Dogecoin is increasingly connected to illicit activity including Ponzi schemes, the financing of terrorism and child sex abuse material (CSAM), according to a new report by blockchain analytics firm Elliptic.
Per the report, the meme coin has enjoyed growing popularity as a method of payment; however, aside from legitimate causes, it has also caught the attention of bad actors, with “millions of dollars worth of Dogecoin transactions connected to illicit activity,” identified.
“While the vast majority of this activity consists of fraud, scams and ponzi schemes, it also includes the most serious types of crime, including terrorism financing and vendors of child sexual abuse material (CSAM),” said Elliptic.
Breakdown of illicit use of Dogecoin. Image: Elliptic
Pointing to the "increasing adoption" of Dogecoin for terrorism financing, the report cited a July 2021 seizure order conducted by Israel’s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing against 84 crypto addresses believed to be linked to militant group Hamas or otherwise used in terror-related activity; among the crypto addresses were wallets containing $40,235 in DOGE.
The report also flagged up a "small and growing number" of CSAM vendors operating both on the darknet and clearnet that have received payment in Dogecoin. Although the actual amount of Dogecoin identified by Elliptic in this case is low—less than $3,000—analysts warned that it points to an "appetite for criminal actors to adopt a wide range of cryptoassets in a bid to avoid notice."
Elliptic has identified millions of dollars worth of Dogecoin transactions connected to illicit activity including terrorism financing and vendors of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). https://t.co/a4x5pD1nuC#doge
The "most notable" crime relating to Dogecoin, according to Elliptic, is thefts, scams and Ponzi schemes.
According to the firm, to date it has identified more than 50 instances of thefts, frauds and Ponzi schemes which helped criminals to make “hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Dogecoin.”
Cybercrooks swindled nearly $300,000 in cryptocurrency from would-be investors over the weekend by using the hype around Elon Musk’s Saturday Night Live appearance to scam people, according to data released today.
Elon Musk appeared on Saturday Night Live at the weekend—and briefly promoted his favorite cryptocurrency, Dogecoin. The meme coin dipped in value following his appearance but it was the perfect opportunity for scammers to use the eccentric billionaire as a front for a con.
Scammers...
These include the $6 billion PlusToken Ponzi scheme, which resulted in the seizure of more than $20 million worth of DOGE by Chinese authorities in 2020, and an alleged theft of $119 million worth of Dogecoin linked to a Turkish Ponzi scheme in 2021.
Far-right extremists embrace crypto
Far-right extremist groups—when excluded from traditional methods of raising funds—have also turned to cryptocurrencies including Dogecoin, Elliptic noted.
According to the firm, these include numerous far-right news sites, blogs and video sharing platforms.
One such news website, Infowars, which claims it is “battling globalism and promoting a pro-human future worldwide,” has so far raised more than $1,700 (£1,383) in Dogecoin.
Elliptic's findings mirror those of the Financial Action Task Force, which last year reported that far-right groups are increasingly turning to cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin and privacy coins.
Dogecoin, which in recent months has been heavily promoted by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, is currently the world’s 10th largest cryptocurrency with a market capitalization above $8 billion.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
Bitcoin-backed loans are now available for Strike's American customers, the payment app's CEO announced Tuesday.
Strike boss Jack Mallers posted a video on X explaining the new service. Customers from a total of 26 U.S. states are eligible to secure loans starting from between $75,000 to $100,000, depending on the state, the firm's website says.
Mallers said that the service will soon be available in other regions, including Europe.
Announcing Strike Lending
You shouldn’t have to sell the bes...
Publicly traded AI-powered real estate software company DeFi Development Corp. (formerly Janover) added to its flurry of strategic Solana moves Tuesday by announcing that it purchased another $11.2 million worth of SOL—one day after it announced the acquisition of a Solana validator company.
The firm’s latest purchase added 82,405 SOL at an average price of $135.58, bringing its total Solana holdings to more than 400,000 tokens valued above $58 million.
“The SOL stackin' saga continues!” the co...
Citigroup will join with Switzerland's Six Digital Exchange to offer tokenized shares in pre-IPO companies, with a start date in this year’s third quarter, the multi-national banking firms said Tuesday in a press release.
Citi will tokenize and custody companies’ shares on the exchange, bringing "high-growth, venture-backed private companies" to institutional investors on SDX’s platform, according to their joint statement. The tokenization of those assets will simplify liquidity management for...