A 16-year-old boy from east London, accused of raising cryptocurrency and offering cyber expertise to Al Qaeda, has been granted bail with restricted digital access, allowing him to use his PlayStation only offline.

Prosecutors allege that the teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, attempted to raise approximately $1,300 in cryptocurrency for extremist groups, including Al Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban, according to a Wednesday report. report by The Standard.

Appearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, the teenager pleaded not guilty to five charges including fundraising for terrorism, training and possession of documents of a nature useful for terrorism-related purposes.

Under the conditions of his bail, the boy must comply with a nighttime curfew, avoid social media and restrict the use of laptops to educational purposes only.

However, you retain limited use of your PlayStation console, with conditions prohibiting online multiplayer or any interactive gaming platforms.

The case against the teenager will move to the Old Bailey, the UK’s central criminal court, for a hearing on November 2.

Although the use of cryptocurrencies by terrorist organizations constitutes a relatively small portion of illicit transactions within the industry, it is still an important part. concern for regulators worldwide.

Criminal activity involving cryptocurrencies ranges from money laundering and ransomware to fraud, but transactions linked to terrorism represent a fraction of these activities, according to the blockchain analysis firm. Chain analysis.

Still, the transparent nature of blockchain technology allows law enforcement to track and trace illicit activities more effectively than with traditional financial channels, as each transaction is recorded in a public ledger.

That transparency helps authorities monitor the flow of funds and identify suspicious patterns, making it easier to dismantle criminal networks that leverage digital assets, according to a report. former CIA director.

Last year Israel seized around 40 cryptocurrency wallets linked to the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based militant organization.

It marked the “first incident of this magnitude” carried out by Israel at the time.