After allegedly infecting computers with malware to mine Bitcoins, two people are arrested by the German police. December 4, 2013 8:04 PM PST (Credit: CNET) One of regulators' biggest worries about virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, is that they're susceptible to fraud, counterfeiting, and manipulation. Well, two people in Germany apparently just proved this was possible. The pair is accused of illegally generating nearly $1 million worth of Bitcoins, according to the Associated Press. German police nabbed the two people during a computer fraud investigation earlier this week. No further details on the arrests were available. Related stories Kentucky police chief to be paid in Bitcoin UK man tries to retrieve $7.5 million in bitcoins from dump Bitcoin value soars above $1,000 on Mt. Gox exchange Retailers set to offer Bitcoin Black Friday deals Turnabout is fair play: Bitcoins mined with Adafruit's miner used to buy Adafruit products The authorities' investigation centered around the belief that the suspects were disseminating malware on the Internet to create a network of hacked computers they could control remotely. According to the Associated Press, the alleged perpetrators then used these computers to generate Bitcoins. This isn't the first time someone has been accused of illegally generating Bitcoins. Last month, online video game company E-Sports Entertainment agreed to pay a settlement fee of $1 million after being accused of infecting thousands of customers' computers to illegally mine Bitcoins. Despite these arrests and regulators' worries, Bitcoin is steadily growing in popularity. Not only is the virtual currency trading at an all-time high -- hitting the $1,000 mark on the Mt. Gox exchange last week -- but it's also being used by more and more retailers. Earlier on Wednesday, a small town in Kentucky even said it would pay its police chief in Bitcoin.
After allegedly infecting computers with malware to mine Bitcoins, two people are arrested by the German police.
One of regulators' biggest worries about virtual currencies, like Bitcoin, is that they're susceptible to fraud, counterfeiting, and manipulation. Well, two people in Germany apparently just proved this was possible.
The pair is accused of illegally generating nearly $1 million worth of Bitcoins, according to the Associated Press. German police nabbed the two people during a computer fraud investigation earlier this week. No further details on the arrests were available.
Related stories
- Kentucky police chief to be paid in Bitcoin
- UK man tries to retrieve $7.5 million in bitcoins from dump
- Bitcoin value soars above $1,000 on Mt. Gox exchange
- Retailers set to offer Bitcoin Black Friday deals
- Turnabout is fair play: Bitcoins mined with Adafruit's miner used to buy Adafruit products
The authorities' investigation centered around the belief that the suspects were disseminating malware on the Internet to create a network of hacked computers they could control remotely. According to the Associated Press, the alleged perpetrators then used these computers to generate Bitcoins.
This isn't the first time someone has been accused of illegally generating Bitcoins. Last month, online video game company E-Sports Entertainment agreed to pay a settlement fee of $1 million after being accused of infecting thousands of customers' computers to illegally mine Bitcoins.
Despite these arrests and regulators' worries, Bitcoin is steadily growing in popularity. Not only is the virtual currency trading at an all-time high -- hitting the $1,000 mark on the Mt. Gox exchange last week -- but it's also being used by more and more retailers. Earlier on Wednesday, a small town in Kentucky even said it would pay its police chief in Bitcoin.
