The past two years have – unequivocally – been the year of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. The king coin – Bitcoin – registered a massive rally in the market, beating all of its previous records and setting a new one that exceeded the expectations of several investors in the market. Innovation, too, was seen taking part in the rally with new projects taking over the old ones, and some even introducing new concepts that weren’t conceived of previously.
Now, while the price and innovation factor of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology was taking off, another part of it too made several headlines – Scams and hacks. This past year, the cryptocurrency space alone registered billions of dollars of loss to hacks, scams, and ransomware attacks, with even big projects falling victim to nefarious actors.
Taking another blow, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have often made headlines for being used as a tool by malicious actors attacking other sectors. The emerging financial tools have been used by criminals in order to move millions of funds acquired illegally, albeit a very small percentage in comparison to fiat.
That given, it should be noted the crimes taking place in the digital space is not solely a crypto-problem, but an Internet problem. They are dealt with across industries and across borders, with the one factor in common being the Internet. And, these cybercrimes include activities such as malicious domains, ransomware attacks, data-harvesting malware, crypto-jacking, botnets, theft of intellectual property, damage and destruction of data, and more.
‘No geographic or time-bound to it’
Notably, cybercrime rates are said to increase with each passing day, considering more and more people are gaining access to the Internet, and the same becoming a necessity for life in the present age. 2021 itself saw a massive rise in crime rates compared to previous year, owing to data breaches due to situations arising because of the pandemic.
A report suggests that cybercrime would cost the world $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. Given that more data is being stored on cloud storage platforms than before, and with the rise of digitalization of everything, several blind spots have started to creep in.
Evan Greenberg, Chubb Chairman and CEO, stated that the rise of cybercrimes would be classified as a pandemic. He remarked that “the exposure that looks like a virus is cyber-related because it has no geographic or time bound to it.”
Moreover, an FBI Director – Christopher Wray – spoke about one particular cybercrime, ransomware attacks coming in particularly from hackers in Russia. The Director compared the challenges faced to that of 9/11 attacks, wherein he expressed that there were “a lot of parallels, there’s a lot of importance, and a lot of focus by us on disruption and prevention.”
Joining forces for a safer net
While the threat is said to grow with time, several firms and organizations have upped their game in creating a safe digital space. And, in this race for a better future, members of the cryptocurrency space don’t quite seem to be taking a back seat.
Binance – one of the largest cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology providers – has stepped up as the first contender from the emerging space to make a notable move in line with creating a safer cyberspace. The exchange recently announced that it has joined the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance [NCFTA]. The NCFTA is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to identify, validate, mitigate, and neutralize cybercrime threats.
On the alliance, Matt LaVigna – President and CEO of the NCFTA said,
“Cybercrime is a global threat that continues to see exponential growth, with the potential to impact the very fabric of our society. Binance is an industry leader with a proven track record in aiding international cybersecurity investigations.”
Notably, the organization – launched in 2002- has prevented a loss of over $2 billion dollars between the timeframe of 2015-2020. It is also responsible for reporting over 3,500 cases to law enforcement, and over 1,000 cases of arrests.
President LaVigna further added,
“With their leadership, collaborative approach, and commitment to the war on cybercrime, they will enhance our ability to achieve the current mission of the NCFTA and assist in enabling a safe environment not only for the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry but for everyone.”
Interestingly, while this move – for a better and safer Internet – is a first for Binance, the blockchain service provider is by no means new in trying to build a safe crypto-space. The crypto platform has partnered with several law enforcement around the globe in trying to curb the criminal activities associated with cryptocurrencies.
One such case that took the spotlight was the case that led to the arrest of a cybercriminal ring – FANCYCAT – linked to laundering $500 million in ransomware attacks. The case saw the exchange collaborating with several law enforcement agencies across the globe to bring down the cybercriminals, and notably, it most certainly was not the last.
Tigran Gambaryan – VP of Global Intelligence and Investigations at Binance – stated that joining NCFTA is an important step for Binance’s fight against cybercriminals and its cause in securing the crypto-space.
Gambaryan said,
“Binance aims to be a leading contributor in the fight against cybercrime, ransomware, and terrorism financing. We will continue our fight against cybercrime and increase our level of cooperation and transparency through our partnership with the NCFTA.”
Disclaimer: This is a paid post and should not be treated as news/advice.
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