illegal

U.S. Federal Judge Rita Lin issued a partial summary judgment in a 59-page ruling regarding Anthropic's lawsuit against the Trump administration, determining that the government's punishment of Anthropic for publicly refusing to allow the military to use its Claude large model for mass surveillance of U.S. citizens and lethal autonomous operations constituted illegal retaliation, violating the First Amendment, due process clause, and the Administrative Procedure Act. The judge also revoked the related designations and Defense Secretary Hegseth's injunction, issuing a permanent injunction.The controversy arose from the Pentagon's demand that Anthropic remove all usage restrictions and accept terms allowing "all lawful uses," while Anthropic maintained its last two bottom lines. On February 27, 2025, Trump ordered all federal agencies to cease using the company's technology, and Hegseth subsequently prohibited any military contractors from doing business with it. During this process, the government abandoned its core claims, acknowledging that Anthropic had no backdoor access to the deployed models and that the risks of Claude were no greater than those of other "black box" systems. Lin pointed out that the government's punishment under the guise of "national security" was not a blank check, and that the government had been operating under the preliminary injunction since March without indicating any harm.Anthropic did not achieve a complete victory, as its claim that Trump's directive exceeded presidential authority was dismissed. Anthropic informed the court that if the relevant measures continued, its defense-related revenue would decrease by 50% to 100%, resulting in a loss of billions of dollars in overall revenue by 2026.

The Public Security Bureau of Hongkou District, Shanghai, China, recently solved a case involving cross-border illegal settlement and illegal foreign exchange trading using virtual currency, arresting 9 criminal suspects and involving an amount of over 200 million yuan. The suspects, including a person named Li, established a technology company at the beginning of 2024 to seek illegal profits, building two platforms online: "Cross-Border Fund Exchange" and "Virtual Credit Card Issuance and Settlement." They solicited customers both online and offline, illegally conducting exchange and settlement services for virtual currency and cross-border funds, profiting through transaction fees, service fees, card issuance fees, withdrawal fees, and other means.Investigators stated, "The uniqueness of this case lies in the fact that the criminals developed two apps and publicly solicited customers on such a large scale, which has never been seen before. The platforms built in this case are themselves a closed-loop illegal financial service system, with all transactions settled internally on the platform. This mode of crime has a higher degree of scale, a longer chain, and is more deceptive." Reports indicate that on the "Cross-Border Fund Exchange" platform, the criminal gang collected customers' virtual currency overseas and exchanged it for foreign currency, forming a "fund pool," and then realized cross-border settlement through fabricated contracts, achieving the exchange and transfer of virtual currency to RMB. On the "Virtual Credit Card Issuance and Settlement" platform, the criminal gang "cooperated" with several overseas private banks to issue virtual credit cards to customers, who could use the card for consumption, but the repayment process had to be settled in virtual currency; the gang exchanged virtual currency for foreign currency overseas, relying on false cross-border settlements to complete clearing with overseas card merchants.

The Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC) held a meeting of the Communications Review Subcommittee and determined that the overseas prediction market platform Polymarket provided illegal betting, deciding to implement access blocking measures against it. The committee judged that Polymarket's business model is based on the outcomes of events that users cannot control, such as politics, sports, elections, and weather, adopting a "winner takes all" profit and loss structure that fosters speculative psychology; the platform operator is responsible for market establishment, trading rule setting, and overall operational management, providing a virtual asset acceptance and settlement system, which effectively creates an environment for raising and delivering user funds, and profits by charging transaction fees through share trading, violating South Korea's Criminal Law and the National Sports Promotion Act.Polymarket argued that the platform operates based on non-custodial peer-to-peer trading and smart contracts, and does not directly raise funds, manage funds, or issue sports promotion voting rights. However, the committee responded that one cannot evade the applicability of domestic laws in South Korea based on technical characteristics such as whether Korean language services are provided, decentralized technology, or centralized trading interfaces. Given that the platform has actually provided illegal betting to South Korean users, access blocking is unavoidable to protect domestic users.

The Shanghai Intermediate People's Court has published typical cases, analyzing whether "traffic personnel" involved in telecommunications network fraud related to virtual currencies constitute accomplices in fraud. From February 2022 to April 2023, the defendants, for the purpose of profit, assisted upstream fraudulent activities by "draining traffic," using online virtual phone software to lure victims into related scam groups, ultimately causing 30 victims to be defrauded of more than 2.34 million yuan (the same currency hereafter) by an overseas fraudulent organization. The overseas fraudulent organization transferred funds into the suspects' trading accounts via virtual currency.The Shanghai First Intermediate People's Court pointed out that in telecommunications network fraud cases, "traffic personnel" may constitute accomplices in fraud or illegal use of information networks depending on specific circumstances. The key lies in determining whether they have formed a clear criminal intent connection with the upstream fraudulent organization and whether there is stable cooperation and division of labor. In judicial practice, when assessing the criminal responsibility of "traffic personnel," factors such as their role in the criminal chain, the degree of organizational management, connections with upstream criminals, methods of profit, and abnormal behavior should be comprehensively considered. Actions that only provide general online services and do not form a conspiracy to commit fraud should be distinguished from "draining" actions that knowingly participate in the implementation of fraud.

