Brazil’s Santa Catarina Cracks Down on Crypto Mining by Public Officials

 The Brazilian state of Santa Catarina is taking drastic measures against cryptocurrency mining by public servants. Police, military officers, and other public officials now face a ban on crypto mining in the workplace. The updated set of rules states that mining on government WiFi and intranet networks is a punishable offense, according to freedmanclub.

This move comes as an answer to a growing trend of public sector employees using state resources for mining activities. Previously, the authorities had no legal basis to stop these activities. For example, an employee at Marília Municipal Water and Sewage Department was caught running several mining programs on his work computer. The most the company could do was suspend him.

To enforce the ban, Santa Catarina’s police force will actively monitor networks. Non-compliance will result in prosecution, giving teeth to the new policy. This is a significant change, considering the increasing international instances of both public and private sector officials exploiting company resources for crypto mining.

Last year in South Korea, a major company executive was arrested for mining Ethereum worth $30,000 using company facilities. This individual used $3,500 of electricity and turned the work environment into a 40°C furnace. Similarly, in Seoul, a civil servant was discovered using the city-run institution’s power to mine Ethereum. He set up his mining rigs in a little-used basement room underneath a museum, fitted with sophisticated graphics cards.

Santa Catarina’s recent initiative might just set a new norm, making it clear that the misappropriation of public resources for personal gain in the crypto space won’t go unpunished. With the added threat of prosecution, public servants may think twice before tapping into state resources for mining activities.