For such people As images and videos of child sexual exploitation are traded in the darkest corners of the internet, cryptocurrencies are both a powerful and dangerous tool. For example, Bitcoin allows denizens of the criminal underworld to buy and sell goods without the involvement of banks or payment processors that could expose their activities to law enforcement. But the public and incredibly traceable transactions recorded on Bitcoin's blockchain can lead financial investigators directly to pedophiles' doorsteps.
After years of evolving in that grueling cat-and-mouse game, online vendors of what was once commonly referred to as “child pornography” have learned how to use cryptocurrencies with greater skill and stealth, and There is new evidence that it helps them survive. I've been working in the most abusive industry on the internet for a long time.
Today, as part of its annual crime report, cryptocurrency tracking firm Chainalysis has released a report on blockchain technology to measure the change in scale and sophistication of child sexual abuse material sales (CSAM) using cryptocurrencies over the past four years. The results of a new survey have been revealed. Total revenue from CSAM sold as cryptocurrencies has actually declined since 2021, along with the number of new CSAM sellers accepting cryptocurrencies, a study by Chainalysis found. But his crypto-based CSAM sales are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Chainalysis found that CSAM sellers are increasingly using privacy tools such as “mixers” and “privacy coins” that obfuscate the tracking of funds on the blockchain.
Perhaps due to its improved knowledge, the company discovered that CSAM vendors active in 2023 were active online for longer periods of time and evading law enforcement than in previous years. This is also about 57 percent longer than in 2022. . It makes it harder to trace, it makes it harder to prosecute, it makes it harder to rescue victims,” says Eric Jardine, a researcher who led the Chainalysis study. “So the sophistication aspect of it is probably the worst aspect that increases over time.”
Improved stealth, longer lifespan for criminals
In a thorough investigation of the blockchain, Chainalysis researchers analyzed nearly 400 crypto wallets of CSAM sellers and over 10,000 buyers who transferred funds over the past four years. Their most disturbing finding in their extensive economic research is that the online lifespan of crypto-based CSAM sellers appears to be longer than ever before, suggesting a kind of relative impunity. It was something. On average, CSAM vendors active in 2023 stayed online for 884 days, compared to 560 days for vendors active in 2022 and just 112 days in 2020.
Illustrating the new longevity of some of the most harmful attackers on the internet, Chainalysis notes that CSAM vendors are using cryptocurrency mixers like ChipMixer and Sinbad (which mix users' funds to make them harder to track). services) are increasingly being used to launder profits. (U.S. and German law enforcement shut down ChipMixer in March 2023, but Sinbad remains online despite facing U.S. sanctions for money laundering.) In 2023 About 46 percent of CSAM vendors use mixers, up from about 22 percent in 2020, Chainalysis found.
Chainalysis also found that CSAM vendors are increasingly using “instant exchange” services. The service collects little or no identifying information about traders and exchanges Bitcoin with cryptocurrencies such as Monero and Zcash (“privacy coins” designed to obfuscate or encrypt the blockchain). We make it possible to exchange. Tracking the cashing out of their profits is much more difficult. Chainalies' Jardine says his Monero in particular seems to be gaining popularity among his CSAM purveyors. In its investigations, Chainalysis has confirmed that CSAM sellers have repeatedly used Monero addresses to solicit donations through instant exchangers, and in multiple cases CSAM forums have used Monero addresses to solicit donations. I have also confirmed that it has been posted. Although instant exchangers also offered other cryptocurrencies, such as the privacy coin Zcash, the Chainalysis report stated, “We believe that Monero is the currency of choice for laundering through instant exchangers.” I am.
