The major cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), continues to be actively used for illicit activity. Anonymous hackers have taken the data of over 129 million Russian car owners to expose it on the darknet in exchange for cryptocurrency. The leaked information includes the full names, addresses, passport numbers and other data belonging to millions of Russian car drivers, Russian news agency RBC reported May 15. The stolen data is claimed to be leaked from the registry of Russia’s patrol jurisdiction, the General Administration for Traffic Safety of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia. The authenticity of data has reportedly been confirmed …

Due to the transition of many people around the world into a “stay at home” mode, where the only viable way of communicating and receiving something is through the global network, some new information regarding darknet activity has begun to surface. In the time of COVID-19, there has been an increase in both the activity of cyber fraudsters using the capabilities of cryptocurrencies and general illegal activity on the World Wide Web. Of course, not all darknet operators are using the epidemic for malicious advantage, and comply with the code of honor. Nonetheless, Cointelegraph decided to figure out how Bitcoin …

Almost half of the darknet sites surveyed by the Australian National University do not offer COVID-19 ‘treatments’ or protective equipment. Researchers found that eight out of 20 markets do not sell any items related to coronavirus with another nine selling a very limited selection. Just three sites accounted for the vast majority (85%) of all unique items sold. The study was commissioned by Australian Institute of Criminology and monitored 20 darknet markets on April 3 to conduct a census of COVID-19 related medical products and supplies. The researchers found 645 listings on sale in exchange for cryptocurrency, including personal protective …

New York-based blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis has published its latest analysis of the use of cryptocurrencies to purchase child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the darknet. In a report shared with Cointelegraph on April 22, Chainlaysis noted that it had traced just under $930,000 worth of Bitcoin (BTC) payments to addresses associated with CSAM providers in 2019. This represents a 32% increase over 2018, which had in turn presented a 212% increase over the previous year. Bitcoin (BTC) payments to CSAM providers, 2015-2020. Source: Chainalysis Nonetheless, Chainalysis emphasized that this stark year-on-year rise is not necessarily reflective of an absolute …

Chainalysis held a webinar on April 15 to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on crypto crime. During this meeting, the company revealed that criminals claim to be selling coronavirus-infected blood on the darknet. COVID-19 hurts crypto criminals According to Chainalysis, darknet markets have not been immune to the adverse effects of the pandemic, with a 33% decline in the volume of cryptocurrency sent to scam addresses. Source: Chainalysis Cybercriminals have responded differently to the crisis. Some have shown restraint in following a self-imposed honor-code. Others have dropped to the new levels of amorality. A new low for the darknet In …

Recent data shows parties selling a massive number of Zoom accounts in the far reaches of the internet. In darknet and hacking forums, perpetrators are pawning off 500,000 user accounts from the popular internet video conferencing site, BleepingComputer said in an April 13 report. Hackers utilized former leaked information The infiltrators used multiple methods to gain access to the plethora of Zoom accounts. “These credentials are gathered through credential stuffing attacks where threat actors attempt to login to Zoom using accounts leaked in older data breaches,” the report said of Zoom users’ information. “The successful logins are then compiled into …

Russian authorities have detained a group of online criminals that reportedly sold massive amounts of counterfeit banknotes on the dark web in return for cryptocurrencies. According to an April 7 report from Russian news agency Kommersant, the criminal group has managed to sell more than 1 billion counterfeit Russian rubles, worth around $13 million as of press time. Criminals operated via Russia’s largest darknet marketplace As the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs reported to Kommersant, the online perpetrators were operating currency counterfeiting via a darknet store on Russia’s largest darknet marketplace, Hydra. According to the report, the store was operating …

Warning: This story contains sensitive content that some readers may find disturbing. A Dutch national known as ‘Mr Dark’ — who allegedy made $1.6 million in cryptocurrency from hosting violent rape and child pornography videos — has been indicted by a Federal Grand Jury in the District of Columbia. Michael Rahim Mohammed, 32, allegedly operated the ‘Dark Scandals’ website, which has operated on both the darknet and the normal web since 2012. The site hosted more than 2000 videos and images, and advertised that it offered “real blackmail, rape and forced videos of girls all around the world.” Users could …

The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has revealed the existence of a Cryptocurrency Intelligence Program (CIP) in the agency’s 2021 budget proposal. The proposal states that the CIP seeks to identify unlicensed capital flows taking place across peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplaces, online forums, and darknet markets. The CIP was developed by ICE’s Bulk Cash Smuggling Center (BCSC). “The BCSC has developed a Cryptocurrency Intelligence Program (CIP) which identifies unlicensed money services businesses in the form of independent cryptocurrency brokers’ use of peer-to-peer (P2P) sites, online forums and classified advertisements, and darknet markets (DNM) to engage in unlicensed money services …

It’s a new decade with an old problem for law enforcement officials: How do you stop cybercriminals from stealing billions of dollars in cryptocurrency and using it for illicit purposes? These kinds of criminal activities range from selling illicit drugs, firearms, documents, identities and ransom schemes, to flat out stealing assets — more than $40 billion was noted as fraudulent in the first nine months of 2019, according to a Chainalysis report. The report highlights that illicit activity doubled from 0.04% in 2018 to 0.08% in 2019. While this percentage is still small, some in the crypto community note that …

The volume of cryptocurrency flows coming on darknet markets have doubled for the first time in four years, a new study says. In part of its 2020 Crypto Crime Report published on Jan. 28, Chainalysis — a New York-based blockchain analytics firm — found that darknet markets have significantly increased their share of total incoming crypto transactions in 2019, doubling from 0.04% in 2018 to 0.08%. Crypto on darknets is resilient to scrutiny by law enforcement According to the study, total market sales in crypto grew 70% in 2019 to account for more than $790 million worth of cryptocurrency after …

A United States citizen has been charged with heroin and methamphetamine distribution in exchange for Bitcoin (BTC). According to a Jan. 3 press release published by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Joanna De Alba allegedly promoted and sold illegal narcotics on a dark web marketplace dubbed the “Wall Street Market,” between June 2018 and May 2019. The official release notes: “Defendant Joanna De Alba, a U.S. citizen, will be arraigned this afternoon in federal court in Brooklyn on an indictment charging her with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and …