Crypto in Wartime

As Russia’s war on Ukraine continues, questions have been raised about whether Putin will use cryptocurrencies to evade punitive economic sanctions. As Marsha Simone Cadogan explains, there are many ways in which a crypto-friendly government could navigate around economic barriers, especially if that government has tacit allies. To have real weight, sanctions will need to isolate the target from the crypto space and, at the same time, appeal to blockchain’s core community.

On March 16, a crudely manipulated video, falsely depicting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy surrendering, circulated on social media. A chorus of experts are warning that such deepfakes may soon become so sophisticated that they are undetectable to the average eye. Disinformation, foreign interference, fraud and conspiracy will worsen as these forgeries become indiscernible from reality, writes Kyle Hiebert; a vigilant, critical press will remain key to flagging digital hoaxes.

Strategic intelligence leaks are not new, but the level of strategic sharing before the Russian invasion of Ukraine is considered unprecedented. Intelligence agencies’ declassification and sharing of information to defend critical infrastructure and democratic institutions is welcome, as are online unclassified briefings to provide transparency to the public. However, Stephanie Carvin argues, we must understand the conditions that created success before generalizing this approach in the future.

In Canada, the Access to Information Act is intended to enhance public transparency and accountability through disclosure of records under government control. However, citizens’ ability to obtain records surrounding technologies the government is using to make decisions that profoundly affect them — namely, artificial intelligence or automated decision-making tools — is profoundly constrained by exemptions in that very act. Matt Malone explores the problem in this policy brief.