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Despite the tired rhetoric that says otherwise, cryptocurrency is an inefficient form of money for terrorist organizations. However, an expert believes that the United States should take steps to prevent its adoption as a financial sanctuary channel for global terrorist networks.
Not many cryptocurrency cash machines in rough terrain, mountains
According to Yaya Fanusie, a senior member of the Center for Sanctions and Illicit Finance of the Defense of Democracies Foundation, money is still the preferred form of money for organizations terrorist. In a testimony released before the Congress, Fanusie stated that, despite concerted efforts, terrorist networks were not able to use cryptocurrency to finance their activities.
Writing for Forbes Ted Knutson highlights the operational headaches associated with the use of virtual currencies to support jihadist programs. Being a capital-intensive effort that requires anonymity, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies seem to be the perfect solution. Unfortunately, the jihadists do not operate in the most technologically advanced places.
Looking for a means of converting digital coins into fiat money could mean a dangerous journey several miles away in areas where reconnaissance infrastructures could find more success in tracking movements. So, for now, al Qaeda, ISIS, Boko Haram and the like continue to collect money.
What & # 39; s All the Fuss About?
If Fanusie's claims are true, then critics who marry the rhetoric of cryptocurrency terrorist financing are seriously mistaken. In 2017, Jerry Britto, CEO of Coin Center, revealed that according to the Center for New American Security (CNAS), the use of Bitcoin in terrorist activities between 2015 and 2017 amounted to about eight Bitcoins.
According to a CNAS report at the time, there were only anecdotal evidence confirming the use of cryptocurrency in the financing of terrorism. Furthermore, the study revealed that the jihadists were still able to exploit traditional finance to support their activities. Therefore, they had no incentive to replace money with cryptocurrency.
The application of the laws on know-your-customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) makes it even harder for terrorists to use cryptocurrencies. In addition, government agencies are becoming wiser to the ability to track transactions on most popular blockchains.
However, Fanusie does not believe that jihadists have any use for virtual currency. Many websites that contain radical propaganda are integrating cryptocurrency portfolios. Therefore, even if terrorists can not use digital coins to sponsor acts of terrorism, they can use them to spread their rhetoric and indoctrinate recruits on the Internet.
Do you think that cryptocurrency will always be a viable option for terrorist financing? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Image courtesy of Express.co.uk, Shutterstock
