Hasta La Gadget!

Bitcoin has gained plenty of traction in news recently, and we even covered a story on how a man threw away his old hard drive without remembering that he had $7.5 million worth of Bitcoins inside. Well, this time around, we will touch on a government’s viewpoint on Bitcoin. China’s government has allegedly prevented banks and other financial institutions in their country from trading in Bitcoin. How do analysts view this move? This could be best described to be a restrained first step when it comes to regulating the digital currency which has gained plenty of value recently, not to mentioned soared in popularity even in China.

In a statement made by the central bank alongside another quartet of agencies, it mentioned that the computer-generated currency has yet to pose a threat to China’s financial system, but needless to say, it carries with it a fair amount of risk. The statement stopped short of preventing the use of Bitcoin by individuals. After this announcement was made, the value of Bitcoins on Chinese exchanges dropped.

Generally speaking, digital currency had always been volatile, and unless you have plenty of spare cash to burn just in case it all goes south, perhaps investing your money in something more predictable might be a better idea.

China Bans Bitcoin Transactions Among Banks original content from Ubergizmo.

Arguing that it is "not a currency in the real meaning of the word," Chinese authorities have banned financial companies from using Bitcoin. This is to "protect the status of the renminbi as the statutory currency, prevent risks of money laundering and protect financial stability." [New York Times]

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Stuxnet’s Secret Twin (4,176 words)
by Ralph Langner, Foreign Policy
Pocket

Stuxnet is a pretty nasty nasty customer, especially if you happen to be a centrifuge used in the enrichment of uranium. Amazingly, the story of the first publicly acknowledged cyber weapon keeps getting more and more interesting. Ralph Langner has spent the last several years poring over code and other details of Stuxnet’s history and discovered there was an earlier version of the virus, that was even more destructive than the one unleashed on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Instead of putting the centrifuge’s motors in overdrive, it over pressurized them by closing valves designed to allow gas out. It sounds like a perfectly logical avenue of attack, until you realize that the potential for truly catastrophic failure would have quickly blown Stuxnet’s cover.

Filed under: Misc, Science, Internet

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Bitcoin, the virtual currency that has gained plenty of attention in recent times, is back in the news, but with a rather unfortunate twist to it. No, I am not referring to its value dropping to less than a dollar, but rather, one man who has spent a few years (since 2009) to mine more than 7,500 Bitcoins, might not be able to receive a single cent for all his effort. According to The Guardian, a certain James Howells of Wales claimed that he threw away an unwanted hard drive which was first installed in a Dell notebook four years back, and that notebook’s main purpose was to mine Bitcoins.

Three years ago, the notebook decided to give up the ghost, and while he took apart the machine for its parts, the hard drive remained in a drawer until he threw it away this summer without realizing the value of its contents. Howells, unfortunately, has no backups available on any of his other drives or USB flash drives. Howells even made the trip to the landfill site located near Newport, Wales in order to look for at least $7.5 million worth of Bitcoins in his hard drive but to no avail. Poor fellow, we hope that he has a slice of fortune that would help turn the situation around.

Man Throws Away Hard Drive With More Than 7,500 Bitcoins Within original content from Ubergizmo.

Bitcoins are digital currency that can be mined by computers solving mathematical puzzles. Over the years, they’ve shot up in value. They might make you rich! Maybe not! It’s a Bitcoin rush, and the mining operations are getting large, complex, and bonkers.

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