Can you make money lying down by investing 20,000 "mining"?
Changjiang Daily reporter found that private "mining" is illegal and easy to fall into the trap
□ Changjiang Daily reporter Deng Xiaolong
In recent years, my country has successively introduced a number of policies, requiring a comprehensive rectification and clean-up of virtual currency speculation and "mining" behaviors.
"I saw someone selling 'miners' online, is it legal to buy and sell 'miners'?" Recently, some netizens reported the above problem through the Wuhan city message board.
In the past few days, a reporter from Changjiang Daily found that there are still many people selling "mining machines" on many platforms such as QQ groups and Baidu Tieba. Said that it can act as an agent for overseas "mining", "you only need to pay, and you don't need to worry about the rest".
"Lying to earn" "don't need to worry"... Can such a "pie" really fall from the sky?
The reporter interviewed legal sources and learned that privately purchasing equipment for "mining" is suspected of being illegal, and the overseas "mining" of custody equipment is full of hidden dangers, and its custody contract is difficult to be protected by law.
Legal professionals remind that commodities or investments related to virtual currency must be carefully screened and invested with caution to avoid being defrauded by criminals.
■ Someone in the QQ group is selling "miners"
It is said that if you invest less than 20,000 yuan, you can "lay down and earn"
Searching the QQ group with "mining machine" as the keyword can find hundreds of relevant results, including different types of group chats such as "mining machine direct sales", "mining machine communication" and "mining machine maintenance".
The reporter combed and found that these QQ groups ranged from about 60 people to more than 1,200 people.
These groups involve multiple virtual currencies, and the sellers in the groups claim that they can set up different equipment and connect to different “mining pools” according to the needs of customers.
The reporter applied to join a QQ group called "Mining Machine Graphics Card Mining Ethereum Exchange Group" on the grounds of "wanting to buy a 'mining machine'", and was approved in less than 5 minutes.
The group information shows that there are 375 people in the group, and the number of people online is usually around 100.
Every 10 to 20 minutes, someone will post information about the sale of "mining machines" in the group, and some people will look for "mining" partners here.
For example, a message shows: "You pledge gas coins, other hardware, computer room, operation and maintenance are all covered by me, the output is five or five points, and the official website data is synchronized. The operation is in Chengdu, and the computer room is in Yichang. Welcome to visit." According to sources, the news generally means that the buyer pays a certain virtual currency deposit, and the seller provides hardware, computer room and operation and maintenance services, and the revenue generated is equally shared by both parties.
On the afternoon of the 9th, the reporter saw a message of "50 units in stock" in the group, and then added the seller as a friend and asked how to trade.
The seller said that the price of a single device ranges from more than 7,000 yuan to more than 8,000 yuan. If the quantity is large, the price can be reduced.
The seller said that it will be shipped through Debon Logistics, and it will usually arrive in two days.
"Generally, pay a 30% deposit first, and then test the machine in real time. If there is no problem, let the courier come to the company to send it out. After the courier number is issued, you can make up the balance."
The reporter called himself a novice who "just entered the pit" and asked the seller about "mining" and its benefits.
The seller said: "Just starting to play, it is recommended that you take two 588 graphics cards to dig. The price/performance ratio is currently the highest and most sought-after in the market."
According to the seller, based on the equipment he recommended, after deducting the cost of electricity, each "mining machine" has a fixed income of about 50 yuan per day.
"A machine usually pays back in seven or eight months, and you can make money after digging it for a year or two. As long as the machine is still good, you can sell the machine again. If the market is good, you can sell it more than It's expensive when you buy it. Invest less than 20,000, 'lay down and earn'."
Is there any risk in privately "mining"?
In the interview, a seller said: "Don't worry at all, as long as you don't make the surrounding area power off or the noise disturbs the people."
■ "Mining at home is a fool"
Some people switch to overseas "mining"
The reporter searched for a “mining bar” in Baidu Tieba, and there were only 5 posts in it, all of which were updated from March to June last year.
