The United States on Tuesday imposed restrictions on cryptocurrency transactions involving extortion and money laundering as President Joe Biden’s administration sought to curb digital crime after a recent rise in its rates.

The U.S. Treasury, which announced the ban, did not say whether the SOX platform was involved in any crimes, but indicated that 40 percent of its transaction history was associated with “illegal parties.”

Attacks to hack companies’ organizations and demand the release of their information have caused global chaos, targeting the American oil pipeline, the meat baking company and Microsoft Email, and exposing the vulnerability of US infrastructure to hackers.

“Some virtual currency trades are exploited by malicious actors, while others facilitate illegal transactions in the SOX case for illicit gain,” says a Treasury report, the first of its kind against a cryptocurrency exchange.

As a result of the restrictions, any assets on the SOX site are now restricted and subject to US jurisdiction, in addition to preventing Americans from trading them.

Sox is registered in the Czech Republic and has branches in Russia and the Middle East.

Experts from ChinaAs said they noticed a large number of transfers from unknown sources on the platform.

They said the U.S. position was important because it represented Washington’s “big step” against money laundering, the main cause of digital crime.

The United States has warned companies and individuals who pay bribes to hackers to recover their files and data.

About $ 350 million was paid to online extortionists last year, an increase of 300 percent over 2019, according to the Department of Homeland Security.