Blockchain Dials Up Smartphones

The world’s first blockchain-enabled smartphone will debut in Bangladesh, India.

As reported by Cointelegraph, the phone, dubbed Finney, will be available to buy in Bangladesh and has been approved by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission. The phone has been approved to be imported and will be available starting next month.

The phone, according to reports, was developed by Sirin Labs and offers a “built-in cold storage wallet … and a decentralized application ecosystem,” said Cointelegraph. Sirin is based in Switzerland.

The phone is being manufactured by Foxconn Technology, and Sirin co-founder and CEO Moshe Hogeg told the site that “before the Finney, you needed a ledger, you needed a computer, you needed wallet software and then you needed to go to an exchange, and then you could convert. The Finney does all of this in one phone.”

There has been a growing embrace of smartphones in Bangladesh. Per estimates from research firm GSMA Intelligence, 75 percent of the population — equating to 138 million individuals — will have smartphones by 2025. Finney will cost $999.

Bitcoin Blockchain Hack?

Separately, bitcoin’s blockchain has been hijacked by malware installed that uses the network itself to repel attacks, according to Forbes.

“The malware uses the bitcoin blockchain to update, meaning it can continue running even if a device’s antivirus software blocks its connection to servers run by the hackers,” reported Forbes.

Security intelligence blog Trend Micro disclosed the hijacking and the malware, which is known as Glupteba and was first discovered at the end of 2018. The malware can be used to steal infected devices’ browsing history, cookies and passwords. This variant, according to reports, can also impact the privacy of some cryptocurrencies — and the blockchain can be used to “stay alive.”

Telegram to Deliver (on Blockchain)?

In other news, Telegram’s blockchain project is in final phases before going live, according to reports.

Coindesk reported the blockchain project, which has been dubbed TON, had been scheduled for the beginning of the month but had been delayed.

As reported by Yahoo Finance, Telegram has released codes and documentation for a testnet version of the blockchain. That release came Friday, according to reports. And with the release of the code, developers can download a version of the TON Blockchain Software.

That version, Yahoo Finance reported, “includes support for nodes and validators — computers that help to run the network — in order to check for bugs and other problems. The package also includes a block explorer that can be used to observe the network.”

Telegram had raised $1.7 billion in connection with the blockchain project.