SendChat is a social messaging application that has been making waves in the digital currency world as of late. By using the existing Telegram infrastructure, and adding an option to send several types of digital currency to any user on the Telegram network, SendChat tried to take things to the next level. And those efforts have not gone unnoticed.
Also read: SendChat Tightens Bitcoin Security With BlockTrail Partnership
SendChat: Crowdfunding Campaigns
Digital currency is based on a few simple principles, one of which is “by the people, for the people.” After all, each member of the digital currency community brings something to the table, regardless of his or her level of expertise. SendChat tried to stay true to that nature, even when they were looking to raise funding for their project.
SendChat held two different crowdfunding campaigns, neither of which panned out successfully for unknown reasons. However, if there is one thing that can be said for any company involved in the world of digital currency, it is that they are versatile and don’t back down from a challenge.
The promising idea behind the SendChat platform has not gone unnoticed; the company’s efforts led to a partnership with BlockTrail and SendChat earlier this year. SendChat was able to add additional levels of security, as well as use BlockTrail’s existing infrastructure, for the social messaging platform. In return, BlockTrail was able to work together with the SendChat team in order to take Bitcoin and digital currency to the next level.
Blocktrail Identifies Bitcoin Change-Bug
Just a few weeks ago, Blocktrail made some headlines across crypto media outlets when it identified a change-bug, which could indicate a much bigger problem. BlockTrail CTO Ruben looked into a handful of transactions originating from his Bitstamp account, which all listed the “change address” as the last output.
There was only one option, which involved looking at the source code responsible for generating these transactions. Bitstamp uses BitGo software to produce transactions, leading Ruben to check BitGo’s GitHub repository. It became clear pretty quickly there was a change-bug in the BitGo source code, a similar bug to the one BlockTrail discovered and fixed months ago.
To make matters even worse, BlockTrail was able to get an overview of all of BitStamp’s deposits, withdrawals, and trading volumes by modifying some analysis scripts. It goes without saying that such information could be very valuable to a certain crowd of people, such as people who day trade Bitcoin in order to make a profit.
Note from the Author: BlockTrail CTO Ruben submitted a pull request to the BitGo repository with a fix for this bug. This “patch” was successfully applied to the repository as of two weeks ago.
BlockTrail Acquires SendChat
In an announcement on the BlockTrail blog, the company announced its acquisition of SendChat. Whether or not the acquisition was a result of the earlier partnership between SendChat and BlockTrail is currently unsure. Regardless, the acquisition will help BlockTrail further its mission in the world of Bitcoin and digital currency.
Due to this acquisition, Bitcoin entrepreneur and SendChat Co-Founder Alejandro De La Torre became a part of the BlockTrail team. In his new role, Mr. De La Torre will lead new BlockTrail project developments, as well as reinforce the company’s business and marketing efforts.
As of press time, no new BlockTrail projects have been announced. However, the company did state that Alejandro De La Torre’s entrepreneurial experience and practical understanding of applying blockchain technology in business settings will be put to good use. BlockTrail remains dedicated to delivering better tools for the Bitcoin community.
What do you think about Blocktrail acquiring Sendchat? Comment below!
Source: Blocktrail Blog
Images courtesy of BlockTrail, SendChat and Shutterstock
