Terrorists, criminal groups may exploit virtual currencies – report

‘Non-state actors’, including terrorist and insurgent groups, may exploit virtual currency by deploying it as a medium for regular economic transactions. A US government-funded report on the National Security Implications of Virtual Currency, published by the RAND National Defence Research Institute in the USA, examines the real potential of virtual currency deployment, and the threat this poses to national security. Non-state actors can use virtual currencies to distrupt sovereignty and increase political and/or economic power, but are unlikely to use existing virtual currency, the report finds.