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12 Apr 2021, Europol publishes the European Union (EU) Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment, the EU SOCTA 2021. The SOCTA, published by Europol every four years, presents a detailed analysis of the threat of serious and organised crime facing the EU. The SOCTA is a forward-looking assessment that identifies shifts in the serious and organised crime landscape.

The SOCTA 2021 details the operations of criminal networks in the EU and how their criminal activities and business practices threaten to undermine our societies, economy and institutions, and slowly erode the rule of law. The report provides unprecedented insights into Europe’s criminal underworld based on the analysis of thousands of cases and pieces of intelligence provided to Europol. 

The SOCTA reveals a concerning expansion and evolution of serious and organised crime in the EU. The document warns of the potential long-term implications of the COVID-19 pandemic and how these may create ideal conditions for crime to thrive in the future. The report clearly highlights serious and organised crime as the key internal security challenge currently facing the EU and its Member States.

Launched at the Portuguese Police’s headquarters (Policia Judicária) in Lisbon during the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the SOCTA 2021 is the most comprehensive and in-depth study of serious and organised crime in the EU ever undertaken. 

THE MOST PRESSING INTERNAL SECURITY THREAT TO THE EU

EU citizens enjoy some of the highest levels of prosperity and security in the world. However, the EU still faces serious challenges to its internal security, threatening to undo some of our common achievements and undermine shared European values and ambitions. As the EU is facing the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the most significant crises since the end of World War II, criminals seek to exploit this extraordinary situation targeting citizens, businesses, and public institutions alike.

The analysis presented in the SOCTA 2021 highlights key characteristics of serious and organised crime such as the widespread use of corruption, the infiltration and exploitation of legal business structures for all types of criminal activity, and the existence of a parallel underground financial system that allows criminals to move and invest their multi-billion euro profits. 

Serious and organised crime encompasses a diverse range of criminal phenomena ranging from the trade in illegal drugs to crimes such as migrant smuggling and the trafficking in human beings, economic and financial crime and many more.

Key findings of the SOCTA 2021:

  • Serious and organised crime has never posed as high a threat to the EU and its citizens as it does today.
  • The COVID-19 pandemic and the potential economic and social fallout expected to follow threaten to create ideal conditions for organised crime to spread and take hold in the EU and beyond. Once more confirmed by the pandemic, a key characteristic of criminal networks is their agility in adapting to and capitalising on changes in the environment in which they operate. Obstacles become criminal opportunities.
  • Like a business environment, the core of a criminal network is composed of managerial layers and field operators. This core is surrounded by a range of actors linked to the crime infrastructure providing support services.
  • With nearly 40 percent of the criminal networks active in drugs trafficking, the production and trafficking of drugs remains the largest criminal business in the EU. 
  • The trafficking and exploitation of human beings, migrant smuggling, online and offline frauds and property crime pose significant threats to EU citizens. 
  • Criminals employ corruption. Almost 60% of the criminal networks reported engage in corruption.
  • Criminals make and launder billions of euros annually. The scale and complexity of money laundering activities in the EU have previously been underestimated. Professional money launderers have established a parallel underground financial system and use any means to infiltrate and undermine Europe’s economies and societies. 
  • Legal business structures are used to facilitate virtually all types of criminal activity with an impact on the EU. More than 80% of the criminal networks active in the EU use legal business structures for their criminal activities. 
  • The use of violence by criminals involved in serious and organised crime in the EU appears to have increased in terms of the frequency of use and its severity. The threat from violent incidents has been augmented by the frequent use of firearms or explosives in public spaces.
  • Criminals are digital natives. Virtually all criminal activities now feature some online component and many crimes have fully migrated online. Criminals exploit encrypted communications to network among each other, use social media and instant messaging services to reach a larger audience to advertise illegal goods, or spread disinformation. 

The SOCTA 2021 assists decision-makers in the prioritisation of serious and organised crime threats. It is a product of close cooperation between Europol, EU Member States law enforcement authorities, third parties such as EU agencies, international organisations, and countries outside the EU with working arrangements with Europol. These crucial stakeholders’ involvement is also reflected in the SOCTA’s role as the cornerstone of the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT) in the EU.

Headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, Europol supports the 27 EU Member States in their fight against terrorism, cybercrime, and other serious and organized crime forms. Europol also works with many non-EU partner states and international organisations. From its various threat assessments to its intelligence-gathering and operational activities, Europol has the tools and resources it needs to do its part in making Europe safer.
 
Source: Europol
Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS
Tuesday, 06 October 2020 16:44

CRYPTOCOMPARE EXCHANGE BENCHMARK JULY 2020

Published on July 10, 2020. CryptoCompare Exchange Benchmark ranks more than 165 global spot exchanges to bring transparency and accountability to the cryptoasset exchange landscape by providing a framework for assessing risk. The Benchmark assigns a AA - F grade to help identify the lowest risk venues in the industry.
 
Key Highlights
 
The analysis reveals that US exchanges retained the top spots, with Gemini ranked first. Gemini is followed by Coinbase (2), Kraken (3), itBit (4) and Bitstamp (5).
  • Lower-Tier exchanges (grades C-E) have continued to lose market share to Top-Tier exchanges (grades AA-B), quarter on quarter.
  • Top-Tier exchanges (grades AA-B) accounted for 32% of global volumes in Q4 2019. In 2020, they accounted for 36% in Q1 and 40% in Q2.
  • The top three decentralised exchanges (DEXs) based on our refined DEX methodology are Binance DEX, Switcheo, and IDEX.
Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS

The European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, or Europol, 09/10/2019 released its annual Internet Organized Crime Threat Assessment (IOCTA) report for the year. And we weren’t surprised to find that ransomware, despite its palpable decline in volume these past few months—a trend we’ve also seen and documented—remains the most prominent threat in terms of prevalence and financial damage.

While the IOCTA report talks about online threats that both consumers and businesses face on a daily basis, it also puts data at the center of it all. We rely on it—often, all too much—and criminals know this. And yet, most threat actors behind attack campaigns rely on our data to make their attacks more successful, compelling us to take action. After all, nowadays an attack that doesn’t use data against its owners wouldn’t be much of a money-earning scheme.

Threat actors can deprive organizations and individuals’ access to their own files by encrypting and holding them for ransom, such is the case for ransomware. And they can also deny the average user access to an organization’s data (and services) through Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. According to Europol, such attacks with an extortion element in them are the most prevalent.

Data also enables other forms of online crime like fraud. Criminals are primarily after financial data, such as credit card information, online banking credentials, and cryptocurrency wallet data. They are also after personally identifiable information (PII) and other login credentials. Such data fuels other profitable, targeted attacks like business email compromise (BEC) scams, spear phishing, and account takeovers.

There is also the challenge of data overload, particularly in the realm of child sexual exploitation (CSE) crimes. The staggering amount of material online detected by law enforcement and private companies continues to increase to the point that it’s putting a strain on law enforcement resources to investigate these crimes. One contributing factor to the increase of availability of CSE material online is that more underage users are accessing and using social media, thus, criminals reach and communicate with them via these platforms.

Other IOCTA findings:

  • The IOCTA report also noted that key infection vectors are phishing and remote desktop protocol (RDP) vulnerabilities. Simple patching can address vulnerabilities. As for phishing, did you know that you can be targeted on your desktop and smart phone?
  • Organizations are growing more concerned about sabotage performed by malicious insiders.
  • Ransomware tactics have shifted, from a scattergun approach of infecting systems to a more focused and refined targeting of profitable victims. This means that ransomware proponents target those with a greater ability to pay a ransom than the average, normal user.
  • BEC is evolving. There have been campaigns wherein threat actors used malware and network intrusion.
  • Self-generated explicit material (SGEM) is on the uptick. Young children now have access to high-quality smart phones, which enables them to produce and share SGEM, either voluntarily or under coercion. The rising number of SGEM victims will likely to continue. Parents and guardians: Please talk to your kids about this, and other online risks.
  • Jackpotting, also known as black-box attacks, against ATMs are becoming more widespread and accessible due to tools like Cutlet Maker being more available on the dark web.
  • Card-not-present (CNP) fraud and skimming continue to plague financial institutions. Don’t be a victim of skimming.
  • Due to law enforcement activity and extensive DDoS attacks against hidden services, many have grown distrustful of the onion router (Tor) environment. While underground market administrators are currently exploring alternatives, a migration to a new platform will not likely happen yet.

