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Changpeng Zhao, former chief executive officer of Binance, arrives at federal court in Seattle, Washington, US, on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. 

David Ryder | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Binance’s billionaire founder Changpeng Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison on Tuesday, after pleading guilty to charges of enabling money laundering at his crypto exchange.

“You had the wherewithal, the finance capabilities, and the people power to make sure that every single regulation had to be complied with, and so you failed at that opportunity,” U.S. District Judge Richard Jones said to Zhao in a Seattle federal court, according to a Reuters report.

The sentence handed down to the former Binance chief was significantly less than the three years that federal prosecutors had been seeking for him. The defense had asked for five months of probation. The sentencing guidelines called for a prison term of 12 to 18 months.

“I’m sorry,” Zhao told the judge before receiving his sentence, per Reuters.

“I believe the first step of taking responsibility is to fully recognize the mistakes,” Zhao reportedly said earlier Tuesday in court. “Here I failed to implement an adequate anti-money laundering program… I realize now the seriousness of that mistake.”

In November, Zhao, commonly known as CZ, struck a deal with the U.S. government to resolve a multiyear investigation into Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. As part of the settlement, Zhao stepped down as the company’s CEO. Though he is no longer running the company, Zhao is widely reported to have an estimated 90% stake in Binance.

Zhao, who wore a dark navy suit with a light blue tie to court, is accused of willfully failing to implement an effective anti-money laundering program as required by the Bank Secrecy Act, and of allowing Binance to process transactions involving proceeds of unlawful activity, including between Americans and individuals in sanctions jurisdictions.

The U.S. ordered Binance to pay $4.3 billion in fines and forfeiture. Zhao agreed to pay a $50 million fine.

Binance has separately been sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over the alleged mishandling of customer assets and the operation of an illegal, unregistered exchange in the U.S.

The action against Binance and its founder was a joint effort by the Department of Justice, the CFTC and the Treasury Department, though the SEC was notably absent.

A Binance spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC that the crypto exchange is “proud of the culture of compliance, security, and transparency we have created over the past several years, and we look forward to building on that culture as we continue to evolve.”

Changpeng Zhao, former chief executive officer of Binance, arrives at federal court in Seattle, Washington, US, on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. 

David Ryder | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The spokesperson said the company has made “considerable compliance enhancements,” including with regards to anti-money laundering detection and “hiring key compliance personnel.”

A lawyer for Zhao did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

Prosecutors say Zhao violated U.S. law on an “unprecedented scale,” and that he had a “deliberate disregard” for Binance’s legal responsibilities.

In a memorandum on Apr. 23, prosecutors said that under Zhao’s control, Binance operated on a “Wild West” model.

“Zhao bet that he would not get caught, and that if he did, the consequences would not be as serious as the crime,” the memorandum stated. “But Zhao was caught, and now the Court will decide what price Zhao should pay for his crimes.”

Sam Bankman-Fried faces up to 50 years in prison at sentencing hearing

Zhao has gotten off much easier than former crypto rival Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder and ex-CEO of FTX.

Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for crimes connected to the operation of his crypto exchange. Unlike Zhao and the charges brought against Binance, Bankman-Fried’s bankrupt exchange faced allegations of fraud and misuse of customers funds.

Braden Perry, a former senior trial lawyer for the CFTC, said that behavior is typically viewed as more deceitful and financially damaging to a broader array of people than compliance failures.

“CZ’s case seems to focus on regulatory and compliance failures, while SBF’s case hinges on direct financial misconduct and deception,” continued Perry. “Compliance failures, while serious, might be seen as a failure of oversight rather than active malfeasance.”

WATCH: New Binance CEO building robust compliance program

New Binance CEO: Building a robust compliance program after an immature past

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Hackers turn Nissan LEAF into full-scale RC car, record drivers’ conversations [video]

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Hackers turn Nissan LEAF into full-scale RC car, record drivers' conversations [video]

A team of white hat European hackers using their brains, keyboards, and a couple of bits and baubles from eBay managed to take control of a 2020 Nissan LEAF and violate just about every privacy and safety regulation in the process.

The best part: they recorded the whole thing.

Budapest-based cybersecurity experts PCAutomotive were able to exploit a number of vulnerabilities in a 2020 Nissan LEAF that enabled the white hat team to geolocate and track the car, record the texts and conversations happening inside the car, playing media back through the car’s speakers, and even (this is the genuinely terrifying dangerous part) turning the steering wheel while the car was moving. (!?)

Maybe the scariest part of this hack, however, is how seemingly easy it was to pull off by starting with a “test bench simulator” built using parts from eBay and exploiting a vulnerability in the LEAF’s DNS C2 channel and Bluetooth protocol.

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The PCAutomotive team gave a hugely detailed 118-page presentation of their exploit at black hat Asia 2025, which we’ve included at the bottom of this post, in case the original link goes dead. If you’re into that sort of thing, the fun stuff starts around page 27. And, if you’re not, just know that all the vulnerabilities were disclosed to Nissan and its suppliers between 02AUG2023 and 12SEP2024 (p. 116/118), and the “attack” itself can be seen in the video below that. Enjoy!

