Over the past seven years, the US Secret Service has seized over $102 million in digital assets as part of 254 fraud investigations, according to CNBC.
The main tasks of the federal agency are the prevention of counterfeiting of dollars, debt obligations, the protection of the president and high-ranking officials, as well as the investigation of various types of financial fraud and cybercrime.
David Smith, deputy director of investigations for the service, has commented:
“When you follow a cryptocurrency wallet, it’s no different than an email address that has some relevant identifiers. And as soon as two parties make a transaction, it gets into the blockchain, and we have the ability to track this email address or wallet.”
One of the cases concerns a scam that targeted 900 US citizens. The investigation was conducted by the Romanian police – the scheme involved the placement of fake ads on online auctions and sites selling luxury goods. After payment, the attackers disappeared, and the money received was laundered through cryptocurrencies.