Source: Europol

Source: Malwarebytes Labs

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS

Report for the first three months of the current year CipherTrace Cryptocurrency Intelligence (April 2019).

Cryptocurrency Thefts, Scams, and Fraud Could Tally More than $1.2 Billion in First Quarter 2019.

Criminals stole more than US$356 million from exchanges and infrastructure during the first quarter of 2019. Among these losses, exit scams—which CipherTrace is considering the implosion of QuadrigaCX to be one—robbed cryptocurrency users of nearly US$195 million. On top of these numbers, the New York Attorney General’s Office revealed what they allege is a fraud involving the loss of $851 million by a major cryptocurrency exchange, Bitfinex. Cyber criminals also developed ingenious new techniques to drain millions more from user accounts and wallets. These thefts only represent the losses that are visible. CipherTrace estimates the true number of crypto asset losses was much higher.

46% Increase in the Number of Cross-Border Payments from US Cryptocurrency Exchanges Over the Last Two Years.

CipherTrace research conducted in Q1 revealed a major hole in the current cryptocurrency regulatory fabric with respect to cross-border payments. An analysis of 164 million BTC transactions revealed that cross-border payments from US exchanges to offshore exchanges increased from 45% from the twelve months ending Q1 2017 to 66% in the twelve months ending Q1 2019. This is significant because according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, “$8.7 trillion, 11.5 percent of the world’s wealth, is hidden offshore.”

Once these payments reach exchanges and wallets in other parts of the globe they fall off the radar of US authorities. For now, it is uncertain if these cross border inter-exchange payments trigger the FinCEN requirement that “MSBs must keep a five-year record of currency exchanges greater than $1,000 and money transfers greater than $3,000.” But experts recommend MSBs retain tax ID/SSN for these transactions.

A Significant Wave of Regulation Is Coming to the Cryptocurrency Economy.

Ultimately, thieves and scam artists will need to launder the cryptocurrency stolen or scammed in Q1 2019. Furthermore, this will require innovative new ways to cash out, and turn all that tainted virtual money into clean, spendable fiat currencies. And they will also need to get it done under the much more watchful eyes of government regulators and banks as a tsunami of tough new global anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terror financing (CTF) regulations will roll over the crypto landscape in the coming year. As of April 2019, 17 countries plus the European Union within the jurisdiction of the Financial Stability Board had at least some regulation or standard-setting bodies dealing with cryptocurrencies. These bodies will be responsible for implementing regulations that enforce FATF policy and AMLD5.

In light of the huge losses suffered by users of QuadrigaCX, regulators in Canada and around the world are rethinking controls on the internal business practices and security operations of exchanges. In addition, regulators are beginning to recommend bans on privacy coins, as criminals are coming to prefer these new anonymous altcoins to bitcoin because they are more difficult to trace. Banks also continue to face problems coping with the coming wave of regulations as they increasingly recognize there are undetected cryptocurrency operations that are using their fiat payment networks and customer accounts. Plus, courts in some countries have ruled that banks must do business with licensed cryptocurrency companies.

Crypto Crime Evolves and Expands from the Virtual to the Real World.

The previous year’s crypto crime spree was dominated by major external exchange hacks around the globe—with the biggest occurring in Q1 2018. However, in the first quarter of this year, insiders, extortionists and scammers attempted a more diverse range of crypto crimes. As just one example, kidnappers in Norway demanded nine million euros (approximately US$10.3 million) ransom in Monero, a privacy coin, for a billionaire’s wife, who has not yet been returned. There were also two large insider thefts/misappropriations (QuadrigaCX and Bitfinex). This shift suggests that security against external hackers at exchanges is maturing under the pressure from regulators and customers to take necessary measures to prevent losses.

The geopolitical implications of cryptocurrencies also took center stage in Q1 2019 with countries competing to attract crypto businesses and foster related economic growth. Conversely, overt attempts to evade sanctions by hostile nations show that economic adversaries recognize the money laundering and terrorist financing potential of crypto assets. On March 6, 2019, the UN Security Council reported North Korean state-backed hackers successfully breached at least five cryptocurrency exchanges in Asia between January 2017 and September 2018, causing $571 million in losses.

