Snippings

xxx

VR/AR will, like the Segway, will find some niche uses. For Segway, it was warehouses, cops, and tourism. For VR/AR headgear it will be gaming, medicine, and hookups in meta-space. The porn possibilities are beyond immense.

From Doc Searls Weblog · On Twitter 2.0:

xxx

“It’s important to prevent fraudsters from reaching people in the first place,” said David Lowe, director of fraud at Santander. “They are using various platforms to access consumers; there’s an opportunity for the Online Safety Bill to bring all the right players to the table.”
The Online Safety Bill includes both paid-for advertising and other types of fraud within its remit, placing a “duty of care” on online platforms to put measures in place to protect users.
Lowe also called for legislation that would require banks to better share data without breaching rules on privacy or competition, allowing lenders to more clearly identify potential criminals.

xxx

In the UK, fraud is not just big business — it’s growing. Statistics from industry trade body UK Finance estimated that £1.3bn was stolen by criminals last year, an 8 per cent increase year on year. Data from Barclays found that purchase scams in July to September 2022 were up 70 per cent compared to the same period in 2021.

From Finance sector calls for government action on fraud | Financial Times:

xxx

Given that the entire world of “crypto” is collapsing into a black hole of weirdness from which their may be no escape, it’s been hard to pick out a favourite crypto story of recent days but I think there is actually a standout, slam dunk, winner: James Zhong, who was caught by the Feds with $3.36 billion hidden in a popcorn can. He had $661,900 in boring old-fashioned U.S. dollar dollar bills under his floorboards as well. But come on: $3.36 billion. With a capital B. In a popcorn can.

Now, $3.36 billion is quite a lot of money. The reason that Mr. Zhang could fit in a popcorn tin was that the money was in Bitcoins. The private key that controls these Bitcoins was on a device in a popcorn can under the floorboards. I am sure that there are many good reasons why people might like to be their own bank and manage their money in this way and one of them is that the money was stolen. Which, in this case, it was. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams spelled it out: “James Zhong committed wire fraud over a decade ago when he stole approximately 50,000 Bitcoin from Silk Road. “

The stolen money had been missing from 

xxx

PayPal and Apple have struck a deal to start accepting each other’s payments products within their separate ecosystems.

The pair have agreed to let US merchants accept contactless payments on their iPhones – using Apple’s new Tap to Pay technology – through the PayPal and Venmo iOS apps.

Meanwhile, Apple Pay will be added as an option in PayPal’s unbranded checkout flows on merchant platforms.

And, from next year, US customers will also be able to add PayPal and Venmo network-branded credit and debit cards to Apple Wallet.

From PayPal and Apple to accept each other’s payment products:

xxx

xxx

Prosecutors said Glencore Energy UK employees and agents used private jets to transfer cash to pay the bribes.

From Glencore ordered to pay millions over Africa oil bribes – BBC News:

xxx

Mark Gould, chief payments executive for Federal Reserve Financial Services at the Federal Reserve, told PYMNTS that the Fed is fine-tuning its focus to streamline the embrace and use of digital, speedier payments.

Initially, key FedNow features (already in pilot) will include bill pay and request for payment, or RFP. In the case of the latter, with additional technology in place, a cellphone, utility provider or other biller could send a consumer a text with a link to click to complete the transaction. FedNow RFP will enable the exchange of rich data, such as underlying transaction details, which can serve as a useful record and allow billing organizations to streamline their reconciliation processes.

Other initial FedNow features and use cases will include account-to-account transfers and liquidity management transfers.

From Fed’s Prepares Instant Payments ‘Easy Button’:

xxx

xxx

The People’s Bank of China ordered Tencent, Meituan and other large platforms to share user data, ranging from shopping records to travel history, with two state-backed groups, Baihang and Pudao, by early next month, according to people briefed on the negotiations.

Baihang and Pudao would in turn provide a feed of the data to banks for a fee, in order to help them assess potential borrowers’ creditworthiness, but the internet groups are resisting the arrangement, the people said.

Last year, the PBoC moved to ban online platforms from the direct sale of their user data to banks, citing fears about the possible misuse of personal information. But one central bank adviser said the practice had continued because lenders did not want to pay the higher fees charged by Baihang and Pudao.

From China’s central bank struggles to force tech groups to share user data with state | Financial Times:

xxx

 

Many Chinese banks, especially smaller regional lenders, rely on internet companies’ troves of user data and analytical tools to identify creditworthy borrowers. According to public records, outstanding bank loans issued jointly with online platforms increased 22 per cent last year over 2020, compared with just 12 per cent overall loan growth.

However, a study by Renmin University in Beijing found that internet companies would incur as much as an 8 per cent increase in costs after surrendering data and analysis to the credit scoring groups.

xxx

The idea of a privacy gradient comes from architecture and refers to the way that public, common spaces are located by the entrance to a building and as you progress through the building the spaces become more private until you reach the most private ‘inner sanctum’.

From Strange Attractor | Tackling Twitter abuse:

xxx

 

BBS signatures and progressive disclosure

 

xxx

According to several digital asset lawyers, the popular disclaimer “this is not financial advice” — may not actually protect them in the eyes of the law.

From Saying ‘not financial advice’ won’t keep you out of jail: Crypto lawyers:

xxx