4. Increasing Threat Environment
Last updated
Last updated
Escalating Threats: The Increase in Virtual Asset Crimes and the Limitations of Existing Solutions
Surge in Crimes and Significant Economic Impact
From 2017 to 2021, Korea’s virtual asset market experienced explosive growth, accompanied by a sharp increase in crimes targeting virtual assets. According to statistics from the National Police Agency in 2022, the total damage from virtual asset crimes during this period amounted to approximately 4.74 trillion KRW, with 12,157 victims. This clearly indicates that virtual assets have become major targets for crime, highlighting the increased risks in the virtual asset market.
Virtual asset crimes occur in various forms, including hacking, phishing, ransomware, and multi-level fraud, with the scale and scope of damage growing continuously. The decentralized nature and anonymity of virtual assets provide a favorable environment for criminals, complicating crime tracking and intensifying the suffering of victims. These crimes impede the healthy growth of the virtual asset market and create significant societal anxiety.
Limitations of Existing Solutions: Challenges in the Private and Public Sectors
Private Sector Limitations
Private companies, such as security firms like Uppsala Security, invest significant efforts in preventing virtual asset crimes. However, the complexity and extensive range of these crimes pose severe challenges. The decentralized nature and global network of virtual asset crimes make it too complex for a single company to address effectively. While innovative solutions like
Sentinel Protocol have achieved some success, the continuous evolution of crime methods and the expansion of criminal networks reveal their limitations. It is difficult for the private sector alone to effectively block such crimes.
Public Sector Constraints
Government agencies also face significant challenges in effectively addressing virtual asset crimes. The decentralized nature of virtual assets presents problems that traditional law enforcement methods cannot resolve. In particular, cross-border criminal activities expose the limitations of law enforcement agencies in tracking and responding to all crimes. Additionally, legal and regulatory systems struggling to keep up with the rapid pace of technological advancements fail to address new crime methods appropriately. This results in a lack of systematic response for crime prevention and victim recovery.
Need for New Solutions: Decentralized Collaboration Models
Given the severity of virtual asset crimes and the limitations of existing solutions, a new approach is required. An integrated and innovative environment where private companies, government agencies, and the global community collaborate to address crimes is essential. Utilizing collective intelligence to share and analyze threat information in real time and establishing rapid and effective response systems is critical.
Decentralized collaboration models offer a new breakthrough in the fight against virtual asset crimes. These models provide flexibility in responding to continuously evolving crime methods, effectively tracking global criminal networks, and protecting victims. Particularly, leveraging the collective intelligence of the global community can overcome the limitations of individual countries or companies, offering more comprehensive and effective solutions.
ChainBounty is designed to be a new solution to these problems. By creating a decentralized bounty platform that encourages global participation, ChainBounty leverages collective intelligence and collaborative efforts to address the challenges of virtual asset crimes.