Q1 2019 Crypto Crime Highlights:

- Thieves and scammers stole more than $356 million from exchanges and users.

- Customers suffered losses of approximately US$195 million when Canada’s major cryptocurrency exchange, QuadrigaCX, imploded after the CEO mysteriously perished in India, allegedly along with the passwords to virtually all of the exchange’s assets. CipherTrace analysis casts severe doubt that this was anything other than a theft, fraud, or foul play.

- On March 26, the New York Attorney General’s Office brought suit against the parent company of Bitfinex and Tether.
- The AG claimed Tether had failed to disclose a secret transfer of funds from the fiat pool of funds supposedly backing tether, which converted tether from asset-backed to debt-backed unbeknownst to tether holders.
- Bitfinex allegedly lost $851 million. The source of the loss was a Panamanian payment processor also used by QuadrigaCX.

- Iran announced the imminent launch of its long-rumored Crypto Rial, a state-backed stable coin developed with the express purpose of circumventing political sanctions and overcoming sanctions-related restrictions by SWIFT.

- The Russian Duma approved international use of the domestically developed SPFS as a ‘SWIFT alternative’ for cross-border payments in an effort to avoid political sanctions.

- The French government issued a report recommending a ban on privacy coins.

- The UN published the findings of a private report that concluded North Korean hackers looted $571 million from five cryptocurrency exchanges in Asia.

- Courts in some countries forced financial institutions to bank crypto asset businesses.

- The Bank of Mexico reportedly proposed banning financial institutions from transacting with crypto exchanges, citing money laundering and terror financing risks.

Source: CipherTrace.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS

Report of 2016, by Capgemini Consulting’s Digital Transformation Institute, documents what named executives at leading financial institutions are saying about the potential of ‘smart contracts,’ which differ from standard contracts in that they are electronically programmed and based on distributed ledgers such as blockchain technology.

They enable financial firms to automatically enforce actions like payments without the need for independent verification or manual processing. The report predicts mainstream adoption of smart contracts will begin in 2020 and save consumers over $500 in fees...

Source: Capgemini: Consulting, Technology, Digital Transformation Services.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS

There is a gap in the regulation of crypto-assets that Congress needs to fix. The gap is contributing to fraud and weak investor protection in the distribution and trading of crypto-assets. In “It’s time to strengthen the regulation of crypto-assets,” Timothy G. Massad discusses how better regulation will benefit crypto investors, further the development of new technologies, curtail the use of crypto-assets used for illicit payments, and reduce the risk of cyber attacks, which can result in collateral damage elsewhere in our financial system.

Crypto-assets cut across current jurisdictional boundaries and thus fall into gaps between regulatory authorities. While each of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has some authority over crypto-assets, neither has sufficient jurisdiction, nor do they together.

The hype surrounding Bitcoin and other crypto-assets has contributed to regulatory distraction. Bitcoin’s creators promised it would solve the “trust problem” and reduce our reliance on centralized financial intermediaries. However, it has not reduced our reliance on financial intermediaries or eroded the power of our largest institutions. Indeed, crypto-assets have created new financial intermediaries that are less accountable than the big banks.

New crypto exchanges and trading platforms are not subject to the traditional standards required of securities and derivatives market intermediaries. As a result, investor protection is weak and allegations of fraud and conflicts of interest are frequent.

There are no specific rules to ensure protection of customer assets. One supposed virtue of distributed ledger technology (DLT) is to provide an immutable record of ownership. Yet some platforms do not actually record customer interests on the blockchain and may operate without sufficient assets to cover customer claims. It is like fractional reserve banking without the regulatory framework or insurance that protects depositors. There are no rules regarding how trades are executed.

Crypto exchanges are not required to have systems to prevent fraud and manipulation, nor are there rules to prevent or minimize conflicts of interest. Crypto exchanges can engage in proprietary trading against their customers, something the New York Stock Exchange cannot do. Regulations to minimize operational risk and ensure system safeguards are needed, just as with securities and derivatives intermediaries.

Inadequate regulatory oversight creates broader societal risks with respect to cyber security and illicit payments. Unlike banks and exchanges, crypto intermediaries do not face any specific cyber security requirements, and cyber hacks are common: “Hacking [against crypto institutions] is on the rise because it works.”

