Crypto Forensics
Crypto forensics (short for cryptocurrency forensics) is the practice of investigating and analyzing blockchain and cryptocurrency transactions to uncover illicit activity, trace funds, and support law enforcement or compliance efforts.
Key Goals
- Tracing Transactions: Following the flow of funds through blockchains (like Bitcoin, Ethereum) to determine origins and destinations.
- Identifying Entities: Linking wallet addresses to real-world individuals or organizations.
- Uncovering Fraud or Crime: Investigating hacks, scams, ransomware payments, money laundering, terrorist financing, etc.
- Supporting Legal Cases: Providing evidence for law enforcement, regulators, or court proceedings.
Example in Action
Imagine someone steals Bitcoin in a hack. Even if they use mixers (to obfuscate flows), crypto forensic teams can still follow the money trail, analyze patterns, and identify when/where stolen funds hit an exchange for cash-out. That’s how authorities caught some of the biggest crypto criminals.