Cryptocurrency-Related Crimes: Key Criminological Trends

Abstract

The authors have analyzed crimes connected with the use of virtual currency in the regional and international aspects. They introduce a new category of «cryptocrime» understood as the aggregate of publically dangerous acts, united by their common systemic characteristics, committed against or using the products of distributed registries (cryptocurrency, tokens and other forms of digital financial assets). They analyze each of the cryptocrime segments separately: illegal trade in psychoactive substances (narcotics, psychoactive substances, precursors), pornography and other prohibited content (including illegal services); laundering of criminal proceeds; theft of cryptocurrency and tokens. Using the scientific research methods (comparative, sociological, statistical analysis and extrapolation of data, building a trend line, etc.) the authors identify regularities in the dynamics of each type of cryptocrime as well as key factors facilitating them. The goal of the authors is to conduct a systemic examination of crimes committed against and using cryptocurrency and to determine the prospects of developing different segments of cryptocrime. To achieve this goal, they analyze qualitative and quantitative characteristics of illegal trade in narcotics and pornography, legalization of criminal proceeds and theft of digital assets. They name the anonymity of cryptocurrency as a factor facilitating illegal trade in drugs, while the growing scope of the legalization of criminal proceeds and theft is facilitated by the fact that cryptocurrency and tokens do not have a legal status as objects of civil law and objects of encroachments on property. The analysis allows the authors to conclude that without effective criminological measures the level of such crimes will continue to grow and may double by the end of 2019. According to the authors, the priority directions of international criminal policy in the sphere of cryptocrime prevention include determining cryptocurrencies’ legal status, licensing cryptocurrency trade (stock exchange services, exchange platforms, companies issuing tokens), setting international standards of counteracting the legalization of criminal proceeds and the financing of terrorism, creating a cryptocrime database.

Criminological innovations in criminality prevention: status and perspectives

“…One of the most relevant issues in using Big Data technology is the correct selection and ensuring validity of materials to provide a form understood by the computer algorithm and fast access to the desired information from large arrays of data [1]. Another issue deserving attention is a question of perception of innovative technologies and statistical methods of data processing by researchers in the field of criminology as well as the integration of these technologies into the common practice of law enforcers [18].…”

“…Modern criminality indicators prevent from formulating a comprehensive understanding of its dynamics and trends and are only a tool to evaluate the work of the system of lawenforcement authorities. This problem is not new for researchers in the area of criminology that frequently state limitations of tools available to practical workers whose activity is intended against crimes [1].…”

Peculiarities Of Legal Regulation Of Crypto Assets In Switzerland

“…The Swiss Federal Council and the country's national Bank are opposed to the legalization of crypto-currencies (Krupenchenkova, 2019), at the same time, although FINMA warns about the risks of Blockchain (FINMA, 2019c), it has issued an administrative guide on money transfers using Blockchain technologies and what measures to counter money laundering should be applied to them (FINMA, 2019a;Ivantsov, Sidorenko, Spasennikov, Berezkin, & Sukhodolov, 2019). Special attention should be paid to the problem of stablecoins.…”

State Functions Outsourcing In The Defence Sphere: Legal Support And Risks

“…Among the risks, connected with the transfer of inherently https: //doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2020.04.91 Corresponding Author: E. L. Sidorenko Selection and peer-review under governmental functions we should also name the possibility for the contractors of being involved into corruption crimes and related with them (Sukhodolov, Ivantsov, Sidorenko, & Spasennikov, 2018). Taking into consideration the fact that outsourcing of state functions is becoming a widespread practice for acting abroad on behalf of the state, criminalization of outsourcing in the defence sphere may include cryptocurrencies as a payment method and as an instrument of money-laundering (Ivantsov, Sidorenko, Spasennikov, Berezkin, & Sukhodolov, 2019).…”