Crypto Trails and Human Traffic: A Twain-Style Take on an 85% Surge

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Key Highlights

  • Crypto transactions tied to suspected human trafficking jumped 85% from 2024 to 2025, mounting into the hundreds of millions, as if the river of fortune had found a crooked fork.
  • Cambodia and Myanmar compounds drive much of the action, with coins flowing in from the U.S., Brazil, Europe, Australia, and beyond through Telegram escort services, labor recruiters, illicit networks, and CSAM vendors.
  • Crypto’s pseudonymity lets quick, borderless payments slip by the rules, but the public ledger wears every secret on its sleeve, so criminals keep hopping to other rails and no-KYC shacks.

The latest findings show that cryptocurrency transactions tied to suspected human trafficking operations spiked by 85% from 2024 to 2025, swelling into hundreds of millions as crypto becomes a popular sock for payments and investments across the globe.

The findings are part of Chainalysis’ 2026 Crypto Crime Report, released on February 12, painting a grim map of how cryptocurrencies are fueling exploitation networks. While the blockchain’s transparency gives lawmen a fighting chance to trace the coin’s trail, the sheer volume makes the job as slippery as a greased eel for regulators and investigators worldwide.

The report highlights how cryptocurrency’s borderless character and its cloak of pseudonymity enable quick payments without the old-time banking overseer. Chainalysis tracked inflows to four main categories of illicit services: international escorts, labor placement agents, prostitution networks, and vendors of CSAM.

These operations often overlap with broader criminal ecosystems, including scam compounds and money-laundering rings tied to Chinese-language networks on platforms like Telegram. “We’re seeing a conservative estimate here,” the report notes, suggesting the actual scale could be far larger due to undetected activities.

The Southeast asian hub and global reach

Chainalysis notes that much of the tracked activity stems from Cambodia and Myanmar, where sprawling compounds drive victims into online scams or sexual exploitation. It also points to Telegram-based “international escort” services as a key driver, with ads featuring tiered pricing from around $420 per hour to over $1,100 for extended arrangements.

These services saw nearly half of their crypto transfers exceeding $10,000, indicating large-scale, organized operations.

Another focal point is labor placement agents that lure workers with false job promises only to trap them in forced labor. Payments here typically range from $1,000 to $10,000, often funneled through “guarantee platforms” that act as escrow services for illicit deals.

The report links these to groups like the “Fully Light Group,” previously flagged by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) for involvement in pig-butchering scams. These types involve fraudulent investment schemes that exploit victims emotionally and financially.

Meanwhile, another significant factor of prostitution networks handled mid-sized transactions between $1,000 and $10,000, blending into online gambling and casino ecosystems. But the most disturbing trend involves CSAM vendors, who have shifted to alternative blockchain networks and no-KYC exchangers.

One dark website alone raked in over $530,000 since mid-2022 using thousands of wallet addresses, eclipsing infamous cases like the 2019 “Welcome to Video” bust.

Geographically, the money flows in from everywhere: the Americas (led by Brazil and the U.S.), Europe (including the UK and Spain), and Australia. This global customer base shows how Southeast Asian hubs export exploitation worldwide with crypto bridging the gaps.

Law enforcement wins and the path forward

Despite the uptick, 2025 brought some victories. U.S. authorities stepped up arrests of CSAM consumers, and international takedowns like the “KidFlix” platform, which boasted nearly 2 million users, disrupted major networks. The Internet Watch Foundation reported a 7% rise in CSAM incidents, totaling 312,030, many hosted on U.S. servers that accept crypto payments while masquerading as legitimate sites.

Chainalysis emphasizes blockchain’s double-edged sword: while it enables crime, its public ledger allows for unprecedented tracing. “Unlike cash, crypto leaves a trail,” the crypto research firm states, advocating for better monitoring of red flags like large payments to labor recruiters.

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2026-02-13 16:31