A senior official said that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) plans to crack down on rogue cryptocurrency trading platforms and such investment scams.
A recent FBI report revealed that US citizens lost $2.5 billion in cryptocurrency scams in 2022.
DОJ to target rogue exchanges
Eun Young Choi, director of the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), said her department will pursue entities that either help criminals process their illicit funds or turn a blind eye to such activities.
“…they allow…criminal actors to easily profit from their crimes and recover money in ways that are clearly problematic for us….and so we hope that by focusing on those types of platforms, we will have a multiplier effect.” Tell financial times.
Choi also confirmed that her team will target cryptocurrency investment scams, in particular what are “slaughter pigs” — a term referring to scammers who develop a relationship over a period before striking their victims.
NCET was formed by the Ministry of Justice in October 2021, and Choi was eye Her inaugural director in February 2022. She has more than ten years of experience with the Department of Justice.
Davey, Bridges Series New Focus Areas
Choi also explained that her focus is on hackers and exploits of the Divi protocols and chain bridging, as North Korea’s state-sponsored bad actors are “the main actors in this space.” North Korean hackers are believed to have stolen between $630 million and $1 billion worth of funds in 2022. According to reports, the country leads the world in crypto crime.
Forbes reports that crypto projects suffered more than 125 hacking incidents in 2022. The top five were all in the Defi space, which Lost $1.48 billion out of the nearly $3 billion the entire crypto sector lost in these thefts.
The recent confirmation of the NCET Senior Constable marks a departure from the previously mentioned area of focus. Upon its appointment, the DOJ said the team would specifically target exchanges and mixers. Instead, the focus now appears to be shifting to security breaches and theft of funds from Blockchain and Defi projects.
According to an FBI report, US citizens lost $10 billion in online frauds in 2022. Of this, crypto investment fraud amounted to $2.57 billion.
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