Investigation Methodologies

Investigations into digital currency (cryptocurrency) often start with traditional investigative methods like undercover work, surveillance, confidential informants (CI’s). This is then combined with financial analysis and blockchain analysis to provide a complete picture.

The rising popularity of cryptocurrency has brought about an increased risk of fraudulent activity involving digital currency. The previous modules in this course have been designed to provide you with an in-depth understanding of how cryptocurrencies work and the technology behind them. The various types of cybercrimes and cryptocurrency crimes will most likely involve fictitious people, stolen identities, and individuals from several countries acting out criminal activity.

To this point in the course, you have been exposed to and have a good understanding of:

• The blockchain and concept of a distributive ledger
• The development and fundamentals of the mathematics that the blockchain is built upon
• The concept of public and private keys and how they work, and;
• The functionality, design, and types of software and hardware wallets
  

Now we will leverage the concepts and techniques that you have learned and apply them to the investigative process. With this knowledge, you will be able to identify, investigate and prosecute crime involving cryptocurrency successfully. This module will discover many ways to identify where cryptocurrency is being used and how addresses, private keys, and transactions can be linked to a specific user.