Central Louisiana News

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) have urged Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to take action against the use of cryptocurrency in the illegal trade of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

In a joint statement, Senators Cassidy and Warren emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, "The pseudonymity provided by cryptocurrency has allowed the payments for CSAM to ‘move quickly into the crypto world,’ and we are committed to ensuring that Congress and the Administration have the full suite of tools needed to end CSAM and punish sellers of this material."

The senators expressed deep concern over the increasing use of cryptocurrency in the illicit trade of CSAM, highlighting the troubling findings that show cryptocurrency as the preferred payment method for perpetrators of child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Referring to the challenges faced by existing anti-money laundering rules and law enforcement methods in detecting and preventing these crimes, Senators Cassidy and Warren stressed the importance of government intervention in addressing these issues.

The senators referenced reports from Chainalysis and the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) that revealed the growing problem of cryptocurrency-based sales of CSAM and the use of convertible virtual currency by perpetrators of online child sexual exploitation.

Furthermore, the senators pointed out the findings of the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), indicating a significant rise in the number of websites accepting cryptocurrency as payment for CSAM between 2018 and 2022.

In their letter to Attorney General Garland and Secretary Mayorkas, Senators Cassidy and Warren requested information about the tools needed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to combat the illicit trade of CSAM and put an end to the use of cryptocurrency in such activities.

The senators highlighted the need for coordinated efforts between Congress and the Administration to tackle the challenges posed by the increasing use of cryptocurrency in the trade of child sexual abuse material.

The full letter from Senators Cassidy and Warren can be accessed for further details on their concerns and proposed actions.