Bitcoin miners who plugged in directly to a distribution board cost a utility company over $760,000 in Malaysia.
Authorities in Malaysia have raided several Bitcoin mining facilities after discovering that they were siphoning electricity for free, local media company Malay Mailreports.
Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), a major electricity and utility company in the country, reportedly lost around $760,736 (3.2 million Malaysian ringgit) in unpaid power fees to the miners.
After the malpractice was discovered, the company went on to raid 33 apartments located near Kuantan, the state capital of Pahang.
Speaking on the case, Siti Sarah Johana Mohd Said, a service developer at the utility company, said that the illegal mining facilities had been operational for over six months.
Said said the miner made use of electricity directly from the distribution board, thus bypassing the meter. This created a discrepancy in the bill.
“They paid a bill of only RM219 [$52] whereas they should have been billed RM108,000 [$25,674] a month,” Said explained.