Irish Authorities Seize $7.1M in Cryptocurrency

[Lucius]

Bitcoin is anonymous until you publish the public address of yours and if you use the bitcoin mixers then it's quite impossible  to find or tracing.
~snip~

You probably know that the blockchain is a public ledger where everyone can see every transaction from the Genesis block onwards, and the fact that your public address does not have your first and last name does not mean that you enjoy the kind of privacy you imagine.

As for the mixers, they provide relative anonymity in relation to how advanced the mixing itself is, but various companies that analyze the blockchain have very advanced tools with which they can get very accurate information about a transaction even if it passed through the mixer. However, anyone who mixes their coins with the intention of a little more privacy should not be too worried, the authorities will not spend resources on such things.

[ZAINmalik75]

I'm waiting for the day same government are going to walk shame people that used terrorism and some bad business to launder money they are slamming on crypto. Money laundering is a big threat all over the world, they shouldn't make it look like it's only in crypto world that it happen. Even the government officials are guilty of money laundering in fiats most especially.

I think we also need some representatives who can help crypto vendors fight for their money. It's not everytime the government see money and feel like stealing it and be using some lame excuses like money laundering they claimed everyday.

I agree with all of your statements and to be honest I never see such cases from your point of view that government can be faking the reason to steal people's money and they can easily do that and I never saw their procedure to call someone's crypto as illegal money and used in money laundering.

There is a full chance that they were really doing money laundering and get caught. Government will go after those companies which are not registered with governments and respective authorities and not every company can register with government like mixers.

[Crypto Library]

You probably know that the blockchain is a public ledger where everyone can see every transaction from the Genesis block onwards, and the fact that your public address does not have your first and last name does not mean that you enjoy the kind of privacy you imagine.

As for the mixers, they provide relative anonymity in relation to how advanced the mixing itself is, but various companies that analyze the blockchain have very advanced tools with which they can get very accurate information about a transaction even if it passed through the mixer. However, anyone who mixes their coins with the intention of a little more privacy should not be too worried, the authorities will not spend resources on such things.

The last sentence you said, my opinion is totally said on this. I think that's the point.
In internet may nothing is untraceable but for tracing not every country have the enough sources or enough time for that. And when it's come to use mixer for the privacy to protect your self and your fund from the digital robbers then I can say it will kinda impossible for them to trace.
But when you do illegal things, did scam and have the black money then I think you have be worried about that because in that cases inquiry will be done by the government and most of them have the resources or the can take assist of another countries resources.

[Cryptsafe]

Detectives from the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB) in Ireland seized cryptocurrency worth approximately €6.5 million ($7.1 million) during a raid in North County Dublin on Monday. The operation, supported by the Armed Support Unit, was part of a major investigation into money laundering and the sale of illegal goods on darknet markets. In addition to the substantial cryptocurrency haul, the authorities also confiscated luxury watches valued at over €120,000 and two high-powered vehicles worth around €220,000.

https://news.bitcoin.com/irish-authorities-seize-7-1m-in-cryptocurrency-amid-darknet-money-laundering-bust/
It was not mentioned what cryptocurrency was seized but it seems that they are involved in money laundering activities and cryptocurrencies are part of their plan.

Asset seizures are no longer news in the Crypto community. However, I think these measures will help to protect the name and image of the crypto industry from those perpetrating illicit acts through Crypto currency. Governments have in the past seized assets values much bigger than this but the truth is that have they been able to account for it after they had seized it.
We hear stories of these nature often times but the government should be up and doing enough to making sure they account for assets with such encounter.

[Themepen]

The last sentence you said, my opinion is totally said on this. I think that's the point.
In internet may nothing is untraceable but for tracing not every country have the enough sources or enough time for that. And when it's come to use mixer for the privacy to protect your self and your fund from the digital robbers then I can say it will kinda impossible for them to trace.
But when you do illegal things, did scam and have the black money then I think you have be worried about that because in that cases inquiry will be done by the government and most of them have the resources or the can take assist of another countries resources.

Hmmmm... that is right It is hard to hide things on internet but some countries don't have means or time to track everything. Using mixers to keep your identity and money safe from online threats is good idea. But if you do something illegal like scamming or hiding stolen money you should be worried about getting caught.

Governments will investigate and might even work with other countries to find you. If you use cryptocurrency for bad things you should know that you can still get in trouble even if you try to hide.

[Cryptsafe]

The last sentence you said, my opinion is totally said on this. I think that's the point.
In internet may nothing is untraceable but for tracing not every country have the enough sources or enough time for that. And when it's come to use mixer for the privacy to protect your self and your fund from the digital robbers then I can say it will kinda impossible for them to trace.
But when you do illegal things, did scam and have the black money then I think you have be worried about that because in that cases inquiry will be done by the government and most of them have the resources or the can take assist of another countries resources.

Governments will investigate and might even work with other countries to find you. If you use cryptocurrency for bad things you should know that you can still get in trouble even if you try to hide.

When it comes to international crimes, the government always extend hands to her sister nation to working together when it happens that the target or suspect resides in that nation. I have read many online dailies where hackers were apprehended by security agencies and Interpol. Some stolen/hacked funds being recovered.
Using crypto for nefarious act is not guaranteed because it is an open database where everyone can see transaction hash on chain from sender to receiver. Not only that, trackers would definitely alert the transaction as programmed and that would call attention to that transaction possibly the faces behind such would be unmasked. This is even the more reasons why the government needs to adopt blockchain and crypto into their system.