Three of them are advertisements for the sale and hosting of "miners", and two are "popular science" about "mining" related knowledge.
Is buying two machines "mining" at home really "earning"?
On the 10th, the reporter contacted one of the posters through the mobile phone number provided in the post.
She told reporters that at present, the country has clear policies that "mining" is illegal, and she does not sell "mining machines", but she can provide agency services and make money through overseas "mines".
During the conversation, the reporter lied that "I heard that there are friends around me who are 'mining' at home and the income is not bad, and I also want to buy equipment to 'enter the pit'".
Hearing this, the woman seemed a little surprised: "It is absolutely impossible for a real 'miner' to dig at home, even if he was in the country before, he used to dig in a 'mine'. Staring at it every day, it’s impossible to dig at home by yourself.”
"Actually, there are many 'pits' in this industry. The so-called 'mining' at home is to fool people." The lady also "reminds", "There are many people who use low-priced machines to attract people into the 'pits', but After you buy it, it is almost impossible to mine coins, and it is easy to be investigated and dealt with. You must find a professional custody institution like us, and thousands of machines are tied together to mine in order to generate income.”
She said that she can act as a "contact" to assist in overseas "mining" and interviews if necessary.
"You only need to pay, and you don't need to worry about the rest. A client bought it from me the year before last, and the house and car were all settled last year."
■ No longer do online "mining" related business
"Mining machine" company transforms into graphics card sales
The reporter searched the Internet and saw a job posting on a recruitment website—an internet company in a certain place is recruiting "mining machine" salespersons. The job posting was released in September 2020.
The company's introduction shows: "Mainly dedicated to the development and application of blockchain technology, the sales and custody of mainstream currency output equipment (commonly known as "mining machines") such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. 'Mining farm', in the field of 'mining machine' hosting, the company has first-class hardware facilities, a strong operation and maintenance team, and an excellent after-sales service system, which can provide customers with one-stop 'mining' services and realize national 'mining' ', allowing customers to experience the charm of blockchain in all aspects."
On the morning of the 11th, the reporter came to the company according to the address provided by the recruitment information.
The company has more than 10 employees. A male person in charge said that the current “currency market” is in a downturn, and the state has introduced a series of restrictive policies. At present, the company is no longer engaged in “mining” or “mining machine” hosting and other related businesses. Also no longer hiring salespeople.
"Our main business now is to sell graphics cards, and we don't know what buyers are doing," the person in charge said.
According to the guidance of the person in charge, reporters searched for "3070 graphics card" on platforms such as Jingdong, and a large number of search results appeared, with prices ranging from more than 4,000 yuan to more than 6,000 yuan.
The person in charge said that "3070 graphics card" is a type of graphics card used on some "miners".
"In fact, we are similar to these online businesses. We are the 'second-hand dealers' of graphics cards. We buy them back and sell them to others to make a difference." He also introduced that some graphics cards that have been eliminated or disposed of by Internet cafes are one of their sources of acquisition.
■ High energy consumption and high carbon emissions
"Mining" does more harm than good
The reporter learned that "mining" equipment generally includes electronic computing equipment (such as graphics cards, motherboards, etc.), "mining" software and "mining pool" access records, etc. "mining machine" itself has the characteristics of high energy consumption and loud noise.
In September last year, the "Notice on Rectifying Virtual Currency "Mining" Activities issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments showed that "mining" behaviors have large energy consumption and carbon emissions, low contribution to the national economy, and significant impact on the industry. Development, scientific and technological progress, etc. have a limited driving effect, and their blind and disorderly development has adverse effects on promoting high-quality economic and social development and energy conservation and emission reduction.
Relevant reports show that there was a company that used data business as a cover to carry out “mining” with an average monthly power consumption of 25 million kilowatt-hours, and the company’s annual tax payment was only 250,000 yuan.
Another media report shows that in April this year, a certain place in Zhejiang investigated and dealt with 4 corresponding illegal cases, and seized 132 "mining" equipment, which can free up energy space of about 330 tons of standard coal.
