A review of research in forensic investigation of cryptocurrencies

Abstract

In the last decade, use of cryptocurrencies in various fields has increased phenomenally. It offers many benefits to the users. It also has emerged as one of the major challenges for law enforcement agencies across the world. Research has been conducted to identify forensic artefacts for various cryptocurrencies used in different wallets and on different platforms. This paper aims to analyse and sum up the existing literature on forensic investigation of cryptocurrencies. This review paper makes mention of forensic investigation of six different cryptocurrencies, 30 different types of wallets and 49 different types of forensic artefacts. It also mentions 25 different tools used in forensic investigation. The paper briefs about seven different cryptocurrency visualisation and analysis tools. Finally, the paper highlights research gaps in this field.