Crime & Justice

Cryptocurrency, cybercrime in focus at Interpol assembly in India

New Delhi, Oct 17 (EFE).- Cryptocurrency and cybercrime are set to be the main focus of the agenda at Interpol’s general assembly in India, its secretary-general Jurgen Stock said on Monday, a day ahead of the event that seeks to improve police cooperation across the world.

“Huge developments in technology, internet of everything and digitalization – because of cryptocurrency – pose a challenge to law enforcement, because very often, they (agencies) are not properly trained and properly equipped from the beginning,” Germany’s Stock said in a press conference in New Delhi.

The Interpol secretary-general underlined that a large number of assets produced by criminal activities are “laundered by using cryptocurrency.”

The special director of India’s Central Bureau of Investigations, Praveen Sinha, added that it was increasingly difficult to decipher cybercrime, with both officials highlighting Interpol’s role in establishing and boosting police cooperation at the global level.

“The only answer is international cooperation, coordination, trust, and real-time sharing of information,” Sinha said.

Interpol is holding 90th general assembly in Delhi this week, which will be attended by high-ranking police officials from its 195 member countries and will continue until Oct. 21.

Stock said that Interpol members would explore the future of police in an increasingly digitalized world, aiming to finalize the organization’s vision for 2030, especially with regard to problems related to cybercrime, terrorism and crimes against children.

“Our international child sexual exploitation database helps investigators around the world identify an average of seven child abuse victims every single day,” the secretary-general highlighted.

The conference comes amid a controversy in India over Interpol refusing to issue a red-corner notice – equivalent to an international arrest warrant – against the founder of the group Sikhs for Justice, which has been listed as a separatist and terrorist organization by New Delhi.

Stock said the international police body acknowledged that refusal to issue a notice may not be well received by a country, but the power to issue such notices stemmed from the members’ trust that Interpol would apply the same rules for each request by any country. EFE

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