Technology & Digital Applications Flashcards

A Treasury agent is investigating a tax evasion scheme using offshore bank accounts. Which international framework enables automatic exchange of financial account information between countries?

Answer: The OECD's Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and FATCA

FATCA (U.S.) and the OECD's CRS require foreign financial institutions to report account information on foreign nationals to their respective tax authorities.

In digital investigations, what is the significance of 'write blockers' when examining seized storage media?

Answer: They prevent any data from being written to the original media during examination, preserving evidence integrity

Write blockers physically or logically prevent any writes to the original storage device, ensuring the forensic examination does not alter or contaminate the evidence.

What is 'smurfing' in the context of financial crimes technology investigations?

Answer: Breaking large sums of illicit money into smaller deposits made by multiple individuals to avoid detection thresholds

Smurfing is a form of structuring where multiple individuals each deposit amounts below the $10,000 CTR threshold to launder larger sums undetected.

When an agent encounters a running computer during a search, which forensic principle guides whether to pull the power or perform a 'live acquisition'?

Answer: Consider whether volatile data (RAM contents, active network connections) has higher investigative value than risks of powering down

RAM contains volatile data like encryption keys and running processes that disappear on shutdown, so agents must weigh the value of live acquisition against evidence risks.

Which tool is commonly used by financial investigators to visualize connections between entities, bank accounts, and transactions in complex money laundering networks?

Answer: Link analysis software such as Analyst's Notebook or Palantir

Link analysis tools like Analyst's Notebook visualize relationships between entities, helping investigators map complex criminal networks and financial flows.

A suspect is using prepaid debit cards purchased with cash to move illicit funds. Which regulatory requirement was designed to increase traceability of these instruments?

Answer: FinCEN rules requiring registration and identity verification for prepaid cards above certain thresholds

FinCEN regulations under the BSA require prepaid card programs to implement AML programs including identity verification for cards above threshold values.

What is the primary purpose of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in relation to technology-enabled financial crimes?

Answer: To set international standards and promote implementation of measures to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, including for virtual assets

FATF issues global standards (Recommendations) that countries must implement, including Recommendation 15 on virtual assets and virtual asset service providers.