US SEC Announces CETU Unit to Curb Crypto Fraud and Maintain Market Integrity

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has established the Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit (CETU) to combat crypto-related cybercrimes. This new division will target illicit activities enabled by advanced technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and blockchain. The move follows US President Donald Trump's recent creation of a crypto-friendly task force aimed at shaping the sector's regulatory framework.

CETU was officially announced by the SEC on February 20 and will be replacing the US' former ‘Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit'. According to the SEC, this new unit will consist of over 30 cyber specialists as well as attorneys to help law enforcement agencies in their probes over crypto-related crimes. Attorney Laura D'Allaird has been appointed as the head of this unit. She confirmed the development on LinkedIn.

The CETU will primarily focus on cracking down on fraud conducted through social media, the dark web, and spam websites, the SEC stated. It will also work to prevent hacking attempts aimed at accessing nonpublic information.

Moving forward, the CETU will also be working with SEC's crypto-focused Task Force to deploy enforcement resources judiciously.

“The unit will not only protect investors but will also facilitate capital formation and market efficiency by clearing the way for innovation to grow. It will root out those seeking to misuse innovation to harm investors and diminish confidence in new technologies,” said SEC's chairman Mark T. Uyeda.

Details about the unit's other members remain undisclosed for now.

Without regulatory oversight, the crypto sector has been vulnerable to scams and hacks worldwide, resulting in significant losses. Over the weekend, Dubai-based Bybit reported a hack, with analysts estimating nearly $1.5 billion (roughly Rs. 13,006 crore) in stolen tokens. In December last year, Chainalysis revealed that funds stolen from crypto platforms had surged by 21 percent over the previous year.

At a time when President Trump is aiming to make the US the crypto capital of the planet, it does not come as a surprise that the White House is paying attention on ensuring the safety of US' crypto community. President Trump has appointed officials to analyse the impact and feasibility of a Bitcoin-based reserve for the US.

The US is enlisting traditional financial institutions to collaborate with its crypto task force and propose measures to enhance industry security. Morgan Stanley, for example, will work with regulators to explore a safe and structured integration of crypto within the existing financial system.