Bitcoins are mined using a hashing algorithm - you can either buy a dedicated machine for Bitcoin mining or you can use your personal computer. Seems that some folks in Russia grabbed a bit more than they should have - from the Beeb:
Russian nuclear scientists arrested for 'Bitcoin mining plot'
Russian security officers have arrested several scientists working at a top-secret Russian nuclear warhead facility for allegedly mining crypto-currencies.
The suspects had tried to use one of Russia's most powerful supercomputers to mine Bitcoins, media reports say.
The Federal Nuclear Centre in Sarov, western Russia, is a restricted area.
The centre's press service said: "There has been an unsanctioned attempt to use computer facilities for private purposes including so-called mining."
The supercomputer was not supposed to be connected to the internet - to prevent intrusion - and once the scientists attempted to do so, the nuclear centre's security department was alerted. They were handed over to the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Russian news service Mash says.
Oops - that would have been awfully tempting. Connecting it to the internet was their downfall.
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