Tagged: crime

September 24, 2026 @ 8:16 am By Omar Faridi  |  

A 23-year-old Sheepshead Bay resident has been sent to prison after admitting he ran a yearlong social engineering operation that drained nearly $16 million from Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) customers across the United States. Ronald Spektor received an indeterminate term of four to 12 years on… Read More

September 21, 2026 @ 4:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

A Hong Kong court has imposed a four-year prison sentence on a former retail banker who accepted more than US$470,000 in Tether (USDT) to lend the appearance of legitimacy to forged standby letters of credit and related documents with a combined face value exceeding US$1.6… Read More

September 16, 2026 @ 9:24 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mexican federal and state investigators have shut down a concealed cryptocurrency mining site in the mountains of Puebla, seizing hundreds of specialized computers while examining whether the facility stole electricity and helped disguise illicit funds. The property was secured in Tlaola, a remote municipality in… Read More

September 16, 2026 @ 12:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Financial institutions expanding into stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and other digital asset products have long faced a monitoring problem: traditional compliance systems were built for fiat activity, while on-chain transactions often sat in a separate silo. Nasdaq Verafin and Stablecore announced a partnership on September 15,… Read More

September 6, 2026 @ 5:54 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Informal money-transfer systems such as hawala have grown more organised and now lean heavily on digital tools to hide criminal proceeds, a Financial Action Task Force (FATF) report concludes. Drawing on information from about 45 countries and organisations, including Pakistan and India, the Paris-based body… Read More

September 2, 2026 @ 4:54 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Federal authorities have issued a new warning about a sophisticated online scheme that lets criminals quietly seize control of email and cloud accounts without ever stealing a password. The alert, released through the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center on September 1, 2026, describes an operation… Read More

August 24, 2026 @ 3:27 am By Omar Faridi  |  

AI tools are transforming cryptocurrency-related illicit activities, with overall adoption climbing sharply according to recent findings from blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs. The company’s 2026 AI-in-Crime Adoption Index scores the use of artificial intelligence across crypto crime at 54 out of 100, placing it in… Read More

July 18, 2026 @ 4:21 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Criminal organizations continue to leverage virtual assets (VAs) for cross-border movement of illicit proceeds, capitalizing on inconsistencies in global oversight and incomplete adoption of international guidelines. In response, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has issued its latest assessment, underscoring both advancements and critical shortcomings… Read More

June 15, 2026 @ 8:46 am By JD Alois  |  

Anthropic‘s Claude Mythos 5 and Fable 5 AI models have been suspended by the US Department of Commerce because they are deemed dangerous if accessed by foreign adversaries. These applications are apparently very capable of identifying and exploiting vulnerabilities in software, web browsers, and vital… Read More

May 27, 2026 @ 2:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

A recent report on financial services crimes states that 65% of these occurrences involve a human element. The report published by Verizon says that “phishing victims, errors, and social engineering remain persistent attack surfaces despite security investments.” Internal data is compromised in 53% of financial… Read More

May 19, 2026 @ 7:48 am By JD Alois  |  

Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) shares that it worked with UK law enforcement to apprehend and convict kidnappers who used its platform to transact a ransom payment. Reportedly, Coinbase detected suspicious activity in July 2025 and alerted police to the illicit activity. In a “wrench attack,” criminals forced… Read More

May 9, 2026 @ 12:17 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

CertiK pointed out that wrench attacks—brutal physical assaults aimed at forcing cryptocurrency owners to surrender private keys or digital assets—have evolved into a sophisticated, transnational criminal enterprise. These incidents blend open-source intelligence gathering, social engineering, and outright violence, including kidnappings and extortion (along with other… Read More

April 27, 2026 @ 7:02 am By Omar Faridi  |  

French law enforcement has intensified its efforts against a rising wave of organized crimes targeting cryptocurrency holders, with prosecutors announcing significant progress in multiple linked investigations. The National Public Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime (PNACO) revealed that 88 individuals, including more than 10 minors, now… Read More

April 9, 2026 @ 11:15 am By Omar Faridi  |  

As people all over the world get ready to travel, spend money, and actively engage online during the 2026 FIFA World Cup—spanning 16 different venues across the US, Canada, as well as Mexico—The Knoble and Feedzai are offering a digital tool to enable and guide… Read More

March 2, 2026 @ 8:48 am By Michael Wong  |  

South Korean police have launched an investigation into the alleged theft of cryptocurrency worth about $4.8 million that had been seized by the National Tax Service (NTS), after sensitive wallet information was inadvertently disclosed, the Korea JoongAng Daily reported. The National Police Agency (NPA) said… Read More

March 2, 2026 @ 8:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

TRM Labs has pointed out that in the landscape of digital finance, artificial intelligence is transforming how transactions occur, especially in cryptocurrency ecosystems. TRM Labs also indicated that AI systems now operate with increasing independence, handling fund transfers and executions without constant human oversight. According… Read More

February 9, 2026 @ 10:20 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In the unpredictable ecosystem of cryptocurrency-facilitated crime, significant updates highlight both the adaptability of underground markets and the intensifying efforts by authorities to dismantle them. Despite global enforcement pushes, TRM Labs noted that some platforms continue to thrive, while others face severe repercussions for their… Read More

February 5, 2026 @ 8:07 am By Tony Zerucha  |  

ACAMS, a service provider to the AML, fraud and sanctions communities, published its annual Global Anti-Financial Crime Threats Report identifying the top financial crime threats for the coming year. The report is based on a survey of 1,400 global AFC professionals across more than 200… Read More

January 9, 2026 @ 12:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

The world is watching events in Iran as the populace is pushing back against the repressive regime led by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. Recent reports indicate that Khamenei has vowed not to back down as anti-government protesters take to the streets and communications are… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 11:58 am By Omar Faridi  |  

In a significant new development in the fight against growing incidents of cybercrime, Indian authorities have now apprehended a former customer support representative linked to Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN). The arrest reportedly took place in Hyderabad and stems from a major security incident at the exchange that was… Read More