Bitcoin - ###Mod Note in 1st Post - Please Read###

Yesterday, a guy woke up to find that nearly $500,000-worth of virtual cash had been plucked from his computer by a thief. The first of the big Bitcoin heists is upon us! If you've spent any time in the nerdier parts of the internet in recent months, you know that Bitcoin is the hyper-trendy, virtual currency championed by geek libertarians, hackers and drug dealers. Completely decentralized, open-source, and nearly anonymous, Bitcoin functions essentially as digital cash. Users can store their bitcoins in an electronic wallet file on their computer, as opposed to in a bank or Paypal account. Unfortunately, like cash, Bitcoins are gone forever if they're stolen or the computer they're on is destroyed.
A high-rolling geek who goes by the handle Allinvain claims that on Monday afternoon, someone pilfered 25,000 Bitcoins from his wallet file and deposited them into another anonymous account. At the current exchange rate of $18.72 per Bitcoin, that's about $467,500. (Though the exchange rate has reached as high as ~$29 in recent days.)
"I feel like killing myself now," an anguished Allinvain wrote on the Bitcoin forums after discovering the theft. He was an early adopter of Bitcoin back in 2010 and had held onto his currency from when it was worth just pennies. "I remember watching the price like a hawk," he writes. His plan was to cash out eventually and use his earnings to open up a Bitcoin business. "Needless to say, I feel like I have lost faith in Bitcion," he wrote.
Allinvain says that he had noticed some strange activity with his computer that suggests it had been hacked. Although he can't rule out that someone had physically stolen his Bitcoin wallet file from his computer.
Geeks everywhere are in an uproar over the theft, debating whether it was made possible by a Bitcoin security flaw or stupidity on the part of Allinvain. Another forum user said he had been hit by a hacker who had transferred his Bitcoins to the same account that was used to empty Allinvain's, which has led to speculation that a serial Bitcoin robber is on the loose.
"That's one thing about bitcoins. There's no FDIC or SIPC watching your back," wrote a commenter on Hacker News. "It's the wild west with train robberies and stage coach heists in all."

Mezcita wrote: »

No they wouldn't. Price when the thread first started at the end of December 2010 was $0.3 per bitcoin. Current price is close to $15.00



Before the hack it was close to $30.00 Price is now around $15.00. It's ultra volatile.

http://bitcoincharts.com/charts/mtgoxUSD#rg180zvztgCzm1g10zm2g25

alb wrote: »

Dug this up as it's hilarious reading back on the posts from 3 years ago now, I hope anyone involved back then still has a few coins for themselves worth quite a bit now.

I've been posting about the economic and speculative side of Bitcoin a bit on the investments forum lately but I'm wondering are there any bricks and mortar shops/pubs etc in Dublin, or even elsewhere in Ireland accepting Bitcoin yet? Anyone know of any?

slasher_65 wrote: »

Smells like a scam to me.

digme wrote: »

bitcoin owner may own 1.5 million bitcoins.This is the funniest thing I've heard all year.If you are retarded enough to have
some of these I'd sell them right now as you are getting taken for a ride.You can bet your ass he's the one selling them for 30 dollars a pop to gullible idiots. So 30 times 1.6 million is a lot of money,obviously he's not selling them all but he is offloading them at a nice rate for a new yacht or something along those lines.

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

pyramid scheme

The Scientician wrote: »

Essentially. It's amazing reading up on it. Some people fervently believe this is gonna protect them from economic woes, government tyranny etc. and help them buy weed anonymously .

Eric Cartman wrote: »

wonderful idea in theory but after they reach a high value and people stop buying them all the people who got in early and mined coins will start selling them , the price will keep falling as everyone sells their coins and it will be dead again in 3-4 years

blubloblu wrote: »

It pretty much is, but not intentionally. If people just use it to speculate, it's essentially a ponzi scheme. If it's used as a currency, it actually has potential, but this isn't happening on any kind of scale right now.

digme wrote: »

I'll give you a piece of paper if you run around the block, same idea....
might aswell be selling dingle berries on farmville for real money.....

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

if it's used as a currency

the revenue will take an interest, like they have done with every other medium of transfer so far

if someone figures out a better algorithm the currency will be worthless

NSA could pull the plug if they wanted using spare computer time

if it turns out that a botnet is being used to generate them then the PR will kill it

Deleted User wrote: »

Bitcoin is another CIA psy-op...there, i said it..

Amhran Nua wrote: »

It smells like your common or garden pyramid scheme. The first few in get the most benefit, then more and more people are needed to keep it going, and each level of the pyramid has an incentive to get more in underneath them.

I'm not saying that's what it is, but thats what it smells like.

Mr. Incognito wrote: »

Ich don't think so - Just because there is a fools gold rush now doesn't mean it'll last.

It's a currency based on ....... nothing only supply and demand.

It's a global pyramid scheme