Whistleblower News From The Inside -- May 25, 2018

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team

South Africa investigates $80 million bitcoin scam – South African authorities are investigating an alleged cryptocurrency scam that defrauded investors of 1 billion rand ($80 million) with promises of huge returns that never materialized. The fraud investigation involves a company named BTC Global, which told clients they would earn 2 percent per day, 14 percent a week and 50 percent in a month . A search for the company on the internet showed its services had been suspended. Reuters

Whistleblower Chelsea Manning speaks at C2 Montreal –  During an interview at C2 Montreal, Chelsea Manning spoke out in defense of data privacy, and denounced companies and governments who use people’s personal data for marketing and surveillance purposes. Since she’s been released from prison, she said data privacy issues have “gotten worse, especially in the United States.” Lex Gill, who interviewed her on stage, said Manning’s message is particularly poignant because many attending C2 are in the social-networking business. Gill said, “when someone like Chelsea says we need to bake ethics in the tech we use, it’s absolutely those types of people she’s speaking to.” Global News Canada

Rajoy Government in Spain Is Threatened by Verdicts in Corruption Case – Last year, Mariano Rajoy became the first Spanish prime minister to be forced to testify in court because of a corruption scandal. Mr. Rajoy himself was not accused of any wrongdoing, but he used his court appearance to deny emphatically that illegal payments had been made from a party slush fund. In a ruling yesterday, the court said not only that such a fund existed, but also that Mr. Rajoy’s testimony “should be questioned.” Even if Mr. Rajoy survives the current no-confidence challenge, Spain’s judiciary is still slowly sifting through several other cases related to his party. NYT