Bitcoin Hasn’t Funded any Terror Attacks in Europe, Europol Report Reveals

“Yet despite the clear potential, none of the attacks carried out on European soil appear to have been funded via cryptocurrencies. The use of cryptocurrencies by terrorist groups has only involved low-level transactions – their main funding still stems from conventional banking and money remittance services,” the report read.

Conventional banking and remittance services, not bitcoin nor any cryptocurrency, continue to be terrorist groups’ main sources of funding: Europol

The conclusion points out that the Jihadist networks could be simply experimenting with cryptocurrencies. It goes against the popular notion that suggests Bitcoin’s use in mainstream terrorist activities. There is no direct evidence that connects the two as of now. And it is unlikely of terrorists to opt a currency that is more transparent and hardly anonymous than their regular cash transaction.

The Europol also suggests that the only ways to battle out terrorist finances are 1) to beat their seekers’ online propaganda and recruit operations through closer coordination and information- sharing across law enforcement agencies, and 2) to focus on their ability to carry out cyber-attacks.

The Most Commonly Ab(used) Cryptocurrency in Cybercrime

A break from terrorism certainly does not translate into a break from online crime in general. Bitcoin ducks terrorist activities only to find itself as the most commonly used currency in cybercrimes, playing a pivot role in the commission, perpetration, and monetization of cybercrime. The notoriously impressive outcome appears despite Bitcoin’s market share dropping from 80 percent to less than 35 percent. Nevertheless, privacy-centric cryptocurrencies like Zcash and Monero are likely to gain adoption among cybercriminals.