Public Key

Everything You Need To Know About Smart Contract Audits

Chainalysis recently reported that 2022 was the biggest year ever for crypto hacking with $3.8 billion stolen with the majority of the funds coming from DeFi protocols and it begs the question, why isn’t there better cyber security for these projects?

This is the exact reason we brought in our next guest, David Schwed (Chief Operating Officer of Halborn), who sat down with Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) and explained everything we need to know about smart contract audits and why projects shouldn’t solely be relying on these audits as part of their cyber security functions. 

David gives us expert insights into proper key management and explains the vulnerability of bridge hacks and the need for decentralized projects to prioritize cyber security instead of making it a secondary thought, especially with escalating crypto hacks. 

• (2:05) – What is Halborn and why should security be built into projects foundationally from the beginning?

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Is Decentralized Cloud Infrastructure the Killer dApp for Web3?

The transition from web2 to web3 seems like a monumental shift for many organizations and although Amazon seemed to replace Radio Shack very quickly, many companies are still struggling to build the infrastructure needed to enter the world of decentralization. 

Well that is where our next guest comes in Daniel Keller, who is the co-founder of Flux, a decentralized cloud infrastructure, sat down with Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) and explained how Flux may be the Amazon AWS of the blockchain. 

Daniel explains the difference between centralized and decentralized cloud infrastructure and how companies are using his technology for a wide range of tasks, from setting up a word press site to facilitating crypto and NFT transactions. Daniel emphasizes the need to keep cloud infrastructure affordable and explains why Flux moved away from their privacy centric origins. 

• (2:35) – What is Flux and why is this decentralized cloud infrastructure  being called the “aws on the blockchain” 

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-paErin West rty sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

How Law Enforcement is Combating Pig Butchering Crypto Scams

A multi-billion dollar scam operation that incorporates industrial scale scam centers, human trafficking, fake investment websites and cryptocurrency.  Pig butchering is emerging as a serious priority for law enforcement who are seeing victims lose their life savings to scammers that may be victims themselves. 

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by cybercrime savvy public sector heroes , Erin West (Deputy District Attorney, Santa Clara County, Office of the District Attorney) and Alona Katz (Deputy Bureau Chief of the Cybercrime and Identity Theft Bureau, Manhattan District Attorney's Office), who give the victim perspective of these complex crypto related crimes. 

Alona and Erin explain how victims are being taken advantage of and how public private partnerships and law enforcement coalitions are collaborating to combat this billion dollar industry. They share heartbreaking stories from victims, but also give practical tips on how law enforcement and the general public can do their part in the fight against these investment scams. 

• (2:45) – How Erin and Alona got into the public sector and their first experience with cryptocurrency on the job

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Everything You Need To Know About Pump And Dump Schemes

Imagine millions of people on a dark web chat group waiting in anticipation to pump a token 500% on a targeted exchange, while unsuspecting investors, traders and regulators have no insights as to what is about to take place. 

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by former Flashpoint founder, Evan Kohlmann, who is now the Founder and CEO of Cloudburst Technologies, a company tasked with scraping the dark web to identify potential pump and dump schemes and the associated illicit actors. 

Evan explains the nuances of these targeted attacks, who are the orchestrators and the countries being targeted.  He explains how his technology is able to gather KYC information and shed some light on the extent these schemes have on the total illicit activity in the industry.

• (2:27) – Understanding market manipulation in the crypto world and what Cloudburst Technologies is doing about it

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

DeFi Success in the Wake of Centralized Crypto Exchange Struggles

In 2022 we saw the failures of several centralized crypto exchanges and service providers, which has led to many consumers choosing to move towards self-custody wallet options and using decentralized protocols. 

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by former colleague, Salman Banaei (Head of Policy at Uniswap Labs) to discuss the sudden migration from centralized exchanges to DeFi protocols and how policy makers are approaching regulating decentralized ecosystems. 

Salman takes us back to the origins of Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and the practical use cases around the world for these protocols to benefit consumers. He explains how the transparency of these decentralized protocols could be a huge advantage for those that are unbanked and underbanked. 

