Blockchain technology is loved and adored by many, from the humble cryptocurrency investor to the passionate developer, the blockchain boasts advantages for everyone, remember, there’s a hell of a lot more to the blockchain than just Bitcoin, isn’t there.

With this however does come some drawbacks in that, a number of the inherent advantages of blockchain technology does make this technology an ideal tool for criminals, namely cyber criminals who wish to exploit the anonymous nature of blockchain technology. Is this really a bad thing? No, of course not. Look at it this way - cars and vehicles are loved by many, they make our lives easier and frankly, I can’t imagine a world without them. During the rise of motor vehicles and cars (especially) criminals also found a number of advantages that they could exploit in order to achieve their own goals, frankly, any new technology can be used for good and bad, what we are seeing with blockchain technology shouldn’t be seen as strange with this in mind.

So, what is it the criminals love, and what can we do to stop it? Firstly, anonymity. Operating within the blockchain generally ensures that users a unidentifiable, this is because the technology is self-policing, therefore, names and records do not need to be kept in order to verify transactions, in some instances at least. Regulation on an international level does aim to change this however, many worry that this will assault the decentralisation of blockchain technology however we believe that with the right level of regulation, anonymity can still be achieved, whilst ensuring hackers and criminals are exposed.

Lastly, the blockchain is becoming a bit of a criminal love affair because of decentralisation beyond identity. Decentralisation means accessibility, it means speed, it means functionality and above all, it means international scope. We can’t just stop decentralisation as that misses the point of cryptocurrency and other blockchain tech, however, with the right education we can all ensure that bad actors within the technology can be avoided. Perhaps the utilisation of blockchain for the greater good isn’t about stopping criminals, actually, it’s about making it hard for them to impact us as individuals. Educate and protect yourselves, that's the key message here.