Researchers have said that the Bitcoin boom is driving drug dealers and people who use it to engage in malicious activities, to explore the use of other digital currencies. What’s more, Litecoin could be the cryptocurrency of choice for criminals.

Interest surrounding the market has increased, and Bitcoin is becoming widespread knowledge. This is a problem for cybercriminals and has resulted in such characters moving away from the world’s most significant digital currency. Bitcoin’s decentralised and unidentified structure meant it was appealing to online criminals. However, the rise in the cryptocurrency has meant it has now become too mainstream to be used by criminalseffectively.

Most digital asset payouts involve a transaction fee and take a long time to process. Bitcoin’s increase in value meant a reduced rate of transactions and increased fees. In research carried out by interest technology company, Recorded Future, some criminals were waiting 24 hours to receive their money which left them exposed to the risk of being scammed.

Recorded Future also predicted that as criminals move away from Bitcoin, interest will turn to Litecoin and Dash. Drug dealers have already been using Dash and Litecoin is quickly becoming popular amongst underground criminals. Andrei Barysevich, a Director at Recorded Future, said that criminals want to ensure it is easy for their customers to pay.