It's not the first time cryptocurrencies have been mentioned in the context of the CIA. In particular, back in early 2018, Natalya Kasperskaya, co-founder of Kasperskaya Lab, said that Bitcoin was "a development of US intelligence services". In the end, her argument was that cryptocurrencies were allegedly needed to finance US, UK and Canadian intelligence agencies. The very essence of coins "reminds of MMM". You can read more about these amusing statements in a separate article.


In addition, digital assets have been mentioned directly by CIA officials. In particular, former CIA chief Michael Morell made it clear that cryptocurrencies are an inconvenient tool for criminals. It’s all about the transparent blockchain, where every transaction remains forever. This point of view differs significantly from what officials, bankers and other government officials have been saying.

Former CIA director Michael Morell

What does the CIA have to do with cryptocurrencies?

Burns noted at the Wall Street Journal summit that the CIA has several projects to track cryptocurrencies. Asked if the intelligence agency has been able to deter ransomware attacks outside the US, Burns said his predecessor in office “launched a number of cryptocurrency-focused projects”. As Decrypt notes, the main objective of these initiatives is to help the US government keep tabs on the crypto market.

Here’s a quote from an agency spokesperson in which he mentioned digital currencies.

One way to counter and deter ransomware attacks is to be able to penetrate the financial networks that many criminals use, and that also applies to the issue of digital currencies.

So in essence, the CIA spokesperson made it clear that the only way out is for the organisation to take action from within the niche.

CIA chief William Burns

Recall that ransomware is malware designed to block important information on computer systems in order to get a ransom for the key to access it. The ransom is most often demanded in cryptocurrency in the form of Bitcoin or Monero. Earlier, several large organisations in the US fell victim to hacking attacks that caused huge losses. Therefore, President Joe Biden’s administration named the fight against ransomware as a national security priority.

For example, in the summer of 2020, a hacker attack was reported against a group of COVID-19 researchers at the University of California. They were demanded to pay a ransom of 116 bitcoins - otherwise the institution's important data would remain locked up. Read more about the topic, along with a description of the negotiations, in a separate story.

Burns did not specify which predecessor was in question. In the past five years alone, five other people have led the agency. However, the most likely candidate for the role is his immediate predecessor, David Cohen.

Former CIA director David Cohen

Cohen, who was appointed acting director by President Biden from January to March this year, was a member of the Treasury Department overseeing the Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. In other words, he is exactly the right person to get the CIA to collect data on cryptocurrencies.


Conclusion: Even with decentralisation, the cryptocurrency industry is unlikely to escape the scrutiny of government agencies. Nevertheless, if this scrutiny is done for good - for example, just to prosecute fraudsters - this strategy will benefit the crypto market.

We think the reverse would be odd. After all, cryptocurrencies are one of the major trends of recent years, so it would be at least strange for CIA officials to pass by this niche. However, this also applies to representatives of similar agencies in other countries.


What do you think about it? Share your opinion in our Millionaire Crypto Chat. There we will talk about other topics related to the blockchain and decentralisation industry.