[SamReomo]

Bitcoin is anonymous until you publish the public address of yours and if you use the bitcoin mixers then it's quite impossible  to find or tracing.

Yes, when someone uses mixers then it would be almost impossible to trace any relation of that user with the mixed coins. That's why those who make transactions with Bitcoin often use mixers to enhance the privacy part.

Monero is way more untraceable than even the mixed Bitcoins because no one in the world can find any trace of transactions that take place on Monero blockchain. Serious level criminals who want to hide all their traces often chose Monero instead of Bitcoin and so does the privacy lovers.

[Hatchy]

 
The Rapidly increase in the misuse of cryptocurrencies,especially bitcoin, (although the crytocurrency wasn't identified) particularly in facilitating illegal activities and the trafficking of illegal goods on the darknet, is increasingly Alarming.

The individuals who have unfortunately implicated theirselves in this operation could have chosen to maintain discreet profiles but then they succumbed to ostentatious displays of wealth by acquiring conspicuously overly expensive and easily traceable luxury items. Many people fail to know and remember that these extravagant items, such as highend latest watches and vehicles, possess digital and physical traceability that can be easily tracked by advanced techniques employed by law enforcement.

It should serve as a warning and a very good exemple to anyone who might be enticed to exploit cryptocurrencies for criminal purposes because Law enforcement agencies are progressively sharpening their swords and also leveraging sophisticated technology to trace, track, and ultimately confiscate illicitly obtained digital assets.

[TomPluz]

Hopefully, they will keep the coins or find a way to return them to their owners instead of just selling them. I wonder where these seized coins end up. If anyone knows, please share.

As far as I know, seized cryptos done by the government will end up in government coffers and in the right time they will sell them to the market so they can use the funds for their own programs. This is actually sad especially if the seized assets actually belong to someone else...morally they should return to the rightful owners but we know that it can be so difficult to know the owners are, in many cases. Now, just like what happened with the Germany weeks ago, once the government is able to save big amount of coins and sell them on the market it can be creating some red waves affecting us all as if we are cooked by our own oil. Anyway, this is the reality we are in right now so we have no choice but to deal with it.

[Crypto Library]

Yes, when someone uses mixers then it would be almost impossible to trace any relation of that user with the mixed coins. That's why those who make transactions with Bitcoin often use mixers to enhance the privacy part.

Monero is way more untraceable than even the mixed Bitcoins because no one in the world can find any trace of transactions that take place on Monero blockchain. Serious level criminals who want to hide all their traces often chose Monero instead of Bitcoin and so does the privacy lovers.

Yeap that is why I said that it's quite impossible to trace when a user use the mixer to enhance his/her privacy.

But I want to say again that on the internet it is also true that nothing is untraceable  but it take huge resources and as well as the huge time. And in the case of resources not everyone have so we can say mixup make our privacy more enhance. Even if you do nothing wrong then you have to don't worry about the privacy when you use the mixer.

[Kemarit]

Yes, when someone uses mixers then it would be almost impossible to trace any relation of that user with the mixed coins. That's why those who make transactions with Bitcoin often use mixers to enhance the privacy part.

Monero is way more untraceable than even the mixed Bitcoins because no one in the world can find any trace of transactions that take place on Monero blockchain. Serious level criminals who want to hide all their traces often chose Monero instead of Bitcoin and so does the privacy lovers.

Yeap that is why I said that it's quite impossible to trace when a user use the mixer to enhance his/her privacy.

But I want to say again that on the internet it is also true that nothing is untraceable  but it take huge resources and as well as the huge time. And in the case of resources not everyone have so we can say mixup make our privacy more enhance. Even if you do nothing wrong then you have to don't worry about the privacy when you use the mixer.

It you are going to be trace by government or big entities, for sure they will have all the resources you track you down. We have seen it already, many individuals has been traced and some are put to jail even if they uses mixers.

And we also have seen big mixers as well in the past being shut down by government because of one single mistakes. That's why mixers might have evolved too and hopefully they are holding their bargain that there are no logs whatsoever so that it's really hard to crack and trace anyone if we uses them.

[Manna]

Irish authorities recently seized $7.1 million in cryptocurrency.  This step is taken as part of prevention of money laundering and other illegal activities through cryptocurrency.  Authorities are reportedly investigating the source of the funds and the people involved.  But I have not confirmed from the media.

[SamReomo]

It you are going to be trace by government or big entities, for sure they will have all the resources you track you down. We have seen it already, many individuals has been traced and some are put to jail even if they uses mixers.

Yes, that's quite true, when governments or big entities want to trace someone then they do use some tactics that most of us aren't even aware of to trace that someone. It's not possible to hide ourselves when governments are against us but if someone hasn't done anything wrong then that person should not fear at all.

I remember that even Kevin Mitnick got traced even by doing his best to remain in privacy. That's why running from a government isn't possible if someone does a wrong thing. However, I still believe that those people who aren't doing anything wrong can enhance their privacy by using good mixers.