JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: ‘Massive Proceeds’ From Online Crime And Unknown Destinations Of Money Pose Security Risk That ‘Cannot Be Ignored’

In testimony today, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jason Weinstein told members of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism that cybercriminals are posing “ongoing threats” to the U.S. information and financial infrastructure.

The threats are posed by “nation-states, criminals, and terrorists who exploit our pervasive dependency on information technology to misappropriate or destroy information, steal money, and threaten basic services, including those provided by critical infrastructures,” Weinstein told the panel.

“We face the challenges of organized crime, botnets, identity theft, and carding, to name just a few,” Weinstein said.

“The massive proceeds from these online crimes create another troubling issue,” he said. “It is too soon to say where that money ends up, but the risk that it could be used to influence foreign governments, distort foreign justice systems, and fund terrorists cannot be ignored.”

Read Weinstein’s opening statement to the Senate panel.