Why criminals still use Bitcoin?

[Swordsoffreedom]

If you are a smuggler and you think by using Bitcoin for smuggling will keep you out of the administration & public eye, then you are wrong. It's true that Bitcoin is decentralized but bitcoin is traceable, if administration of a country wants then it is possible to trace every transaction. I think money laundering that is done by using Bitcoin, government are able to find out and bring it under the law at any time if they want, unless the smuggler has a good knowledge about the working method of cryptocurrency.

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[Chris Barth]

In as much as you value the anonymity brought by bitcoin, scammers do too. They prefer crypto because it'll leave no trail behind. Besides, the swiftness of big transactions and some other features are enough reasons for them to prefer bitcoin. Sadly, I doubt we can do much to help it.

If you are a smuggler and you think by using Bitcoin for smuggling will keep you out of the administration & public eye, then you are wrong. It's true that Bitcoin is decentralized but bitcoin is traceable, if administration of a country wants then it is possible to trace every transaction. I think money laundering that is done by using Bitcoin, government are able to find out and bring it under the law at any time if they want, unless the smuggler has a good knowledge about the working method of cryptocurrency.

No no, bitcoin may be traceable but only to a certain point. Can you identify the user of a wallet from his exchange site wallet address? Well, maybe the exchange site admins may be able. IDK

[carlfebz2]

However, criminals will always find ways to pursue their crimes so we can't blame crypto for it.

Criminals will find what to rely on as always. They are experts in technology usage. This is why you see them in every aspect of life. You are right too, they fall on bitcoin and rely on mixer to cover races despite the anonymity.

Not a brainer thing that these hackers is already aware on what should be done first before on making such attempt of hacking something.Of course they would always mind off or their first priority
to erase up their tracks.Its impossible for them not to think that bitcoin transactions arent traceable and this is where Mixers do serve one of its purpose.

We have seen several cases where Chainalysis did really successfully trace up some transactions back in the past where it did really result for knowing someone on said transaction.

Yeah, there are some full anonymous coins out there but there's no doubt that they will always end up on Bitcoin in the end of the day when making out conversions to fiat.
This isnt something new.

[stompix]

Bitcoin, contrary to popular belief, is a very transparent cryptocurrency and transactions are relatively straightforward to track on the blockchain—making criminal activity easy to follow.

Good, so, can he shed some light on where the coins stolen from MtGox are? 650 000 of them, 3% of the entire supply, if it's that easy to track why aren;t they coming up with name and addresses and more importantly coins and money?

If you are a smuggler and you think by using Bitcoin for smuggling will keep you out of the administration & public eye, then you are wrong. It's true that Bitcoin is decentralized but bitcoin is traceable, if administration of a country wants then it is possible to trace every transaction.

No, they can't. If they could they would have done it a long time ago and you would see far more people getting arrested and convicted.
Tracing can start only if you know the starting point so if I go and buy bitcoins from an ATM and send those bitcoins to a friend how will the police know I'm smuggling or not, and how will they even mane to link that address to me? Besides, even if they trace it, it matters almost zero as it's one thing to see where those coins are going and a totally different thing to do something about it.

[dothebeats]

Most of them use bitcoin and cryptocurrencies to lay dormant for a while and buy time, and not because of the anonymity feature that bitcoin offers. We all know that all transactions are publicly viewed in the blockchain, are immutable and will stay there forever. It only takes one dedicated law enforcement organization to fill in the blanks and get to the criminals as long as the balance stays on where it is, or as long as the crypto isn't converted to fiat yet. By converting your loots from a hack that you just did to cryptocurrency, you are buying loads of precious time thinking of the next move to take. It provides more avenues on which path to take next in order to remain undetected until you get all the moolah, and doing it again because your plan worked well.

[Oneandpure]

Almost all cases of online criminals use bitcoin as their ransom tool, almost every time malware or viruses that attack hacker computer software ask for payment using bitcoin, still remember nearly a year ago when the whole world was shocked by malware cases on computers, tablets and devices other communication hackers ask for ransom using bitcoin. To be precise a few months ago when all social media sites of political figures, social media sites belonging to the market were also hacked with the lure of investment. Why are many hackers using bitcoin because it is very difficult to trace the owner of the bitcoin wallet or the altcoin itself.

