U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bill Cassidy want the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to do more to stop the illegal trade of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) using cryptocurrency.
Concerned, the senators wrote a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas asking them to be open about how they plan to stop people from abusing cryptocurrency in the CSAM market.
Crypto Senators Call for Vigilance
The senators talked about the problems with current Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws and criminal justice methods. They stressed the need for better ways to find and stop these kinds of crimes.
Recent study from the analytics firm Chainalysis showed a worrying rise in the use of cryptocurrency for CSAM transactions, which made them even more worried. According to the report, bad people use “mixers” and “privacy coins” like Monero to hide the trail of stolen fund, which makes it harder and harder for police to track transactions.
Using the letter, the senators said, “The pseudonymity provided by cryptocurrency has allowed the payments for CSAM to ‘move quickly into the Exchange world,’ and we are committed to ensuring that Congress and the Administration have the full suite of tools needed to end CSAM and punish sellers of this Material.”
The letter asked six detailed questions to get answers from government agencies about the connection between cryptocurrency and CSAM. Also, the senators were looking for new ways to give law enforcement the tools they needed to find and punish both customers and sellers in this illegal trade.
The senators have given the DOJ and DHS until May 10 to give full answers to their questions.
These changes were made because the cryptocurrency exchange Binance was recently accused of helping with trades related to CSAM material and other illegal activities.The exchange has been charged by the federal government, and CEO Changpeng Zhao could face a 36-month prison term.
