Special to WorldTribune.com
Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), which has used technology to its advantage in recruitment and propaganda, has found a new funding avenue in virtual cash.
According to “hacktivists” at Ghost Security Group (GhostSec), ISIL has millions of dollars parked in several bitcoin accounts that it uses to fund terror operations.
Bitcoin accounts are opened using virtual money, but those digital funds can be cashed in for real money or goods. Bitcoin, said to be the world’s first decentralized currency, can also be sent between parties without the involvement of financial institutions.
“Terrorists need anonymity,” said cybersecurity expert Morgan Wright, a senior fellow at the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies. “Countries have gotten very good at tracking terror financing in the years since 9/11. Networks have looked for new ways to do it, and it appears they’ve found it in bitcoin.”
The ease with which anyone can send and receive virtual funds is documented on the bitcoin website (bitcoin.org):
“Sending bitcoins across borders is as easy as sending them across the street. There are no banks to make you wait three business days, no extra fees for making an international transfer, and no special limitations on the minimum or maximum amount you can send.”
A member of the GhostSec group relayed the information on ISIL and bitcoin to Michael K. Smith II, a co-founder of Kronos Advisory, a national security advisory firm.
GhostSec “wants to make an impact in counterterrorism,” Smith said, adding that the hacktivist who contacted him about ISIL did so because government officials were not paying close attention to the allegations.
A GhostSec member said ISIL’s virtual assets could currently top out at more than $15 million.
The U.S. Treasury Department estimates that the terrorist organization generates between $468 million and $520 million annually and its primary sources of revenue are theft, extortion, oil sales, ransom payments and overseas donations.
Bitcoin is quickly becoming mainstream with retailer overstock.com, Dell, Microsoft, Expedia and DISH Network among those who accept bitcoin payments.
According to Juniper Research, there were 1.3 million bitcoin users last year and that number will climb to 4.7 million users by the end of 2017.
Bitcoin said to be key financing channel for ISIL added by World Tribune on
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