The blockchain protocol Harmony Protocol announced a complete network rollback due to a security vulnerability incident. Shard 0 and Shard 1 will roll back to block heights 92,730,034 and 94,978,278, corresponding to the state on August 11 at 23:25:37 UTC. The attacker exploited vulnerabilities in cross-shard receipt validation and quorum validation to mint ONE. A single wallet initiated 534 fraudulent transfers of 5 billion ONE each within 106 seconds, of which 477 were successful, illegally minting and transferring 2.385 trillion ONE, causing the price of ONE to drop by over 30%.Harmony has deployed emergency patch Mainnet v2026.1.1, suspended cross-chain bridge services, and requested exchanges to freeze related addresses. Over 99.9% of the counterfeit token flow has been tracked, and validators will regenerate blocks from the target block, permanently discarding 141,628 blocks during the rollback period, including 109,126 ordinary transactions and 315 staking transactions.

According to Bloomberg, Binance affiliated entities Nest Trading, Distributed Technologies, and Chaintecs Consulting Singapore have filed a lawsuit in Hong Kong against RedotPay co-founders Gao Zhangpeng, Chan Wa Choi, and Yao Chao, accusing the three of breaching agreements by redirecting over 470,000 users from Binance Card to RedotPay, claiming damages of $472.8 million. Binance stated that since March 2026, it discovered that RedotPay had been allowing Binance Pay funds to be used for RedotPay card top-ups without isolation, claiming that this cooperation allowed RedotPay to obtain approximately $304 million in user funds from Binance Pay. RedotPay responded that it will vigorously defend against all allegations and that it does not affect the company's daily operations.In addition, Binance affiliated entity Chaintecs has also filed a lawsuit against RedotPay affiliates in Singapore, with a hearing scheduled for Friday. RedotPay had previously sought an IPO with an estimated valuation of approximately $4 billion, stating that its annualized payment volume currently reaches $14 billion, with annualized revenue of $180 million and over 8 million users.

The Thai Immigration Bureau recently issued a warning, pointing out that while the cross-border trade of amulets is thriving, it is being exploited by gray capital networks as a money laundering channel.From online gambling, telecom fraud to drug smuggling, some illegal proceeds are being disguised as legitimate business income through means such as amulet trading, fake auctions, temple rentals, and cryptocurrency peer-to-peer transfers.

According to Livecoins, Brazilian police discovered a hidden illegal Bitcoin mining operation at a recycling station during a routine inspection targeting the theft and sale of scrap metal. Approximately 15 ASIC miners and 3 servers were seized on-site, with the total value of the equipment estimated to exceed 200,000 reais (about 39,400 USD).Bitcoin mining is not illegal in Brazil itself, but these devices were illegally tapping into electricity, with local power company Cemig estimating a monthly loss of about 60,000 reais (about 11,800 USD). A 37-year-old employee of the recycling station was unable to explain the source of the equipment and did not provide an invoice, leading to his arrest on charges of theft and trafficking. The police have also filed cases against a 31-year-old man and woman responsible for the business.The police stated that they are currently investigating the flow of the mined cryptocurrency.

According to the New Straits Times, Malaysian police recently dismantled an illegal Bitcoin mining operation located in Tronoh, arresting two men aged 40 and 52, and confiscating 73 cryptocurrency mining devices and related equipment.

According to Digital Asset, on July 28, 15 members of South Korea's People Power Party, including Kim Sang-hoon, proposed an amendment to the Specific Financial Information Act, allowing financial authorities to request the suspension of payments for virtual asset accounts suspected of being used for illegal asset transfers.The amendment defines "account" as a unique identification number provided by exchanges to users. The Financial Intelligence Analysis Institute can request a suspension of payments for 30 days when an account is deemed suspicious, which can be extended once. Those who do not comply may face fines of up to 100 million won. The bill will take effect six months after its announcement.

According to Bitcoin.com, U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis is pushing for the CLARITY Act to complete Senate voting before Congress goes into recess. Article 303 of the bill grants the Treasury Department the authority to impose targeted sanctions on digital assets in foreign jurisdictions, while Article 305 allows exchanges to freeze suspicious transactions for up to 180 days.On-chain data shows that North Korea's Lazarus Group stole approximately $643 million in the first half of 2026, accounting for two-thirds of the total amount stolen in cryptocurrency globally during the same period ($972 million), which includes a $285 million attack on Drift Protocol in April and a $292 million attack on the KelpDAO cross-chain bridge. The organization has accumulated a total theft of $6.75 billion since 2019.Currently, Galaxy Research has lowered the probability of the CLARITY Act passing in 2026 to 30%. The bill still requires 60 votes to advance, meaning at least 7 Democratic senators need to cross party lines to support it.

