SEC forms Cyber and Emerging Tech Unit

The Securities and Exchange Commission has created a Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit, a new enforcement group aimed at fraud tied to crypto, artificial intelligence and cyber intrusions. (sec.gov) The agency announced the unit on February 20, 2025, and said it would be led by Laura D’Allaird. It replaced the older Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit and started with about 30 fraud specialists and attorneys across multiple Securities and Exchange Commission offices. (sec.gov) The new unit’s brief is broader than crypto alone. The Securities and Exchange Commission said it would pursue misconduct involving blockchain-based securities transactions, artificial-intelligence claims used to mislead investors, account takeovers, cybersecurity failures, social-media market manipulation and fraud on the dark web. (sec.gov) A separate Crypto Task Force is handling a different job. The task force says it is focused on clarifying how federal securities laws apply to crypto assets and on recommending policy measures, while the enforcement unit is built to investigate and litigate fraud cases. (sec.gov 1) (sec.gov 2) That split reflects a broader shift at the agency in 2025 and 2026. In its fiscal 2025 enforcement report, released April 7, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission said the unit was launched to complement the Crypto Task Force and to protect investors in cases involving blockchain technology, artificial intelligence, account takeovers and cybersecurity. (sec.gov) The same report showed where enforcement resources went. The agency said it filed 456 total enforcement actions in fiscal 2025, including 200 standalone actions, and described investor harm, market integrity and retail protection as its core priorities. (sec.gov) For readers outside securities law, the distinction is simple: the Crypto Task Force writes the road map, and the Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit acts like the cop on the beat. One group works on legal clarity for tokens and trading platforms; the other targets scams, hacks and deceptive pitches that use new technology as the hook. (sec.gov 1) (sec.gov 2) That matters as crypto products and artificial-intelligence marketing claims keep colliding with traditional securities rules. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Crypto Task Force has been collecting written input and meeting with firms and lawyers in 2026, including submissions on tokenized United States equity securities and decentralized-finance trading protocols. (sec.gov 1) (sec.gov 2) The agency has also been updating its public crypto guidance. On March 17, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an interpretation on how federal securities laws apply to certain crypto assets and transactions, with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission joining the announcement. (sec.gov) The result is a two-track approach now taking shape at the regulator: one team is trying to define the rules for crypto markets, and another is already set up to bring cases when artificial-intelligence, blockchain or cyber tools are used to cheat investors. (sec.gov) (sec.gov)