The military's innovation branch is examining cryptocurrencies to identify the threats to law enforcement and national security.
DARPA will conduct the year-long research. DARPA built the first internet-supporting tech.
The startup will give the Pentagon tools to help law enforcement clamp down on illegal digital asset use.
Mark Flood, the organization's program manager, told The Washington Post that the report "maps out the cryptocurrency ecosystem in depth."
The government hopes to use the data to acquire insights into traditional financial market trends and fight illicit funding.
The deal is the latest example of federal authorities' efforts to stop terrorists, rogue states, and other bad actors from using cryptocurrencies to finance their activities.
Last month, the Treasury Department sanctioned Tornado Cash, a service that let North Korean hackers repurchase stolen cryptocurrency.
This week, the agency asked the public about cryptocurrency hazards to national security and criminal finance.
Separately, the Justice Department will appoint 150 prosecutors to coordinate cryptocurrency investigations and charges.
According to Flood, government-affiliated hackers have stolen billions for North Korea's nuclear program. The Ukrainian administration also claimed Russian financial sector strikes before the invasion this spring.
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Bitcoin to Stablecoin have a shaky history.
Flood, a former Treasury official who researched systemic financial risk, says everything we can do to strengthen and protect the U.S. and allies' financial sectors is desirable. Flood stated the financial sector may be a component of contemporary warfare in the future.
Governments can't control cryptocurrency. Due to a lack of legal restrictions, the business has become a shadow financial system that criminals exploit.
Inca Digital's engagement with DARPA would be "wide-ranging," said CEO Adam Zarazinski. The project aims to help the government understand how cash enters and exits blockchain networks, or distributed ledgers.
It identifies bitcoin scams and separates legal commerce from bot-driven activity.
"There's a lot of fear about bitcoin scams right now," says Zarazinski, an Air Force veteran and former Interpol criminal intelligence officer.
According to him, well-organized multinational criminal networks, often aided by competing countries or given tacit authorization, steal billions of dollars from Americans and Europeans.
Disgraced cryptocurrency pioneer says he's not hiding. His whereabouts remain unknown.
This isn't DARPA's first blockchain project. In a June assessment, the government determined that blockchains have weaknesses that bring its security claims into question.
Flood clarified that the agency's latest endeavor doesn't follow cryptocurrency users.
"DARPA doesn't spy," he said. We avoid using PII in this research, I'll emphasize.
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