Malaysian authorities formed a joint task force that used high-tech drones and police on the ground to find and shut down nearly 14,000 illegal Bitcoin mining rigs, according to a Bloomberg report on Thursday.
Drones hover over buildings looking for thermal heat signatures, while police on the ground scan areas with sensors that detect illegal use of electricity. Neighbors often call in to complain about strange noises, only for police officials to find crypto-mining rigs.
State-owned utility Tenaga Nasional (TNB) recently reported that illegal crypto miners have stolen $1.1 billion from the national grid since 2020.
“The risk of allowing such activities to happen is no longer about stealing,” said Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir, deputy minister for energy transition and water transformation, who chairs the panel. “You can actually even break our facilities. It will be a challenge to our system.”
This $1.1 billion is enough to fund the basic food needs of over 567,000 people for an entire year in Malaysia, based on US Department of Agriculture figures that the average Malaysian consumer spent approx. US$1,940 annually on food in 2023. Alternatively, it is enough to supply electricity for one year to approx. University North Malaysia.
It is not the first time that the Malaysian authorities have announced an action. In May, the number of power thefts increased by 300% between 2018 and the end of 2024, leading to the shutdown of nearly 2,400 illegal bitcoin mining operations.
TNB did not immediately respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment.