Summary of vulnerabilities

  • CVE-2025-32056 – Anti-Theft bypass
  • CVE-2025-32057 – app_redbend: MiTM attack
  • CVE-2025-32058 – v850: Stack Overflow in CBR processing
  • CVE-2025-32059 – Stack buffer overflow leading to RCE [0]
  • CVE-2025-32060 – Absence of a kernel module signature verification
  • CVE-2025-32061 – Stack buffer overflow leading to RCE [1]
  • CVE-2025-32062 – Stack buffer overflow leading to RCE [2]
  • PCA_NISSAN_009 – Improper traffic filtration between CAN buses
  • CVE-2025-32063 – Persistence for Wi-Fi network
  • PCA_NISSAN_012 – Persistence through CVE-2017-7932 in HAB of i.MX 6

Remote exploitation of Nissan LEAF



Electrek’s Take


Nissan-Bolt-EV-LEAF
2024 Nissan LEAF; via Nissan.

This is one of those posts that, on the bright side, does a great job explaining how a remote operator can “log in” to a vehicle and steer it out of trouble when a weird or edge-case-type situation pops up.

Unfortunately, this is also one of those posts that some of the more clueless anti-EV hysterics will point to and say, “See!? EVs can get hacked!” But the reality is that virtually any car with electric power steering (EPS), electronic throttle controls, brake-by-wire, etc. can be hacked in a similar way. But, while steering a target’s car into an oncoming semi might be a great way to pull off a covert CIA assassination, the more worrying issue here is the breach of privacy and recording – unless you want to spend some time in El Salvadoran prison, I guess.

Remember, kids: Big Brother is watching you.

SOURCE | IMAGES: black hat.


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A vast new UK battery plant just secured £1B to power 100k EVs

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A vast new UK battery plant just secured £1B to power 100k EVs

A major new EV battery factory is being built in Sunderland, bringing 1,000 new jobs with it. AESC, Nissan’s battery partner, is behind the £1 billion ($1.33 billion) plant, which will boost the UK’s EV battery production by six times, enough to power 100,000 electric cars annually.

The 12 GWh capacity plant, AESC’s second battery plant in Sunderland, will be powered by 100% net-zero carbon energy. That big jump in capacity helps position Britain as a global player in EV manufacturing while pushing forward the country’s net-zero goals.

The investment is getting a serious financial lift from the British government. Through a combination of support from the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance, the project is unlocking £680 million in financing from major banks, including HSBC, Standard Chartered, SMBC Group, Societe Generale, and BBVA, that covers the construction and operation of the battery factory. Another £320 million is coming from private investment and fresh equity from AESC. On top of all that, the government’s Automotive Transformation Fund is pitching in with £150 million in grant funding.

This deal follows closely on the heels of the new UK-US trade agreement announced a day earlier, which cuts car export tariffs from 27.5% down to 10% for up to 100,000 UK-made vehicles – nearly the total number exported last year. That move could save car companies hundreds of millions of pounds and help protect good-paying jobs in manufacturing hubs like Sunderland.

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Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves visited AESC in Sunderland, where she met with staff and local leaders to discuss what this means for the Northeast and the British car industry.

“This investment follows hot on the heels of yesterday’s landmark economic deal with the US, which will save thousands of jobs in the industry,” Reeves said.

Read more: UK unveils largest curbside EV charger installation of 6,000 ports


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Ford is facing a worker strike at its EV plant in Germany: Here’s why

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Ford is facing a worker strike at its EV plant in Germany: Here's why

It’s about the future of their jobs. Ford workers at two plants in western Germany are set to go on strike on Wednesday, their works council chief said on Monday.

Ford is facing a worker strike in Germany

In November, Ford announced it would cut around 4,000 jobs in Europe by 2027 as part of a restructuring, primarily in Germany and the UK. That’s still about 14% of its European workforce.

The American automaker said the move comes after it has incurred “significant losses” in recent years and a “highly disruptive market” with new EVs quickly gaining market share.

Ford blamed slower-than-expected demand for electric vehicles and a weak economic situation. It also plans to slow production at its Cologne EV plant, where the electric Explorer and Capri are built.

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Last week, IG Metall members voted in favor of “industrial action” with 93.5% of votes in favor of a strike. “Ford must act now—otherwise, we will go through with it,” said Kerstin D. Klein, Chief Representative of IG Metall Cologne-Leverkusen.

Ford-worker-strike
Ford Explorer EV production in Cologne (Source: Ford)

Ford is facing an influx of new competition, including Chinese EV makers like BYD. BYD’s overseas sales are surging with a fifth straight month of growth in April.

BYD even outsold Tesla in Germany last month, with 1,566 vehicles registered. In comparison, Tesla had just 855, and Ford saw 9,534 registrations.

Ford-worker-strike
Ford’s electric vehicles in Europe from left to right: Puma Gen-E, Explorer, Capri, and Mustang Mach-E (Source: Ford)

On top of this, Ford, like most of the industry, is preparing for more disruption with Trump’s auto tariffs. After releasing Q1 earnings last week, Ford warned that the tariffs could cost up to $2.5 billion this year.

During Ford’s earnings call, CFO Sherry House said that recent EV launches in Europe, including the Explorer, Capri, and Puma Gen-E, helped more than double Model e’s wholesale volume in Q1.

After early success in the US, Ford also launched its “Power Promise” promotion in Europe, offering EV buyers a free home charger and several other perks.

Source: Reuters

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