Cryptocurrencies as a means of committing crimes in the field of illegal trafficking of narcotic and psychotropic substances in modern conditions

The problems of drug crime at the present stage lie in the widespread introduction of information technologies into the process of committing criminal acts. The drug business, like any legal business, is based on the principles of extracting maximum profit and ensuring safe existence and functioning for the longest possible period of time. These and a number of other principles can be provided by information technologies, namely new economic instruments, such as digital financial assets and digital currencies (cryptocurrencies). Despite the fact that cryptocurrencies, as an information and economic phenomenon, have existed for more than 15 years, many aspects of its generation, functioning, and use, including use for criminal purposes, still remain unexplored. Since cryptocurrencies have a high value on the cryptocurrency market, are accessible to users and are able to provide relative anonymity, they find their spread in the criminal environment. It is the presented factors that indicate the need to study the extent and influence of cryptocurrencies on the criminal drug environment. The author concludes that it is necessary to study cryptocurrencies from a legal, information and technical point of view, since the fight against drug crime requires an integrated approach. It was concluded that in the near future, the most effective way to combat drug crime and introduce cryptocurrency into it is to develop a user identification mechanism based on the modern capabilities of the competent government agencies.