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- Tether helped recover $40,300 in stolen crypto from a December 2024 political fraud involving a fake email.
- The DOJ praised Tether’s role in recovering assets and freezing suspicious transactions in criminal cases.
- Circle criticized for ignoring USDC use by North Korean hackers despite clear evidence.
Tether also contributed to assisting authorities in recovering $40,300 worth of stolen cryptocurrency in a political fraud case. The scam was committed in December 2024, according to the July 2 release, when the fraudsters were masking as representatives of the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee. They fooled a political donor into sending $250,300 of USDT on the Ethereum network through a cunningly disguised email address.
The scammers altered the email address by changing an upper-case I with a lower-case L to get a deceptive, similar address. This led the e-mail to look authentic. The unsuspecting donor sent money, believing that the request was genuine. After receiving the cryptocurrency from the fraudsters, it was swiftly transferred to multiple wallets in order to cover the traces. Nevertheless, law enforcers tracked the money and retrieved 40,300 dollars.
Tether’s Role in Crypto Recovery
Tether was publicly acknowledged by the Department of Justice (DOJ) of the United States in the recovery of the assets. The DOJ’s release stated that Tether assisted in transferring these assets. This recognition confirms the assistance Tether provided using its services to prevent the scam and retrieve the obtained sums. The support of Tether assisted authorities in tracking and preventing additional illicit transactions related to the scam.
The recovery is another addition to Tether working with law enforcement to freeze criminal funds. In June, Tether was also claimed by the DOJ to have helped to take down a $225 million crypto scam scheme, so-called pig-butchering. The ability to freeze suspicious accounts and assist in the criminal investigation has earned Tether commendation for its rapid response time. This rapid action has served the company well in stopping future malicious activities within the crypto sector.
Circle Faces Criticism
Meanwhile, similar issues are facing criticism in another stablecoin issuer, Circle. On-chain analyst ZachXBT has recently claimed that Circle was not taking notice of the increasing usage of its USDC stablecoin by North Korean hackers and others. Although wallet transactions involving sanctioned individuals are clear, Circle has failed to act on the information to freeze these accounts.
Tether is following this trend by getting closer to law enforcement agencies, which reflects a change in its compliance culture. The company has previously been accused of having no controls, but now is demonstrating being more proactive. Tether is eager to cooperate with the authorities because it wants to make sure that the crypto industry is not corrupt.
Freezing suspicious transactions and other assistance to investigations means Tether helps secure the cryptocurrency market against fraud. Its initiatives show the role of adherence and collaboration in combating illegal behaviour in the digital asset environment.
