While the biggest ever social media hack is still on the top news, the Pentagon’s cyberspace investigative unit is determined to detect illegal cryptocurrency transactions.
The US Army Contracting Command, the top cyberspace investigative unit, is looking for contractors to assist law enforcement in tracking the illegal cryptocurrency transactions.
According to the request, potential contractors should be capable of helping “to identify and stop actors who are using cryptocurrencies for an illicit activity such as fraud, extortion, and money laundering”.
Additionally stated, that contractor of the web-based application must ensure the ability to conduct the investigation as well as implement the analysis of illegal cryptocurrency transactions:
The application must enable users to conduct in-depth investigation into the source of cryptocurrency transactions and provides multi-currency analysis from Bitcoin to other top cryptocurrencies.
The document further highlighted that the investigators are looking strictly for an already developed web-based application that meets the requirements of the Statement of Work (SOW). Reportedly, the collaboration needed for one 12-month base period with the option of four additional yearly courses.
According to Forbes, the current request comes as a follow up of the U.S. Army Contracting Command, which published the related web application to track and identify persons behind the illegal cryptocurrency transactions last year.
The growing threat
From email scams to ransomware campaigns. Cybercrimes appeared in many different forms and have surged during 2020, especially due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, cyberattacks become one of the fastest-growing forms of virtual violations in the United States alone.
As the recent data from crypto intelligence firm CipherTrace reveals, 2020 might become the second-worst year in terms of cryptocurrency-related frauds, thefts and hacks with over $1.4 billion amounted in illicit proceeds within the first five months of the year.
Accordingly, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin became one of the primary payment methods used by cyber fraudsters to transfer their illegal funds. The virtual coins, that are decentralized, unregulated and thus less monitored by the authorities, became attractive for criminals due to the ability to carry illegal funds across borders without detection.
Since the number of financial cybercrimes is growing, governments worldwide are taking actions to investigate and stop the growing threat. Just a few weeks ago the United States Secret Service merged its Financial Crimes and Electronic Crimes Task Forces to prevent finance-related malicious cyber activity.
Moreover, the crypto industry itself turned into collaboration with law enforcement agencies as the leading American crypto exchange Coinbase sold its blockchain analytical software to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