• (2:30) – What’s new in Decentralized Finance (DeFi) around the world 

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report (Coming February 2023)

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.

The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report Preview (Part 2 of 2)

Sanctions was a huge focus for regulatory bodies in 2022 and we saw an increase of designations of Russian based cryptocurrency exchanges and organizations propagating the war efforts against Ukraine.  

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by occasional co-host and Director of Research at Chainalysis, Kim Grauer, for the second part of a great conversation. 

Kim provides insights into the sanction designations and also highlights that the crypto crime report will answer whether cryptocurrency sanctions are effective. She discusses cryptocurrency recovery efforts by law enforcement and explains how much we should be weighing proof of reserves as a sign of crypto exchange solvency. 

• (2:15) – Is web3 and cryptocurrency dead?

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report (Coming February 2023)

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Tax Season: What Crypto Investors and Tax Agencies Need to Know

This podcast is for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions.

If you want to make an active crypto trader nervous there are few things that work better than reminding them there are only 2 and half months left until the US Tax filing deadline. For most people a tax return is full of arcane and complex rules that you’re not quite sure if you got everything right, but for crypto investors the rules are being written and rewritten each year.

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) had to bring Chainalysis’ in-house expert, Roger Brown (Global Head of Tax Strategy) to understand the tax principles that apply to crypto and how recreational users and institutional investors are managing bitcoin on their balance sheets. 

Roger informs us on the latest tax changes in the US and abroad and speculates on how many people are correctly reporting big crypto gains or losses. 

• (2:35) – How the ambiguity of the classification of Bitcoin, challenged traditional tax principles

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Article: Tax Gap Estimates for Tax Years 2014-2016

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Scaling Ethereum Could be the Answer for CBDCs and Web3 Ecosystem

When you are a content aggregator and you want to enable crypto payments for creators located all around the world, what do you do? Build a brand new layer-2 blockchain of course! Well probably not most of us, but that’s exactly what the team at Nahmii has undertaken.  

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by Jacobo Toll-Messia (CEO, Nahmii) to understand what makes Nahmii so useful and what’s new in the just released 3.0 version of the technology. 

Interestingly some of the first customers for the Nahmii platform are central banks looking to launch CBDCs. The platform is particularly well suited to governments and financial institutions who want to implement permissioned blockchain technology.

Minute-by-minute episode breakdown

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Website: Nahmii is a revolutionary layer-2 scaling solution for Ethereum

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report Preview (Part 1 of 2)

2022 has brought record highs when it comes to DeFi hacks, but also abnormal declines in ransomware attacks. The 2023 Crypto Crime report has the most important financial crime findings in the industry and we get a guided preview. 

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by occasional co-host and Director of Research at Chainalysis , Kim Grauer, who walks us through emerging investment and pig butchering scams and identifies the factors impacting ransomware attacks over the last 12 months. 

She provides analysis on the financial crimes affecting web3 and the impact the collapses of major crypto institutions had on the rest of the industry.  She highlights the biggest use cases for crypto around the world and the sudden movement of funds from dormant accounts held by crypto entities linked to illicit activity . 

• (3:15) –Crypto crime at an all time high and pig butchering and investment schemes emerging as leading scams

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report (Coming February 2023)

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Why Incident Response Needs are Surging Amidst New Cyber Threats

If 2021 was the year of Ransomware then 2022 definitely should be called the year of DeFi hacks. What I’m wondering is there any chance that 2023 can be the year Cyber Security teams take their revenge?  

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by two experts from the Cyber Risk team at Kroll, Christopher Ballod (Managing Director) and Jaycee Roth (Associate Managing Director) about this possibility.

Chris and Jaycee walk us through the last 18 months of cyber incidents and ransomware and highlight the changing ransomware attack vectors and changes in the cyber insurance markets. We also learn that companies are getting better at protecting themselves and are becoming less likely to pay ransoms. 

• (2:20) – Understanding the various industries Kroll is involved in and how they expanded into the cyber security and risk 

Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key.

• Website: Kroll: Risk and Financial Advisory Solutions

• Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) 

*It is noted that Kroll is a Chainalysis partner. 

This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein.

Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material.

Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material. 

Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.