Cryptocurrencies are used for illegal activities

November 26, 2021. No. 78

“Cryptocurrencies have been used to launder the profits of online drug traffickers; they've been a tool to finance terrorism,” Janet Yellen (Treasury Secretary).

This is undoubtedly one of the most widespread phrases around the planet today. Despite that, only 3% of Bitcoin (BTC) transactions are estimated to be used in illegal activities. So why do they try to make us believe that it is more? My modest opinion is the same as always: Governments do not like everything to be decentralized. It bothers them, and for that simple reason, they invent these phrases to create moods, especially for new users who want to start in the crypto world.

Let's not fool ourselves. Although it is only 3%, if they are used to doing illegal things. The advantage of simply having a wallet with a public address, and that it is not registered to you in any way (as long as you keep it secret), nobody can link that address to you in any way, at least not so easy. Even when the money is going to be withdrawn physically, different techniques are used that mix those BTC or other cryptos with other addresses, which make it seem that the FIAT money withdrawn ends up being for legal use.

Dark web

Haven't you entered the dark web yet? Well, I strongly recommend that you don't. It is not a place for everyone. It can be really very dark, as the name implies. The Dark Web is the content of the Word Wide Web that exists in the darknet. They are networks that overlap with public networks. Access requires specific software and configuration.

It has a fair amount of risk to access it. The most common is that your pc ends up infected by a virus; meets criminals, and even participates in illegal activities. Scammers, rapists, immoral, thieves, hackers, and some other users with these qualities are the most common there. It occurs to me to think of something positive for this network. If there is something positive, I can tell you that any of the other individuals overshadow it 100%. What we know from the internet is the tip of the Iceberg. The real internet, everything that is not indexed to conventional search engines, is on the Dark Web.

Bearing this in mind, it is the ideal setting for carrying out illegal activities with cryptocurrencies. Mixing BTC there can be quite a challenge. Starting with different pages that tell you to provide the service, and do not return your coins.

To further increase anonymity, criminals prefer to use platforms to mine FIAT such as PayPal, due to the little information required to register with it.

Laundering BTC or cryptocurrencies in this way requires a 15% commission, this is extremely cheap, compared to 50% using the traditional way. The threshold to do so is no more than $ 10,000 USD. When you want to do it in large quantities, you do not have a guarantee of good operation.

The illegal activities most attributed to him are Sex, Drugs, and Terrorism.

“I think many (cryptocurrencies) are used, at least in a transaction sense, mainly for illicit financing. And I think we really need to examine ways in which we can curtail their use, and make sure that anti-money laundering (sic) doesn't occur through those channels. ” Janet Yellen.

This is a false narrative. Full of hatred and trying to discredit what would be the end of the Banking Systems and the power that governments have over our finances. This year, a report from Chainalysis published that, in 2019, after more than $24.1 million of cryptocurrency transactions, only 2.1% are estimated to have been used in illegal activities.

It does not matter if some strive to see only the microscopic straw that is in the neighbor's eye, but it is difficult for us to see the stone with which we collide every day.

This is my 5th entry for "2021 Bursting the Myth Around Bitcoin writing competition" organized by @SofiaCBCH. You haven't participated yet? There are only a few days left until the deadline!

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