Mining Bitcoin with stolen electricity == Money Laundering (says Dutch Police)(powned.tv)

25 pointsby SchizoDuckievor 12 Jahren0 comments

Mining Bitcoin with stolen electricity == Money Laundering (says Dutch Police)

http://www.powned.tv/nieuws/tech/2014/04/bitcoin_witwassen.html

7 comments

"Theft Of Electricity" (on the basis that a computer doing something for an unauthorised user would consume more electricity than if that user was not issuing commands) was one of the first offences used in the UK to prosecute computer hackers in the early 1980s, before specific hacking legislation was introduced.

Obviously, not a whole lot of electricity - fractions of a penny, at a time - but enough of a "wrongdoing" to get the case into court.

Zr40vor 12 Jahren

This title is incorrect. 'Openbaar Ministerie' is the Dutch public prosecutor, not the police.

adaml_623vor 12 Jahren

By definition if you obtain any monetary benefit from a criminal act then it is Money Laundering. It encompasses a lot of different possible activities. Tax evasion is a crime but if you take that money and transfer it to an overseas account then that is money laundering.

return0vor 12 Jahren

Money laundering is about legalizing stolen money, not the stealing itself.

fjcaetanovor 12 Jahren

One could argue that anything stolen is money stolen

gpvosvor 12 Jahren

Original article (also in Dutch): http://tweakers.net/nieuws/95169/politie-pakt-nederlander-me...

sltkrvor 12 Jahren

Original original article: http://www.politie.nl/nieuws/2014/april/2/08-ilegale-bitcoin...

lowlevelvor 12 Jahren

Sounds perfectly reasonable to me... it's certainly not the most efficient method.

jacob_smithvor 12 Jahren

Would this stand in the US where the IRS recently declared Bitcoin a possession and not currency?

momentarilyvor 12 Jahren

Isn't it just theft of services?

lucozadevor 12 Jahren

The stealing of the electricity is theft. The money laundering is converting that electricity to a form i.e. Bitcoins, that can be washed through the financial system. So there are 2 separate crimes.

hgavor 12 Jahren

If someone is stealing electricity to mine Bitcoins, it's quite plausible he's doing other illegal acts like "money laundering"

trafficlightvor 12 Jahren

If you are running a torrent client, you're probably downloading illegally.

berioutiyvor 12 Jahren

If you are alive and breathing, you are probably violating some law already.