According to Jinshi reports, the Korea Customs Service stated on Monday that it seized illegal foreign exchange transactions worth 72 trillion won (approximately 4.92 billion USD) in the first half of the year. The service reported that from January to June this year, a total of 792 cases of illegal foreign exchange transactions were detected, involving illegal transfers of foreign exchange abroad, concealment of overseas assets, and other illegal activities. Some cases involved export companies receiving export payments in cryptocurrencies instead of legal currencies like the US dollar.Customs Service Commissioner Lee Jong-wook stated that they will strengthen cooperation with relevant departments such as the Ministry of Strategy and Finance to address the risks posed by fluctuations in the foreign exchange market.

According to a report by Reuters, the French National Gaming Authority (ANJ) has stated that it has requested French internet service providers to block the prediction market platform Polymarket, citing that it promotes illegal betting services, which may lead to significant losses for users, and that some bets may be subject to manipulation risks.Polymarket will remain blocked until it complies with French betting regulations.

According to the Iranian Fars News Agency, the Tehran Power Distribution Company stated that 187 illegal cryptocurrency mining devices were seized in two industrial units in Khorasan and Shahriar.

According to The Block, South Korean media regulators will give Polymarket an opportunity to respond before deciding whether to take corrective action against its prediction market platform.Regulators are reviewing whether Polymarket's services constitute illegal gambling activities prohibited by South Korean law.

According to CCTV News, the Shanghai Baoshan District Prosecutor's Office announced a case yesterday, where the defendant Huang was involved in smuggling abroad to participate in telecom fraud activities, enticing victims to invest in virtual currency. After the Myanmar Miaowadi Park was disbanded, Huang continued to engage in "pig butchering" fraud, using AI face-swapping and communication with foreign models to gain the victims' trust, and then guiding them to participate in cryptocurrency investments.Subsequently, the team leader would connect with the victims, deceiving them into registering, recharging, and investing on fake websites, ultimately being sentenced to two years and six months in prison for fraud, along with a fine of 30,000 yuan.

According to Malaysian media "The New Straits Times," Malaysian police raided an illegal cryptocurrency mining operation located in a warehouse in the Port Klang Free Trade Zone at Pulau Indah yesterday and shut it down. During the raid, two foreign men, aged 20 and 31, were detained, and mining equipment was confiscated.According to Malaysian law, this action violates the Penal Code and the Electricity Supply Act. If convicted, the two men could face ten years in prison and a fine of 100,000 ringgit (approximately 24,500 USD).

A Massachusetts judge approved a revised complaint submitted by the state attorney general against the prediction market platform Kalshi on Tuesday. The new complaint accuses Kalshi of illegally offering sports betting without the permission of the state's betting commission and allegedly attracting users under the age of 21 to participate in betting through marketing on college campuses.The state had previously issued a preliminary injunction against Kalshi, suspending its sports event contract business. However, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) had previously submitted a brief to the court supporting Kalshi, arguing that federal agencies have exclusive jurisdiction over prediction markets and are not subject to state-level regulation. Additionally, several traditional betting organizations in the U.S. are lobbying Congress to explicitly prohibit such sports-related event contracts in the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act).

According to Reuters, nearly 1,700 British investors are suing the cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) in the High Court of London, seeking at least £150 million (approximately $200 million) in damages.The plaintiffs accuse Binance of selling high-risk and complex cryptocurrency derivatives, such as leveraged products, to UK retail investors without regulatory authorization since the end of 2019, and violating the UK's Financial Services and Markets Act in related promotions. Some plaintiffs claim they have suffered losses of tens of thousands of pounds as a result. It is reported that the defendants in this lawsuit include Binance Holdings, registered in the Cayman Islands, Nest Exchange, registered in the UAE, Changpeng Zhao, and other unknown operators of the Binance trading platform.In response to these allegations, a Binance spokesperson declined to comment specifically on the ongoing litigation but stated that the company would actively defend itself and emphasized that Binance is always committed to fulfilling its obligations to users and operating within the applicable legal framework. Background information shows that the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) explicitly prohibited cryptocurrency firms from offering derivative services to retail customers in 2021.

According to Bitcoin.com, the European Cybercrime Centre recently led a joint operation codenamed "Endgame," which was the result of collaboration among law enforcement agencies from Canada, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States.These agencies jointly targeted the network infrastructure that provided services to criminals, utilizing three key types of "cybercrime-as-a-service" (CaaS) malware: SocGholish, Amadey, and StealC, to collect victims' information and sensitive data.Law enforcement agencies took action against a total of 326 servers and 142 domain names, seizing illegal cryptocurrency worth approximately $47 million and recovering over 27 million stolen credentials.