At the beginning of this month, the father of a wealthy cryptocurrency entrepreneur was kidnapped in Paris While his dog is walking. The attackers who wore Balaclavas forced him to a van, later separated one of his fingers and broadcast a video of the mutilation in addition to a demand for millions of euros in ransom.
The incident joined a growing list of violent crimes in France that were associated with crypto assets. The victims included a prominent entrepreneur and his wife, who were held as hostage, a man with petrol poured over, and a child who was targeted in a experimental management.
Since fear spreads into France's crypto community, some industry numbers accuse the EU digital asset regulations Express the owner of a higher risk. Your concerns focus on the transparency requirements that could make it easier to track down crypto owners. However, other insiders argue that the EU rules make a comfortable scapegoat.
Stanislas Barthélemi, President of the French Crypto Lobbying Group Adan, told The The The The The the New York Times This week that the rules have accidentally put holders in danger. By creating a backlockable digital footprint, criminals could possibly monitor blockchain activity in order to identify wealthy goals.
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Alexandre Stachchenko, director of strategy at French Crypto Exchange Paymium, repeated the concern. He said the industry wants to be “discrete and anonymous”, but the EU right tells us that it is criminal. “
Others in the industry deny that the EU's provisions have played a role in increasing the attacks.
“Strategic distraction”
Marit Red Water, CEO and co -founder of Norwegian anti-money dog company company Strise, said that there is “little evidence” for a connection between the rules of the Union and the crypto drafts.
“Although it is easy to postulate for Crypto Champions that the increased physical attacks on those who work in the room are a product of regulations, this is both reductive and a strategic distraction of legitimate security concerns,” she said.
Accordingly Red water, It is also likely that information about potential goals through hacks, social media exposure or advertising have been accessed. There are many crypto entrepreneurs too Prominent influencer.
Christopher Whitehouse, a crypto expert and lawyer at the RPC law firm based in London, also established no connection. Instead, he said that those who have high amounts of cryptocurrency are “obvious goals”.
“The recent increase in cryptomotivated kidnapping in France is alarming, but not surprising,” Whitehouse told TNW.
He noticed that cryptocurrencies have several functions that make them attractive for ransom. They can be transferred immediately, are difficult to follow if they are moved by demanding criminals, and the protective measures for traditional bank accounts are missing. In contrast, conventional currency can be followed via serial numbers.
Use human vulnerability
The recent violence in France is brutal, but nothing new. According to data, which was compiled by Jameson Lopp, lawyer of Crypto Security, over 200 Physical attacks Bitcoin and cryptocurrency holder have been reported since 2014. Some were fatal.
Matt Green, head of the blockchain technology disputes at the London law firm Lawrence Stephens, claims that violence goes out to criminals that use the weakest link in the crypto male: humans.
“The only thing criminals are [from] Access is human error or strength, so the kidnapping aims to break the integrity of this security guided by humans, ”he told TNW.
To protect themselves, some crypto owners have their personal security with great pleasure, including the Set bodyguard.
Green suggests another protective layer: multi -signature letter pockets, A kind of crypto letter bag in which several users have to carry out certain tasks, e.g. B. transfers.
Just as some shops show signs in which no money is kept in front of the premises, crypto owners would do good to make it clear that a single person cannot access funds, said Green.
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