Cryptocurrency Investigations
Ellensburg, WA
February 5-6, 2025
8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PDT
The use of Cryptocurrency as a form of payments and investments has exploded over the past several years. Due to the decentralization that cryptocurrency offers, criminals have tapped into this market to pay for illicit activity as well as engage in money laundering methods. There are thousands of cryptocurrencies available ranging in costs from less than a penny to $69,000 for Bitcoin at it's peak.
Cryptocurrencies operate on decentralized public ledgers known as blockchains. These blockchains rely on several key concepts that will be explained in detail during the course. Understanding these concepts can assistance with the “de-anonymization” process to try and identify criminals. This training course will cover the fundamentals of cryptocurrency to include how to obtain it using cryptocurrency exchanges, wallets, peer to peer networks, CoinJoin multiparty services, and various other methods. Class participants will learn how to manually track cryptocurrency transactions using public blockchain explorers. Several real-life case studies will be presented to demonstrate methods to initiate a cryptocurrency case from start to finish. In-depth practical exercises will take place during this course. Tablets will be provided to all students so that they can engage in a variety of practical exercises to include setting up cover wallets, initiating transactions, and tracking crypto transactions.
All class participants will receive a demo account to Crypto Track Pro which is powerful blockchain analytical engine. They will use Crypto Track Pro to participate in advanced tracking exercises. Sample policies and procedures will also be discussed to properly seize and store cryptocurrency until awarded during asset forfeiture hearings.
Topics Covered:
- Cryptocurrency Overview
- Blockchain Overview
- Blockchain explorers & manual tracking
- Bitcoin Fundamentals & the UTXO Model
- Ethereum Fundamentals & ERC-20 Tokens
- NFTs and Dapps Overview
- Establishing cryptocurrency wallets
- Hot wallets vs. cold wallets
- Various Legal Processes
- Techniques to Seize Cryptocurrency
- Real-life Case Studies
