By
Chimamanda U. Martha
April 19th, 2024
The launch of the program comes after a warning by the FBI last month concerning the increase in the number of cyber attacks targeting decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms.
Binance has launched a global training program for law enforcement. Binance Global Law Enforcement Training Program is the first of its kind and is designed to aid law enforcement to “detect financial and cyber crimes and assist in the prosecution of bad actors who exploit digital assets”.
In a Tuesday blog post, the cryptocurrency exchange revealed that the program was a result of the growth of its investigations team in the past year. The Binance Investigations team has, in this period, organized and taken part in over 30 workshops on fighting cyber and financial crime. The team has worked with law enforcement from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Israel, Netherlands, Philippines, Sweden, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and other regions.
“As more regulators, public law enforcement agencies, and private sector stakeholders look closely at crypto, we are seeing an increased demand for training to help educate on and combat crypto crimes,” Tigran Gambaryan, Global Head of Intelligence and Investigations at Binance said, adding that “to meet that demand, we have bolstered our team to conduct more training and work hand-in-hand with regulators across the globe.”
The one-day training program focuses on the fundamental concepts of blockchain technology and the crypto assets built on it. It also touches on Binance’s anti-money laundering (AML) policies and investigative tactics. The trainers include world-renowned security experts, former law enforcement agents, analysts, and operatives who had helped dismantle criminal marketplaces such as Silk Road and Hydra.
Since November of last year, the Binance Investigations team has responded to over 27,000 requests for assistance by law enforcement agencies within an average of 3 days, faster than any traditional finance (TradFi) institution, according to Gambaryan, a former special agent of the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Cyber Crimes Unit.
“Protecting users is our number one priority at Binance. We work hand-in-hand with law enforcement to track and trace suspected accounts and fraudulent activities, contributing to the fight against terrorism financing, ransomware, human trafficking, child pornography, and financial crimes […] Binance is known among law enforcement to have a fast response system, unmatched by any traditional financial institution,” comments Gambaryan.
The launch of the program comes after a warning by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) last month concerning the increase in the number of cyber attacks targeting decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. According to the PSA, in Q1 of 2022 alone, $1.3 billion in crypto was stolen, 97 percent of it coming from DeFi platforms, an increase from 72 percent in 2021 and 30 percent in 2020. The Bureau also outlined some common tactics used by cyber criminals and provided guidance on how DeFi platforms and investors could protect themselves.