- Operation Spincaster partnered with Delta Police to combat approval phishing scams in a town of 100K.
- Blockchain Transparency in Action: The operation disrupted phishing scams by leveraging blockchain intelligence to trace and freeze stolen funds.
- Empowering Local Communities: The initiative showcased how small-town law enforcement can tackle global cryptocurrency fraud with the right tools and training.
In a significant step toward combating cryptocurrency-related fraud, Operation Spincaster has expanded its reach to Delta, Canada, a city with a population of just over 100,000. The following partnership between Chainalysis and local police provides an effort to counter the increasing crypto scams, especially the approval phishing which has affected thousands of users. The program emphasizes repeatedly that local agencies are well-equipped to handle crimes traditionally associated with larger, specialized units.
Tackling Crypto Scams at the Local Level
There was an increase in cryptocurrency fraud in 2024, racking in billions of dollars in just one year. Approval phishing, which is a relatively new strategy, in which the attacker convinces the victim to grant them access to the user’s wallets, is especially perilous. Noting the centrality of local response, the recent undertaking of Operation Spincaster called Operation DeCloak involved the Delta Police Department. The September 2024 event involved seven police departments, two exchanges, and other participants; the two-day event aimed at training participants in more complex scenarios of blockchain investigations.
Uncovering Victims and Stolen Funds
During the operation, investigators identified over 1,100 victims of cryptocurrency scams, including numerous Canadians. Through the use of Chainalysis’ blockchain analytics solutions, roughly 100 potential investigative leads were derived and 240 associated crypto addresses were analysed. Such measures exposed an average loss figure exceeding $25 million among the affected organizations. Of course, local police, especially the Delta Police Department Cybercrime Unit, noted other transactions with the volume of $800,000 coming from Canadian platforms.
A Collaborative Approach to Crime Prevention
To fully execute Operation DeCloak, all stakeholders from the private sector and the government had to work together. Police forces along with anti-fraud teams from cryptocurrency exchanges used blockchain analysis to track and block the proceeds of scams.These efforts prove that there is great potential in cooperation to increase accountability, and break transnational financial flows.
It is, therefore, evident that grassroots efforts are becoming more critical in Operation Spincaster’s fight against cryptocurrencies’ fraud as reflected by the case of Delta . Sustaining and ensuring more partnership between the governments and companies, the program aims to improve anti-Illegal activities and safeguard the communities from new threats.