[Sebas.tian]

However, criminals will always find ways to pursue their crimes so we can't blame crypto for it.

Criminals will find what to rely on as always. They are experts in technology usage. This is why you see them in every aspect of life. You are right too, they fall on bitcoin and rely on mixer to cover races despite the anonymity.

Definitely, even the fiats are been used for crimes, so, this particular case isn't peculiar with Bitcoin only but even with the fiats. As for today, criminals with good knowledge in Bitcoin are difficult to be track down by law enforcement agencies, this has given them more moral to always check into Bitcoin when they commit crime due to Bitcoin anonymity with mixers platform involvement.

[Twentyonepaylots]

What should we expect from a better currency than fiat? bitcoin hide one's identity which is working best in doin some criminal shit in the internet. And this isn't a very big deal  for me, everything can be used in crime there is just the demand for bitcoin because it is on top of the chain at the moment. And speaking of tool in crimes, how much and many times did fiat used in crimes since the very beginning after its creation. Bitcoin is fiat in digital.

[adzino]

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And since all transactions are very easy to track, there are good opportunities for law enforcement to catch criminals with Chainalysis.

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But, they think that they can't be caught. They think that bitcoin is anonymous, but little do they know that it is pseudonymous and can always be tracked to them. Things become more easier to track if they make a very small mistake. I remember reading somewhere in the forum where a group were trying to finance terrorists through using bitcoin voucher and they all were caught. They thought bitcoin was not regulated in their country.
I would say it is easier for criminals to work with fiat cash money. Harder to trace than bitcoin.

[famososMuertos]

I think it all depends on "the type of criminal" there is something in the world of drug finance called "caletas" (Spanish term) widely used by drug czars to hide the physical money they leave after washing it , not all money is laundered ... a millennial criminal knows that bitcoin is not a good place for the financial destination of his misdeeds, but a bridge to reach certain projects.

In any case, there is so much money circulating in Fiat as a result of misdeeds, that in reality you have to be very stupid to buy bitcoin with Fiat, when there are so many types of traditional investments that launder money.

Undoubtedly there are more common people committing tax crimes, bypassing government legal barriers with bitcoin compared to criminals wanting to launder money using bitcoin. At least in my personal opinion I see it that way, maybe I can't show exact numbers to verify what I say, but who shows me verifiable "real" numbers that show that "x" amount is laundered in bitcoin.

G.B.

[Shasha80]

Many criminals think that Bitcoin is anonymous and easy to remove traces, but in fact Bitcoin is very easy to trace.
Criminals lack education about Bitcoin, they must learn to use service mixers to cover their tracks. Another thing
that makes criminals interested in using Bitcoin is because Bitcoin is popular and has easy access, it's very easy for
criminals to use Bitcoin to send wherever they want.

[batang_bitcoin]

I don't see bitcoin as a tool for criminals, it all depends on the forum where they purchase the token. That's why I recommend KYC system for all exchanges, to avoid criminals from tarnishing bitcoin.

In dark markets, bitcoin is one of the most common payment for most transactions. KYC is what most investors and supporters of bitcoin don't like. As much as we can avoid it, we will choose to avoid it. The purpose of bitcoin as a decentralized crypto will be stopped if mostly will rely on KYC. The exchanges have conditions to be met by their customer for them to ask for KYC. It's not mandatory yet they have certain conditions that they will make you follow them even if you don't want to.

[CarnagexD]

The popularity of bitcoin is gaining first places not only among large companies and ordinary investors, Bitcoin also remains the most preferred coin among criminals.
Prosecutors Zia Farooqi and Jesse Brooks talk about it in their podcast

As it turns out, even though there are anonymous cryptocurrencies, criminals will still need to buy bitcoins to withdraw them into fiat money.
“You can buy a Tesla with Bitcoin. You can buy Subway with Bitcoin. You can’t buy them with those other coins that no one has heard of, and so as they still chain-hop to obfuscate, at the end of the day, they need to get this into fiat currency,” said Faruqui, adding that this is the “choke point where law enforcement will come in.” 

