Arizona legislator David Schweikert presented “The Scam Farms Marque and Reprisal Authorization Act of 2025” in August, which suggests neo-privateers — state-licensed raiders — to tackle cybercriminals involved in threats against the United States.
The measure empowers the US president to issue letters of marque to “privately armed and equipped individuals” contracted by the government to “utilize all means reasonably necessary” to confiscate property and detain or “punish” cybercriminals identified as a threat by the president.
These threats encompass crypto theft, pig butchering scams, ransomware assaults, identity theft, unauthorized access to computers to acquire sensitive personal or classified data, online password trafficking, and infiltrating computers with harmful code. The measure stated:
“Criminal organizations that engage in cybercrimes and coerced labor pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the economic and national security of the United States.”
The bill classified the scams as “acts of war” executed by individuals, organized crime syndicates, and foreign states against the US, marking a revival of an 18th-century statute that may have implications for the future of cybersecurity and asset confiscation if enacted.
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US could channel seized assets into Bitcoin reserve and national crypto stockpile
Over $142 million in crypto was lost to hackers in July, and the cumulative amount of crypto stolen so far in 2025 exceeds $3 billion. Stolen crypto confiscated by US law enforcement officials in investigations could later be forfeited to the government in legal proceedings.
US President Donald Trump enacted an executive order in January establishing a Bitcoin and crypto reserve, which could only accumulate crypto through budget-neutral methods or asset forfeiture.
In July, the US federal government filed a civil action to claim over 20 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at over $2.3 million, seized by the Dallas, Texas, division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) during an operation against the Chaos ransomware hacker group.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) also confiscated $1 million in crypto from the BlackSuit ransomware group during the same month.
In August, the DOJ approved the seizure of $2.8 million in crypto from a wallet controlled by Ianis Aleksandrovich Antropenko, who was charged with targeting individuals and businesses with ransomware assaults.
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