Hong Kong police strengthen fight against virtual asset crimes with new task force

Hong Kong’s new cross-departmental intelligence task force on virtual assets aims to tackle the security challenges and crimes arising from Web3 while ensuring the technology is not abused, the city’s police chief has said.

Commissioner of Police Joe Chow Yat-ming revealed on Friday the city had recorded more than 1,400 reports of virtual asset-related crimes in the first eight months of the year.

He explained that the Virtual Assets Intelligence Taskforce, made up of technical experts and police officers, would enhance public-private collaboration through intelligence sharing.

“Through this collaboration, we will share intelligence with regulatory bodies and licensed digital asset service providers, improve our communication mechanisms and strengthen our joint enforcement efforts to combat virtual asset-related crimes,” he said.

The force recorded 1,463 virtual asset-related cases from January to August, including ones involving fraud, online extortion, money laundering and theft, with the amount exceeding HK$2.27 billion (US$290.5 million), according to the police chief.

While Chow noted a 16 per cent decrease in the number of cases compared with the same period last year, total financial losses had increased by 5 per cent.