This is how the BKA takes action against crypto criminals

“Bitcoin is the money for illegal trades on the dark web.” It took a few years to emancipate yourself from this image. Even today, reports in the media claiming that cryptocurrencies are only for criminals still appear, albeit much less frequently. Drugs, terrorist financing, money laundering – all allegedly made possible and anonymous by blockchain technology. Most blockchains are fairly transparent. Anyone can see them. Cash payments, for example, are much more discreet.

Nevertheless, the crypto space is not free of criminal actors either. Chainalysis blockchain forensic scientists found $20.6 billion related to illicit transactions in 2022. Stolen cryptos, cases of fraud and circumvented sanctions make up the majority of the total. The latter accounted for a whopping 43 percent ($8.8 billion) of illicit transaction volume in 2022. This was due to measures that the political West imposed on Russia as a result of the attack on Ukraine.

Overall, however, Chainalysis estimates the share of cryptocurrency activities associated with illegal actions at just 0.24 percent in 2022.

Cybercrime in Germany: A case for the BKA

In Germany, the fight against cybercrime falls within the remit of the Federal Criminal Police Office. To this end, the authority set up the Cybercrime department in 2020. According to the website, the section primarily deals with criminal offenses “directed against the Internet, other data networks, information technology systems or their data”. The BKA speaks of “cybercrime in the narrower sense”. The unit is also part of the National Cyber ​​Response Center. Around a dozen state agencies work together here to prosecute online crime. These include the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK), the Federal Police (BPOL) and the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD).