US Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) are calling for increased measures to combat the use of cryptocurrency in facilitating the illegal trade of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

In a bipartisan letter dated April 26, addressed to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, the lawmakers expressed concern over the pseudonymous nature of cryptocurrencies, which aids in the movement of payments for CSAM into the digital sphere. They emphasized the urgency for legislative and administrative actions to tackle this issue, citing crypto's growing prevalence as the preferred payment method for illicit activities.

The senators referenced a January 2024 report by Chainalysis, a prominent blockchain analytics firm, which highlighted the escalating problem of crypto-based transactions involving CSAM. Additionally, a February analysis by the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) corroborated these findings, revealing an uptick in the use of virtual currencies by perpetrators seeking to evade detection. Financial institutions flagged thousands of suspicious activity reports tied to CSAM, identifying over 1,800 unique Bitcoin wallet addresses linked to such offenses.

In response to these developments, Warren and Cassidy stressed the necessity for robust anti-money laundering (AML) measures and effective law enforcement strategies to combat these crimes. They cited the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), which reported a significant rise in websites accepting cryptocurrency for CSAM, with numbers doubling annually since 2018.

Warren, known for advocating stringent crypto regulations, has actively pushed for legislative measures and tighter AML rules targeting the crypto sector. Senators Warren and Cassidy are calling for collaborative efforts between Congress and the Administration to equip both entities with the requisite tools to effectively address this issue.

The letter represents a pivotal move towards legislative action aimed at closing regulatory gaps in the current financial framework, with a focus on mitigating the risks associated with digital assets in illicit trades involving CSAM.