Jonathan Levin, the cofounder and chief strategy officer of Chainalysis, describes how the blockchain analytics firm helped the IRS identify the administrator of the largest child porn website in the world, which ultimately led to the arrest of the administrator, Jong Woo Son, and 337 site users across 38 countries. The work also led to the rescue of 23 minors from their abusers. He describes how the site used Bitcoin, how they used Bitcoin transactions to identify the users of the site, and how law enforcement worked with exchanges. We also discuss what impact privacy technologies could have on similar investigations going forward, as well as Levin's perspective on the overall utility of Bitcoin despite it being used for illicit activity.
Thank you to our sponsors!
CipherTrace: http://ciphertrace.com/unchained
Crypto.com: http://crypto.com
eToro: http://etoro.com
Newsletter:
Get Laura’s newsletter on the top crypto stories of the week’s plus a preview of exclusive podcast content! Signup Here: http://eepurl.com/ga8ub5
Episode links:
Chainalysis: https://www.chainalysis.com/
Jonathan Levin: https://twitter.com/jony_levin
DOJ press release: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/south-korean-national-and-hundreds-others-charged-worldwide-takedown-largest-darknet-child
Chainalysis blog post: https://blog.chainalysis.com/reports/chainalysis-doj-welcome-to-video-shutdown
Indictment against Jong Woo Son, the administrator of Welcome to Video: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1210441/download
Bitcoin laundering: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1210461/download
Bitcoin exchanges Welcome to Video recommended + screenshots: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1210451/download
Screenshot of the site seized: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1210446/download
Joe Weisenthal’s column about how Bitcoin ETFs would make it easier for people to make illicit Bitcoin transactions: https://twitter.com/TheStalwart/status/1184786875262885890
Weekly news recap links:
Bloomberg article summarizing overall race to create a global coin: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-16/fed-drags-feet-as-digital-money-revolution-tests-central-banks
FT on why Libra members dropped out: https://www.ft.com/content/6e29a1f0-ef1e-11e9-ad1e-4367d8281195
Libra Association signs charter: https://libra.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Libra-Association-Charter-Press-Release-.pdf
CNBC article on China’s race to release digital currency: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/15/china-races-to-launch-a-cryptocurrency-that-could-rival-facebooks.html?__source=sharebar%7Ctwitter&par=sharebar
Fortune article further describing race between Chinese digital currency and alternatives: https://fortune.com/2019/10/16/if-libra-fails-china-wins-the-ledger/
Fed official saying US actively debating digital dollar: https://www.coindesk.com/top-fed-official-says-us-central-bank-actively-debating-digital-dollar
Christopher Giancarlo’s op-ed in WSJ: https://www.wsj.com/articles/we-sent-a-man-to-the-moon-we-can-send-the-dollar-to-cyberspace-11571179923
IRS tax form: https://www.coindesk.com/the-irs-will-now-ask-if-you-own-crypto-in-the-1040-tax-form
We're Moving to Unchained. Follow Us There!
Girl Gone Crypto: How These Wildly Entertaining Crypto Videos Get Made - Ep.165
Michael Moro on Tesla's BTC Buy and the New Genesis Treasury - Ep.164
Why Asia Is So Important to Crypto - Ep.163
Why the GameStop Insanity Is So Similar to Crypto - Ep.162
Is Tether a Fraud? Its Bank Says It's Not - Ep.161
What You Need to Know About Bitcoin Layer 2s - Ep.160
2021 in Crypto: What to Expect in the Year Ahead - Ep.159
Laura's New Year's 2021 AMA: Your Questions About Privacy, the STABLE Act, Diem and More - Ep.158
Laura's Christmas 2020 AMA: Your Questions About Crypto Media and More - Ep.157
Beeple on How and Why He Raked In $3.5 Million - Ep.156
Why Rohan Grey Believes Stablecoin Issuers Need to Be Banks - Ep.155
How to Get Your ETH2 Yield and Take Out a Loan on It - Ep.154
Crypto on Every Corner: Driving Adoption With Jeremy Allaire and Meltem Demirors - Ep.153
9 Ways Bitcoin Is at an All-Time High - Ep.152
Chad Cascarilla on Paxos's Partnership With PayPal - Ep.151
What the Crypto Industry Could See Under a Biden Administration - Ep.150
The 2 Types of Investors Driving Interest in Crypto - Ep.149
Willy Woo on Why It's 'an Extremely Great Time to Buy Bitcoin' - Ep.148
What You Need to Know About the DOJ's Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework - Ep.147
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Pharmacy Podcast Network
Startitup podcasty
Sarah Westall - Business Game Changers
Børsen Morgenbriefing
Wall Street Breakfast