Singapore and The Netherlands are working together to combat cybercrime by incorporating blockchain analytics solutions
The Hague and Singapore, 4 October, 2021 – The Netherlands’ CFLW Cyber Strategies BV (CFLW) and Singapore’s TAU Express Pte Ltd (TAU) have signed a Partnership Collaboration Agreement to develop new technologies for combating high-tech financial crime. This collaboration combines CFLW’s strengths in OSINT solutions such as Dark Web monitoring with TAU’s AI-enabled Intelligence Analytics capabilities. The partnership will develop cutting-edge technologies to fight cyber-enabled financial crimes.
Together, CFLW and TAU Express will work on Project BIANCO, an acronym for Breaking Illicit Virtual Asset Networks with Crypto analytics Open sources. This project aims to tackle financial crimes involving cryptocurrencies or other virtual assets. The CFLW-TAU partnership will develop new technologies to promote trusted transactions in the digital economy by augmenting existing tools for customer due diligence and transaction monitoring processes, enhancing capabilities in cyber intelligence analytics, as well as supplementing blockchain analytics solutions already available in the market. The project is co-funded by the GlobalStars programme of the EUREKA Network.
“The Netherlands and Singapore are both small, open economies. Together, CFLW and TAU can develop dynamic and adaptable solutions that are sought after in today’s global business context to counter the abuse of virtual assets and other FinTech innovations. By bringing together our technologies, we co-create a unique value proposition that combines technological innovation with relentless pursuit of rigorous solutions.” says Dr. Mark van Staalduinen, Managing Director of CFLW.
As the frequency of cyberattacks and data breaches continues to rise, financial institutions and other virtual asset service providers (VASPs) face a myriad of evolving threats from cybercriminals and advanced persistent threat (APT) groups. These threat actors mount sophisticated attacks, steal corporate information, and sell data obtained via illicit means on the dark web. The tracking and identification of these threat actors is an extremely challenging task due to the borderless and somewhat pseudo-anonymous nature of cyberspace. To manage this, CFLW and TAU will develop new technologies to analyse, break and disrupt financial crimes which exploit virtual assets as means of payment for illicit transactions.
“Our partnership addresses the existing market need for actionable intelligence by employing smart algorithms to deliver high quality insights and operational perspectives. In addition to technological breakthroughs, this partnership creates opportunities for both companies in foreign markets. For TAU, this is an invaluable opportunity to tap into the European market, and vice versa for CFLW in relation to Southeast Asia.” says Prof. Lam Kwok Yan, co-founder of TAU, an R&D spin-off from Nanyang Technological University Singapore.
About CFLW Cyber Strategies BV
Propelled by ambition to disrupt criminal activities that abuse cyberspace and emergent technologies, CFLW Cyber Strategies provides solutions at the intersection of strategy and technology, to stay secure in the digital transformation journey and navigate through the converging cyber-physical and cyber-financial realm.
Drawing on CFLW’s long track record, international experience, and technical expertise, they craft solutions that focus on:
- Disruption of Dark Web and Virtual Assets abuse
- Strengthening Cyber Security in Emergent Technologies
- Advancing Human Capital by Research and Development
At CFLW Cyber Strategies, solutions rethink cyber threats through the eyes of the adversary.
About TAU Express
Established in 2018 as an R&D spinoff from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU), TAU Express specializes in using AI for intelligence analytics. At TAU, we have developed a platform technology leveraging on proprietary Natural Language Processing, Topic Modelling, and other Machine Learning techniques. The AI-enabled platform is capable of parsing, analysing and visualizing large volumes of unstructured data, and has been implemented in projects spearheaded by both the public and private sectors to facilitate research and analysis of emerging threats and trends in the cyber landscape.
