Security News > 2023 > May > FBI seizes 9 crypto exchanges used to launder ransomware payments
The FBI and Ukrainian police have seized nine cryptocurrency exchange websites that facilitated money laundering for scammers and cybercriminals, including ransomware actors.
The seized sites allowed users to anonymously convert cryptocurrency into harder-to-trace coins to obscure the money trace and help cybercriminals launder their pilfers without being traced by law enforcement.
The seized infrastructure can be analyzed by law enforcement to unmask cybercriminals who laundered money through the sites, potentially leading to more arrests in the future.
In March 2023, the FBI, together with Europol and the German police, seized the 'ChipMixer' cryptocurrency mixing service, which was used by hackers, ransomware gangs, and scammers to launder their proceeds.
More recently, on April 24, 2023, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned brokers who supported North Korean cryptocurrency laundering networks.
Finally, at the start of the year, the U.S. DoJ arrested the founder of Bizlato, a Hong Kong-registered cryptocurrency exchange, over allegations of helping cybercriminals launder illegally obtained money.