And since all transactions are very easy to track, there are good opportunities for law enforcement to catch criminals with Chainalysis.

https://decrypt.co/45715/why-cybercriminals-terrorists-keep-using-bitcoin

the fact that it's decentralized makes tracking these transactions hard, if not impossible. That's the biggest reason why criminals use bitcoin for in and out interactions. Another would be the fact that it also offers profitability which is a bit unimportant I guess for them but they still do it nonetheless.

[Gibreil]

Criminals always use Bitcoin to hide their money. It is a safehaven to them since bitcoin gives you anonymity. They always think that it is hard for them to track their identities whenever they turn their fiat into bitcoin. Well, it is good point for them since the government does not yet regulated the bitcoin. They have still chances to evade the possible track made by authorities. The decentralization of bitcoin gives criminals idea that it is a good coin to store their money for future use.

[BAGOBO]

indeed Bitcoin needs to be withdrawn and requires a username or personal data to use it. because bitcoin wallets cannot be created anonymously/without data.

I draw a conclusion, there are many crimes that occur at ATM machines, many users are missed when taking their money, either data is stolen/monitored by other people.

well, here maybe the gap for crypto money thieves so as not to be caught by the police. Bitcoin thieves use other people's customer data they get to withdraw all the Bitcoin and turn it into fiat money.

i think about theft and crime schemes.

[Anna265]

The popularity of bitcoin is gaining first places not only among large companies and ordinary investors, Bitcoin also remains the most preferred coin among criminals.
Prosecutors Zia Farooqi and Jesse Brooks talk about it in their podcast

As it turns out, even though there are anonymous cryptocurrencies, criminals will still need to buy bitcoins to withdraw them into fiat money.
“You can buy a Tesla with Bitcoin. You can buy Subway with Bitcoin. You can’t buy them with those other coins that no one has heard of, and so as they still chain-hop to obfuscate, at the end of the day, they need to get this into fiat currency,” said Faruqui, adding that this is the “choke point where law enforcement will come in.” 

And since all transactions are very easy to track, there are good opportunities for law enforcement to catch criminals with Chainalysis.

https://decrypt.co/45715/why-cybercriminals-terrorists-keep-using-bitcoin

So why bitcoins are safe for criminals to store money but they are still be found out?
What will happen with their bitcoins? Go to the government's "bag"?

[Tipstar]

Bitcoin has become more easily traceable than using real money. The benefit of using bitcoin is it's easy to carry them around the world. You don't need a boat or a plane. And you can go to somewhere that would protect you and redeem you coins.
The problem here is crime and criminal not the mode of payment they use.

[Peanutswar]

The reason why possibly most of the people are using the bitcoin because they know the advantages every time we used it. Let's take a talk about the old-time use of the bitcoin they are using Bitcoin to make dark or bad transactions like commonly used for criminal activities because you cannot make all of the transactions or activity visible to the public. Ps. I'm talking about the user right here but still the transaction can trace because the block chain is a database too. I don't think bitcoin is the top used to make illegal activities because still, I think they are using is still the fiat currency because they don't want to make the transactions complicated.

Also now there are spreading news today which is the adaptation of the bitcoin recently we have news which is the Paypal activation of the bitcoin transaction. So we are now seeking the more innovative with the use of the bitcoin.

[carlisle1]

indeed Bitcoin needs to be withdrawn and requires a username or personal data to use it. because bitcoin wallets cannot be created anonymously/without data.

Thats why Bitcoin holding cannot be really anonymous so government can interfere at any cases they wanted.

I draw a conclusion, there are many crimes that occur at ATM machines, many users are missed when taking their money, either data is stolen/monitored by other people.

actually hacking is constantly happening in ATM users so basically it is not that safe to use.

well, here maybe the gap for crypto money thieves so as not to be caught by the police. Bitcoin thieves use other people's customer data they get to withdraw all the Bitcoin and turn it into fiat money.

i think about theft and crime schemes.

That is same reason that we must not let others to hacked or buy our KYC though in black market this is happening and this criminal are the beneficiary of those actions.

[Nanda Dewi277]

Because they think it's an easy way to cover their tracks. But they do not understand that this is not quite true in reality.

Maybe also because Bitcoin has popularity like fiat money and Bitcoin is a valuable item, therefore they are eyeing Bitcoin. Even though they have to have special skills like hacking but they still do it. And of course, what they hacked or stolen was not only 1, 2 Bitcoin, it's hundreds or even thousands of Bitcoin.