Source: The Brookings Institution.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS
Monday, 18 March 2019 18:16

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN RUSSIAN COMPANIES

At the beginning of the year, KPMG surveyed more than 100 of the largest companies and found out which technologies the Russian business is implementing, which budgets of the organization are willing to spend on such projects and how they generally approach the management of digital transformation.

Main conclusions:

63% of respondents indicated that they have developed a digital transformation program, but in reality this more often means a set of short-term pilot projects;

77% of responding companies expect increased operational efficiency and reduced costs through digitization of processes;

The most popular technologies that have already been tested by Russian companies: big data analysis and predictive analytics (68%), chat bots (51%), robotization of office processes (50%);

The position of the CDO (Chief Digital Officer) is only in 16% of companies, the committee on digitalization - in 13%. In most Russian companies, decisions on digitalization projects are made by individual consideration at the top management level;

65% of companies attract startups to implement pilot projects;

In 2019, 36% of companies are ready to invest more than 100 million rubles in the implementation of projects on digitization of processes, while 55% of respondents plan to spend less than 50 million rubles;

51% of companies expect that the investment will pay off in less than 2 years, another 43% expect return on investment within 2-5 years.

Source: KPMG | RU.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS
Tuesday, 26 February 2019 11:26

INITIAL COIN OFFERINGS (ICO'S) FOR SME FINANCING

15 January 2019 - Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) are one of the most prominent applications of blockchain for finance, allowing for an innovative and inclusive way of financing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Although the lack of regulatory clarity currently exposes ICO participants to some risks, appropriately regulated and supervised ICOs offer a potential new way to raise capital for projects enabled by Distributed Ledger Technologies and the blockchain.

This report analyses the emergence and potential of ICOs as a financing mechanism for start-ups and SMEs, examines the benefits and challenges of this mechanism for small businesses and investors, and discusses the policy implications of ICO activity for the inclusive financing of SMEs and the real economy...

Source: OECD.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS

Released today, Chainalysis latest crypto crime research on $1.6B in hacks, darknet market activity, and Ethereum scams shows how they decoded each type of crime and what it means for AML compliance and investigations.

Crypto crime increased in 2018, but it made up a smaller slice of a much larger market. Indeed, according to they analysis, illicit transactions comprised less than 1% of all economic bitcoin activity in 2018, down from 7% in 2012.

Even so, crime remains a significant problem in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Exchange hacks have generated billions of dollars in criminal proceeds, darknet market activities have netted hundreds of millions of dollars in illicit revenues, and scams targeting individuals have stolen tens of millions of dollars.

Moreover, criminal use of cryptocurrencies has become far more sophisticated. As a result, in this second edition of their Crypto Crime Report, they go deeper in analysis to seek out granular insight into three categories of criminal activity.

Then, they examine the surprising resilience of darknet markets as law enforcement takes aggressive action against them. In a report on the “whack-a-mole” problem with the darknet, they look at how transaction activity briefly subsides then quickly reroutes itself to new platforms when major darknet markets are closed down.

They also examine changing trends in Ethereum scams, where individuals are targeted, as last year’s phishing schemes lose their effectiveness and more complex Ponzi and ICO exit scams emerge to make outsized gains.

Finally, they discuss the role of cryptocurrency in the broader context of money laundering and highlight the importance of different types of services that are used to integrate illicit cryptocurrency into the clean economy...

Source: Chainalysis Research.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS
Friday, 08 February 2019 17:33

BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY DIGEST: JANUARY 2019

Mind Smith has prepared an overview of key materials, analytical reports, research, reports and research articles. All the most interesting in the industry for the month...

37 analytical studies and reports, 27 scientific articles, 5 documents of international organizations.

Since 2018, Mind Smith has been implementing strategic blockchain consulting. Helps answer the question about the use of technology blockchain in business, conducts research and strategic sessions for top managers.

The company believes in the blockchain technology, but understand its limitations. For effective implementation of a well-coordinated work of the business and technical team. Mind Smith is ready to go all the way from the search for possible scenarios and the preparation of the concept to the implementation of the pilot and the implementation of the solution in the business.

Download digest.

Published in INDUSTRY REPORTS
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