Mobile crypto ‘mining’ app possibly connected to personal data leak

Disclaimer: This text has been up to date to incorporate feedback from the Pi Community, which claims that no Vietnamese identification playing cards have been held on its servers.

Pi Community, a cryptocurrency mining app for cell customers, could have been related to 17GB value of non-public information leaks, a Vietnamese information outlet reported on Monday.

The treasure trove of non-public information was apparently taken from the Know Your Buyer checks of customers of Pi Community, in accordance with the one who posted it to hacker hangout RaidForums on Thursday.

The identification playing cards of an estimated 10,000 Vietnamese residents have been positioned on the market, together with related residence addresses, cellphone numbers and e-mail addresses. The vendor positioned a price ticket of $9,000 on the info, payable in both Bitcoin (BTC) or Litecoin (LTC).

Phien Vo, a moderator of a Vietnamese Pi Community group chat channel, told VnExpress that Pi Community’s KYC checks are carried out by a 3rd celebration, including that Vietnamese identification playing cards like these in query aren’t appropriate with the app. Nonetheless, Vo did point out that an older model of the app was appropriate with the playing cards at one level.

“To carry out KYC verification on Pi Community, Vietnamese would want to make use of their passports. Just some customers who used earlier variations of Pi might carry out KYC verification utilizing their driver licenses, however thus far the system has but to simply accept Vietnamese identification playing cards,” Vo mentioned.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Safety’s cybersecurity division has since launched an investigation into the matter.

An impartial investigation into Pi Community’s perceived worth was just lately conducted by Cem Dilmegani, a tech entrepreneur and founding father of AIMultiple. Written weeks previous to the current information leak, the evaluation concluded that Pi Community bore the hallmarks of a multilevel advertising and marketing scheme, or an internet affiliate marketing program.

The Pi app reportedly calls for customers log in each day and click on a button to obtain their PI cash. No blockchain consensus algorithm, like proof-of-work or proof-of-stake, is used within the app, and customers can acquire elevated mining charges by referring different individuals. The PI token just isn’t but traded on exchanges and has no greenback worth.

The app reportedly sells information for promoting income from the second its utilization begins. Provided that advert area can promote for a better worth with private person data included, many have been led to take a position that the Pi app is designed solely to siphon personally figuring out info from its customers.

Cointelegraph reached out to a Pi Community spokesperson for remark. Justin Wu, of Pi Community’s advertising and marketing and development group, reiterated that the app’s KYC was carried out by a 3rd celebration, and that no Vietnamese identification playing cards have been held on Pi Community’s servers. Wu added that an inner examine didn’t uncover any proof of a knowledge leak. Wu mentioned Pi Community’s referral program was like others within the cryptocurrency area, and is barely meant to incentivize the participation of household and buddies.