“Anonymity of cryptocurrencies makes it difficult to fight cybercrime”

A United Nations (UN) spokesman said cryptocurrencies greatly complicate global efforts to combat cybercrime because of their anonymity.

Neil Walsh, Head of the Cybercrime and Money Laundering Division of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, spoke
with comments in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation on Thursday. He noted that due to the anonymity of cryptocurrencies, the fight against cybercrime is significantly complicated.

Walsh warned that cryptocurrencies are also used in crimes related to global networks of sexual exploitation of children, which are more common than most of the public believes.

Earlier this month, the UN said it was investigating 35 cyber attacks by hackers from the DPRK. As previously reported by the UN, DPRK hackers are responsible for the theft of $ 2 billion from banks and cryptocurrency exchanges. According to researchers, North Korea used stolen funds to finance the development of weapons of mass destruction.