Member case studies
Chainalysis
Chainalysis helps IWF disrupt the commercial aspect of online child sexual abuse imagery
Chainalysis, who have offices in New York, USA, and Copenhagen, Denmark, became an IWF Member in August 2016.
Their mission is to enable people to safely transact on the decentralised internet and prevent abuse of cryptocurrencies by malicious actors.
The transfer of value over the internet requires new methods of data analysis, visualisation and actionable intelligence to protect the integrity of our financial system. Founded in 2014, Chainalysis is the leading provider of Anti-Money Laundering software for Bitcoin. They work with global financial institutions, like Barclays and Bitcoin exchanges to enable every stakeholder to assess risk in this new economy. Their customers have checked over $25 billion worth of transactions using their platform.
What was Chainalysis’s challenge?
As well as allowing customers to use Chainalysis’s products to detect fraud and identify malicious online behaviour such as money laundering, Chainalysis wanted to ensure they’re doing what they can to disrupt the commercial aspect of online child sexual abuse imagery.
What was Chainalysis’s solution?
By becoming a Member of the IWF, Chainalysis has access to the IWF’s database of Bitcoin addresses that are linked to online child sexual abuse imagery, through the IWF Virtual Currency Alerts. This enables them to help their law enforcement and private sector customers work together to disrupt the commercial distribution of these images.
Chainalysis analysts receive the alerts and investigate the transactions associated to these alerts. Where exchanges can be identified, they are alerted and assisted in contacting the relevant law enforcement agency.
We have been very excited to receive the virtual currency alerts produced by IWF on the connection of virtual currency and the distribution of child abuse images. Through receiving these alerts we are able to help our law enforcement and private sector customers work together to eradicate the commercial distribution of these images. Identifying the flow of funds and revenues generated through this activity opens up a new avenue to prevent this criminal activity and bring in more stakeholders into the fight.
