- Japanese police analyzed 900 fraudulent Monero transactions and arrested 18 people, marking the first crackdown on virtual currency crime.
- Japan's Financial Services Agency is considering unifying the tax rate at 20% to boost Japan's rapidly growing virtual currency market.
Japanese authorities have taken historic action against crypto-related crimes, arresting 18 people involved in Monero money laundering operations, according to the Nikkei Shimbun. This is the first time that Japanese law enforcement has effectively tracked transactions with Monero. Monero is a privacy-friendly virtual currency known for its improved anonymity.
The suspects, led by Yuta Kobayashi, reportedly made approximately 900 false transactions between June 2021 and January 2022.
The group is believed to have cleaned up around 100 million yen, or about $670,000, during this period. Most of the money was obtained through theft of credit card data, and the money was used to purchase items on Mercari, a famous e-commerce platform in Japan.
Monero's privacy features tested by Japanese authorities
Monero is notoriously difficult to track due to its unique privacy characteristics, which hide transaction data and wallet balances and include ring signatures and stealth addresses, making transaction details and wallet balances obfuscated.
Despite these difficulties, a joint task force consisting of the Japanese National Police Agency and nine prefectural police forces effectively investigated the transaction. Founded in April specifically to combat the growing wave of cybercrime JapanJapan's Cyber Special Investigation Department led this investigation.
With the right tools and techniques, this can be achieved even if Monero's Overcome advanced privacy factors.
The case has garnered a lot of attention because it highlights how law enforcement is adapting to changing strategies of cybercriminals. While Monero and other cryptocurrencies were originally intended to be highly anonymous, the success of this study shows that even such technology is not completely immune to inspection. I am.
This discovery will likely have far-reaching implications, especially in the global fight against cryptocurrency fraud and cybercrime.
On the other hand, CNF was previously revealed Japan's Financial Services Agency (FSA) is currently considering a unified tax rate of 20% for transactions involving virtual currencies. High tax rates in the existing tax system have been blamed for hindering further investment in Japan's rapidly expanding cryptocurrency industry.
Many investors argue for a more favorable tax structure, arguing that a single tax rate of 20% would encourage more market engagement and allow companies and individual investors to benefit equally. There is.
