Award-Winning Israeli Tech Tackles Human Trafficking and Money Laundering

ThetaRay, a leading Israeli technology company with over a billion users primarily in the fintech and banking industry, is leveraging its advanced technology to combat human trafficking and money laundering. The company’s efforts aim to protect the estimated 25 million people globally, both adults and children, who are trapped in various forms of human trafficking.

Criminals who fund terrorism or run illegal scams often use money laundering to disguise their funds and appear legitimate. This issue is exacerbated by the rise of digital currencies, which operate on the blockchain and frequently escape the notice of banks. The increasing digital sophistication of human traffickers necessitates cutting-edge technology to detect and root out these crimes.

ThetaRay employs proprietary and patented algorithms to efficiently detect anomalies in unlimited data sets, reliably pinpointing suspected cases of money laundering and human trafficking. Criminals often rely on fake identities to attract new victims and execute their schemes, while also hiding their money in cryptocurrency to avoid detection by financial authorities.

The principle of “follow the money” is crucial in tracking criminal behavior, and ThetaRay’s AI and machine learning capabilities can “read” behaviors that provide clues for law enforcement. Gal Bar, ThetaRay Transaction Monitoring Product Manager, explained, “Our solution can identify suspicious transaction patterns indicative of human trafficking. However, the true power lies in our ability to contextualize and enrich these models with customer-specific data and risk typologies.”

ThetaRay collaborates closely with financial institutions to update algorithms and analyze transaction data, enabling the pinpointing of funds used for human trafficking and uncovering the true identities of those involved. The company's technology provides critical support in the fight against these heinous crimes, offering a powerful tool for law enforcement and financial authorities.

In recognition of their innovative efforts, ThetaRay and Santander earned the “Best Use of Data” Digital Transformation Award in 2024 for Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery Detection. This accolade highlights the significant impact of ThetaRay’s technology in addressing some of the most pressing issues of our time.

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