $1 million, claims that Intel is suing him over his privacy project Ghost. According to a tweet posted by McAfee on July 23, the Intel corporation is suing him due to the use of the name “GhostbyMcAfee.” Ghost is a proof of stake coin designed for more anonymous blockchain transactions and the distributed exchange of the token went live on June 22. McAfee’s claim to fame is as the creator of one of the first anti-virus programs and the founder …

In July 2017, John McAfee said he would “eat his own dick” if Bitcoin does not hit $500,000 within three years. Today, BTC is hovering at a mere $9,130 and its price must increase by more than 5,376% to meet McAfee’s prediction. John McAfee tweets he would eat his dick if Bitcoin doesn’t hit $500k. Source: John McAfee Twitter In general, Bitcoin quite clearly got nowhere near $500,000 in the past three years. Not only that, but McAfee is also seemingly backtracking from his $1 million per BTC prediction. Last year, McAfee said he is positive Bitcoin goes to $1 …

Crypto and blockchain experts now have something new to save up for — a line of techie-style Rolls Royce cars, each complete with a cryptographic puzzle. As crypto prices pop off, participants may begin asking "When Rolls?" instead of the popular 2017 phrase, "When Lambo?" Leaving a fair bit of detail to the imagination, Rolls Royce's website now shows limited details of its new 50 car lineup. A shoutout to the Greeks The car line's label, Wraith Kryptos, comes from Greek origin relating to something hidden, while the cars themselves give a number of shoutouts to cryptology — a term …

Ghost Coin, the proof-of-stake privacy coin led by John McAfee, can now be used in vending machines in Hong Kong Disneyland. Ghost announced on Twitter that it partnered with crypto payment system ivendPay to deploy the coin in over 60 vending machines around Hong Kong, even those in Hong Kong Disneyland. “When we 1st launched $GHOST our vision was not only to focus on #Privacy but also on real user adoption,” Ghost said on Twitter. The privacy coin and distributed exchange went live last week amid the ongoing controversy surrounding it. Ghost distributed exchange replaced the McAfeeDEX distributed exchange in …