The Blockchain Never Forgets

A UK police officer has just been sentenced for stealing 50 bitcoins - a crime he committed eight years ago.

I came across the story in Coinfomania, and what surprised me most was the author's conclusion. They wrote: “This story shows how tough it can be to catch crypto criminals.” But to me, it says the exact opposite: even if someone thought they covered their tracks years ago, they can still be found today.

Back then, investigators didn’t have the tools or the skills to trace such crimes. Now they do. And if they don’t today, they will in another 8 years. Or 80.

It's yet another reminder: nothing is more foolish than trying to launder dirty money through a blockchain. The moment a transaction hits the ledger, it’s there forever. And eventually, someone will follow the trail.

Blockchains are great at protecting honest activity from prying eyes. For example, when you use rabbit.io to swap crypto, no one but you knows that we gave you the address to send funds to. And no one but us knows where we sent your exchanged coins. That’s more than enough privacy for everyday use. Once you hop chains, you’re off the radar.

But when it comes to tracking illicit funds, the game changes. Not even a police officer could hide his crime. And he clearly tried - if he hadn’t, they’d have caught him eight years ago.