A software engineer in Wuhan said in an interview with reporters that the harm of "mining" is that the process consumes a lot of computer computing power, which will inevitably lead to a huge waste of national energy.
Moreover, the blockchain is characterized by "decentralization", but all kinds of "separate" virtual currencies are logically repeating investment and wasting computing resources.
"This process has not promoted the actual development of social productivity. Only a very small number of people have profited, but it has consumed a lot of energy, semiconductor resources, and human resources. The harm is far greater than the benefit." The software engineer said.
■ Self-purchased equipment "mining" is suspected of illegal
Hosting overseas "Nuggets" has many hidden dangers
Is it legal to buy and sell "miners" in my country?
Wang Weiqi, senior partner of Beijing Dentons Law Firm, said that "mining machines" are commodities, and buying and selling "mining machines" is like buying and selling computers, graphics cards, and hard drives, and will not involve illegal issues; mines”, is suspected of illegal.
Wang Weiqi introduced that according to the "Notice on Rectification of Virtual Currency "Mining" Activities issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments, virtual currency "mining" activities belong to the scope of national rectification, and the domestic trading purposes and functions are single and can only be used. "Mining machines" for virtual currency "mining" are illegal and can be considered to be in violation of the "Notice" that "prohibits the development of virtual currency 'mining' projects in any name".
At the same time, hosting "miners" to overseas "mines" has great risks, and cases of using bitcoin and other virtual currencies to commit crimes are not uncommon.
According to reports, if "miners" are hosted in overseas "mines" to engage in "mining", the custody contract is likely not to be protected by law.
In the event of disputes between the two parties, the court may even dismiss such cases.
Even when courts take up such cases, the validity of the contract is a major point of contention.
And such foreign-related contracts, even if the judgment wins, there may be great difficulties in the execution.
Wang Weiqi reminded that virtual currency does not have the same legal status as my country's legal currency, virtual currency trading activities have no real value support, and prices are easily manipulated. Therefore, related commodities or investments must be carefully screened and invested carefully to avoid being illegal. Molecular fraud.
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■ What is virtual currency?
exist in digital form
Cannot be used as currency in the market
Investments and transactions are not protected by law
It does not have monetary attributes such as legal compensation and compulsory
Does not have legal status equivalent to currency
■ What is virtual currency "mining"?
It is to confirm the transactions that occur in the virtual currency system for a period of time, and record them on the blockchain to form a new block.
People who "mine" are called miners.
Simply put, "mining" is the bookkeeping process, miners are bookkeepers, and blockchain is the ledger.
The essence of "mining" is that the virtual currency system issues a math problem every 10 minutes. Whoever calculates the correct answer first will get the corresponding virtual currency reward.
■ What are the hazards of "mining"?
(1) "Mining" will consume a lot of computing resources, make the system, software, and application services run slowly, and may even crash the system, resulting in data loss
(2) "Mining" of virtual currency will cause a lot of energy consumption and carbon emissions, which goes against the new development concept and is not conducive to the realization of the national carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals.
(3) Personal computers or servers are controlled by “mining” programs, resulting in data leakage or virus infection, which may easily lead to network security issues
(4) Virtual currency uses anonymous transactions, disrupts the normal financial order, and becomes a tool for money laundering, illegal asset transfer and other illegal and criminal activities
■ The pits that may be encountered when buying a "mining machine"
Seller runs away
Buying "mining machines" through online platforms such as QQ groups, it is difficult to verify and track the identity of the seller. Once the seller collects the money and runs away, the buyer's investment is "wasted"
shoddy
Sellers use low computing power "miners" to pretend to be high computing power products, or use second-hand products to pretend to be new products, quality problems are difficult to guarantee, and rights protection is difficult
MLM trap
Some APPs falsely claim that “investment is convenient, the rate of return is high, and the income of online pullers is doubled.”
"Coin Market" Crash
The virtual currency market has high risks, and related transactions are not protected by law in China. A large amount of investment in the purchase of "mining machines" has caused the "currency market" to collapse and lose everything.
This edition of drawing Liu Yan