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2024 Crypto Crime Trends: Illicit Activity Down as Scamming and Stolen Funds Fall, But Ransomware and Darknet Markets See Growth

2023 was a year of recovery for cryptocurrency, as the industry rebounded from the scandals, blowups, and price declines of…

Crime

CSAM and Cryptocurrency: On-chain Analysis Suggests CSAM Vendors May Benefit from Privacy Coins like Monero and Other Obfuscation Measures

CSAM (child sexual abuse material) is an understudied part of the crypto crime ecosystem. The industry is broadly aware that…

Crime

Targeted Approval Phishing Scams See Explosive Growth Over Last Two Years, With At Least $374 Million Suspected Stolen in 2023

Approval phishing is a scamming tactic that has existed for many years. But whereas approval phishing scammers have historically targeted…

Crime

U.S. Sanctions Crypto Mixer Sinbad.io for Role in North Korean Laundering Activities

The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced today that it has imposed sanctions on cryptocurrency mixer…

Crime

OFAC Sanctions Russian National Ekaterina Zhdanova for Using Cryptocurrency to Launder Money on Behalf of Russian Elites and Ransomware Groups

On November 3, 2023, the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Russian national…

Crime

OFAC Sanctions Gaza-based MSB Buy Cash with Crypto Ties to Hamas Following Terror Attack Against Israel

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it has imposed sanctions on ten…

Crime

Correcting the Record: Inaccurate Methodologies for Estimating Cryptocurrency’s Role in Terrorism Financing

In recent days following the horrific terrorist attack by Hamas in Israel, we have received many questions about how terrorist…

Crime

OFAC Sanctions Network Involved in China-based Manufacturing of Fentanyl and Other Drugs, Highlights Related Cryptocurrency Addresses

On October 3, 2023, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) brought sanctions against several individuals and companies…

Crime

OFAC Sanctions Mexican and Colombian Nationals Involved in Sinaloa Cartel Fentanyl Trafficking and Money Laundering Via Cryptocurrency

On September 26, 2023, the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 10 individuals…

Crime

Russian and North Korean Cyberattack Infrastructure Converge: New Hacking Data Raises National Security Concerns

In the wake of a historic arms meeting between Kim Jung-un and Vladimir Putin, on-chain data reveals disturbing information: Democratic…

Crime

The Chainalysis Law Enforcement Crypto Field Guide

Rapid identification of cryptocurrency assets can help facilitate arrests, increase asset seizure and recovery, and aid prosecutions. The items described…

Crime

The U.S. and U.K. Sanction 11 Members of Russia-based Ransomware Group Trickbot

Continuing the crackdown on Russia-based ransomware group Trickbot, the U.K. HM Treasury Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) and the…

Crime

Case Study: How We Track Crypto Money Laundering for Off-Chain Crime

Cybercriminals looking to launder money are often drawn to cryptocurrency due to its near-instant, pseudonymous, and cross-border capabilities. In 2022…

Crime

OFAC Sanctions Tornado Cash Founder Roman Semenov, DOJ Files Charges Against Him and Co-founder Roman Storm in Coordinated Action

On August 23, 2023, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Roman Semenov, co-founder of…

Gold bitcoin in front of a gavel and U.S. flag
Crime

OFAC and Crypto Crime: Every OFAC Specially Designated National with Identified Cryptocurrency Addresses

As far back as the early 1800s, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has issued economic sanctions to achieve foreign…