Silk Road Hacker Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Wire Fraud

On April 14, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the Southern District of New York revealed that the hacker responsible for the Silk Road marketplace breach had been sentenced to a year in prison for wire fraud charges. James Zhong stole more than 50,000 bitcoin from the darknet marketplace (DNM) in September 2012. DOJ … Read more

Founder of the Bitcoin Mixer Helix Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Charges

Larry Dean Harmon, founder and operator of the bitcoin mixing service Helix has pleaded guilty on Wednesday to money laundering charges. Harmon’s guilty plea follows the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (Fincen) fining Harmon $60 million last year. Helix Operator Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering, Conspiracy Charges According to several reports and a court-issued … Read more

Darknet Market Joker’s Stash Retires After Raking in $1 Billion in Cryptocurrencies

One of the largest darknet marketplaces for selling identity data and stolen credit card information, Joker’s Stash retired last month after making off with a cool $1 billion in cryptocurrencies. Weeks ago, U.S. and European officials seized some of the web portal’s servers tied to Joker’s Stash site, but were unable to completely shut operations … Read more

Darknet Markets Generated $1.7 Billion in Crypto Revenue in 2020 — Set a New Record

Darknet market revenues hit a new all-time high in 2020, despite declining individual purchases from marketplaces. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis also spotted a singular driver behind the new record witnessed over the last year. Hydra Market Is the Major Driver Behind Revenue Figures in 2020 According to the Chainalysis 2021 Crypto Crime Report, darknet markets … Read more

Major Darknet Marketplace for Stolen Cards Shuts Down After Making Over $1 Billion in Bitcoin

The longest-running marketplace for stolen credit cards on the darknet has announced the shutting down of its services. The administrator of Joker’s Stash, founded in 2014, stated that the site would be taken down in February. Site Generated Over $1 Billion in BTC ‘Over the Past Years,’ Claims a Security Research Firm According to the … Read more

Darknet Giant Darkmarket Shut Down, Alleged Operator Arrested

The authorities in seven countries and Europol have jointly taken down Darkmarket, one of the largest darknet marketplaces. The action was taken after the marketplace’s alleged operator was arrested in Germany. Authorities Shut Down Darkmarket Europol announced Tuesday that darknet marketplace Darkmarket has been taken down. The announcement details: Darkmarket, the world’s largest illegal marketplace … Read more

Authorities Shut Down Darknet Marketplace Sipulimarket, Seize Bitcoin

A major darknet marketplace, Sipulimarket, has been shut down and its assets, including bitcoin, were seized by Finnish Customs, in cooperation with Europol and the Polish police. Darknet Marketplace Shut Down, Bitcoin Seized Europol and Finnish Customs (Tulli) announced last week that they “have shut down the Sipulimarket dark web marketplace and seized all its … Read more

Study: Over 13% of All Proceeds of Crimes in Bitcoin Passed Through Privacy Wallets in 2020

According to a study published by the blockchain analysis firm Elliptic, over 13% of all proceeds of crime in bitcoin (BTC) were laundered via privacy wallets in 2020, up from 2% from the figures posted in 2019. 13% of All Proceeds of Crimes Leveraging BTC Were Laundered Via Privacy Wallets Dr. Tom Robinson, Elliptic’s co-founder … Read more

Darknet Market Crypto Revenues Hit All-Time Highs in 2020

A study revealed that darknet markets have astonishing figures so far in 2020, despite the coronavirus pandemic, but the dynamics changed compared to the last year’s numbers. Darknet Vendors Surpassed $800 Million in Revenues Despite Covid Pandemic According to the Chainalysis report, darknet marketplaces surpassed the $800 million threshold worth of cryptocurrencies in revenue made … Read more