The Security Service of Ukraine or SBU has discovered and raided a cryptocurrency mining farm that allegedly stole electricity from the country’s power grid. But instead of findings computers, the agency found racks with thousands of PS4 Pros stacked vertically side-by-side. As reported by Kotaku, the Ukrainian authorities confiscated over 5,000 gaming-related devices — 3,800 of which were consoles — from a warehouse right next to (and formerly owned by) the Vinnytsiaoblenergo energy distribution company.
It’s the largest cryptofarm the SBU has discovered so far, and the agency believes it’s being operated by people living in the cities of Kyiv and Vinnytsia. Apparently, the operators used special electricity meters to prevent authorities from discovering the theft, which amounted to as much as US$257,000. “At the same time,” the SBU wrote in its announcement, “the illegal withdrawal of electricity could lead to more global consequences — entire neighborhoods of Vinnytsia could be left without electricity.”
Vinnytsiaoblenergo denied any involvement in a statement sent to the Kyiv Post: “The equipment used for cryptocurrency mining has never operated on premises owned by our enterprise.” It also said that it didn’t find any evidence of electric theft and that the SBU’s findings “does not correspond to reality.” While it’s unclear at the moment whether the facility truly stole electricity or not, the SBU has published images of the PS4 Pros it found at the warehouse, which you can see below. As Kotaku notes, 3,800 consoles mean an investment of around US$1,500,000, assuming all of them are PS4 Pros.
SBU
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