The Problem This Solution Solves
Hackers and adversaries are increasingly using cryptocurrency as a means of supporting action against the US Government, commercial sector, and allies. To adapt to the rising threat to national security, USCYBERCOM came to DIU seeking a solution to attribute cryptocurrency wallets to individuals/personas and to illuminate illicit networks using transaction data, specifically for actions targeted against US government and military interests. They also wanted the ability to track funds as they moved through different cryptocurrencies, exchanges, and mixers. While the United States has passed know-your-customer provisions for cryptocurrency exchanges and sanctioned Russian exchanges, they recognized a need for private resources to access and monitor the currency exchange in order to quickly shut down malicious cyber actors and their activities.
The Solution
In January 2024, a success memo was awarded to CipherTrace (one of three commercial vendors) for demonstrating successful visibility and access to vast amounts of public, private, and open-source cryptocurrency data and cryptocurrency analysis and attribution solutions. . In partnership with the Cyber National Mission Force (CNMF), CipherTrace prototyped a platform that will help the task force teams under the CNMF Command HQ identify cryptocurrency assets and thwart illicit transactions related to adversary activity, enhancing decision-making confidence for military cyber threat analysts and operators.