Bitcoin Miner Heist - From Iceland To China

[howlermunkey]

Given the surge in popularity of cryptocurrencies over the past few years, mining has become a seriously lucrative endeavor. All over the world miners have set up operations, big and small, as they look to capitalize on dwindling Bitcoin rewards from processing transactions and validating the blockchain.

With plenty at stake, the costs of setting up even a small operation can be hefty, from the actual hardware to cooling systems and electricity consumption. However, those with enough capital to buy the best hardware, namely ASIC miners, put themselves in a commanding position.

But that also makes them a target for criminals. Whether these crooks want to hack your system and steal your valuable cryptocurrency or make off with your physical hardware, the potential dangers are real.

The latter scenario grabbed headlines this month, as over 600 computers used to mine Bitcoin have been seized in China, valued at over $2 mln alone.

From Iceland to China?
The seized equipment is being linked to a series of thefts in Iceland late last year. Three separate incidents spanning from December to January led to a total of 600 computers being stolen by a number of culprits.

The Associated Press reported that eleven people were initially arrested, while two men were kept in custody for the burglaries -- one of which took place in January at a data center that was housing computers used for Bitcoin mining.

Icelandic IT firm Advania produced surveillance footage of thieves stealing computers from a data center in Reykjanesbær in January, which positively identified the two men that were in custody, according to local news outlet Visir.

https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin- ... d-to-china