Source:
https://scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1441960/bitcoin-value-makes-it-worthwhile-target-hackers
Hong Kong

Bitcoin value makes it worthwhile target for hackers

Members of a bitcoin trading club meet in Tokyo on February 27. A US$500 million heist that forced the Japanese exchange Mt Gox into bankruptcy has raised doubts about the bitcoin's ability to emerge as an alternative currency. Photo: AFP

A rise in the value of bitcoin is offering irresistible hacking opportunities to cybercriminals, according to a software security company.

While the virtual currency reels from a US$600,000 heist that forced Canada-based Flexcoin bank to close down this week, Goh Su Gim, from Finnish-based security software firm F-Secure, said Zero Access, a virus of the type known as a "Trojan horse", was a serious threat to the virtual currency.