Fighting Scams with Blockchain Intelligence

Ari Redbord shares how TRM Labs is using blockchain intelligence to fight transnational organized crime.

Episode 3: In this episode of Stolen, Erin connects with Ari Redbord, the global head of policy for TRM Labs, to talk about cryptocurrency tracing, financial crime prevention, and victim recovery.

The conversation delves into specific tools and technologies TRM Labs uses to assist law enforcement, including their Tracers program, and the significance of TRM's training initiatives for state and local law enforcement.

They also explore the phenomenon of 'pig butchering' scams, the paradox of cryptocurrency's utility for both lawful and illicit activities, and the recent FinCEN action against Huione, a significant player in the crypto money laundering world.

The episode wraps up with insights into the collaborative community and the importance of innovative approaches in tackling international financial crimes.

Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and other major podcast platforms.

Who Is Ari Redbord?

Ari Redbord is the Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs. Prior to joining TRM, Ari was the Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary and the Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at the United States Treasury.

Ari worked with teams from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and other Treasury components to use sanctions and other regulatory tools to safeguard the financial system from illicit criminal use. Prior to Treasury, Ari was an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, where he investigated and prosecuted terrorism, espionage, threat finance, cryptocurrency, export control, child exploitation, and human trafficking cases.

Episode Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction to Ari Redbord

• 04:10 TRM Labs and Its Mission

• 08:58 Understanding Blockchain and Cryptocurrency

• 12:13 Law Enforcement and Cryptocurrency

• 17:46 Challenges and Cooperation in Crypto Investigations

• 24:45 Sanctions and Tools Against Transnational Crime

• 27:35 Understanding the Patriot Act's Section 311

• 28:43 U.S. Government Actions Against Transnational Scammers

• 30:04 TRM Labs's Role in Supporting Law Enforcement

• 32:09 Operation Shamrock and ChainAbuse Portal

• 36:37 Insights from the FBI IC3 Report on Crypto Crimes

• 46:17 Innovative Approaches to Combat Transnational Crime

• 50:40 TRM Bootcamps: Training Law Enforcement

• 52:46 Concluding Thoughts and Future Directions

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