According to Elliptic, a blockchain forensics firm, cybercriminals have accelerated their shift away from crypto mixers for cross-chain bridges over the past year, stated Cointelegraph.
Sources revealed that in June and July, most of the crypto stolen is expected to be laundered through cross-chain bridges. However, Elliptic’s data shows a complete reversal from the first half of 2022, Cointelegraph added.
With insights from a blog post made on September 18, 2023, Elliptic mentioned the cross-chain crime trend is due to the “crime displacement” effect. It is believed criminals are shifting to a new method to carry out illegal activity when the existing method gets over-policed. However, the shift is believed to cross-chain bridges and is rising ahead of their projections, Cointelegraph highlighted.
Furthermore, Elliptic is expected to have mentioned that many cybercriminals, such as the North Korean-backed Lazarus Group, flocked to the Avalanche Bridge after the sanctions, Cointelegraph concluded.
(With insights from Cointelegraph)
