Armenian Officials Receive Comprehensive Training on Effective Investigation of Crypto-Crimes
Ruholamin Haqshanas
Last updated: April 26, 2024, 05:02 EDT | 2-minute read
A group of Armenian officials representing various law enforcement agencies recently underwent training on conducting crypto-asset investigations to combat crimes related to cryptocurrencies.
In a press release issued on Friday, the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) announced that the training was conducted in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The training took place in Yerevan from April 24 to 26 and brought together 27 representatives from different law enforcement agencies.
During the three-day training program, participants immersed themselves in learning essential techniques and practical tools necessary for conducting effective investigations into crypto-crimes.
According to the announcement, the sessions drew from real-world cases and covered basic methods for tracing criminal transactions across different blockchain networks.
The training also provided an opportunity for participants to exchange good practices and gain valuable insights into specialized analytics software and open-source tools relevant to the field.
These tools empower investigators to trace transactions conducted on various blockchains, assess the risks associated with specific addresses and exposure to illicit funds, and identify clusters of transactions, among other capabilities.
Kurban Babayev, an economic adviser at OCEEA, emphasized the importance of strengthening Armenia’s domestic law enforcement capabilities in investigating and tracing virtual assets, particularly in the ever-changing landscape of financial technology.
This training initiative is part of an OSCE-led extra-budgetary project called “Innovative policy solutions to mitigate money-laundering risks of virtual assets.” The project is funded by Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, the United Kingdom, and the United States and aims to help OSCE participating states develop national capacities to mitigate criminal risks associated with virtual assets and cryptocurrencies.
In a similar vein, India revealed last year that it provided training in cryptocurrency forensics and investigation to officials from various cybercrime and police departments during the financial year 2022–2023.
The training aimed to equip law enforcement personnel with the necessary skills to combat cryptocurrency-related crimes.
Under the Narcotics Control Bureau, which serves as India’s central law enforcement and intelligence agency, 141 officers received training specifically focused on darknet investigations, cryptocurrencies, and workshops on digital footprints, intelligence gathering from open sources, and social media analysis.
This training comes as a survey conducted by blockchain intelligence company TRM Labs found that 99% of law enforcement professionals require more training in crypto.
The survey collected responses from 300 law enforcement professionals worldwide, with 93% of them coming from US law enforcement organizations.
Seventy percent of the respondents reported that their crypto crime investigations are “very” or “extremely” complex, with 61% stating that they lacked the necessary tools or technology to effectively support their investigations.
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