Bitcoin miner in NYC home interfered with T-Mobile network, FCC says
Bitcoin miner in NYC home interfered with T-Mobile network, FCC says

                      
                      
          A New York City resident was ordered to turn off his bitcoin miner after the Federal Communications Commission discovered that it was interfering with T-Mobile's wireless network.
After receiving a complaint from T-Mobile about interference to its 700MHz LTE network in Brooklyn, New York, FCC agents in November 2017 determined that radio emissions in the 700MHz band were coming from the residence of a man named Victor Rosario.
"When the interfering device was turned off the interference ceased," the FCC's enforcement bureau told Rosario in a "Notification of Harmful Interference" yesterday. "You identified the device as an Antminer S5 Bitcoin Miner. The device was generating spurious emissions on frequencies assigned to T-Mobile's broadband network and causing harmful interference."
The FCC told Rosario that continued interference with T-Mobile's network while operating the device would be a violation of federal laws "and could subject the operator to severe penalties, including, but not limited to, substantial monetary fines, in rem arrest action to seize the offending radio equipment, and criminal sanctions including imprisonment."
FCC rules require operators of radio frequency devices to cease operating a device after receiving this type of notification. "Operation shall not resume until the condition causing the harmful interference has been corrected," the FCC said.
FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel commented on the incident via a tweet yesterday:

Okay, this @FCC letter has it all: #bitcoin mining, computing power needed for #blockchain computation and #wireless #broadband interference. It all seems so very 2018. https://t.co/EaXxmBAMXH
— Jessica Rosenworcel (@JRosenworcel) February 15, 2018
Cause of emissions unknown
What isn't clear is why the mining device was generating 700MHz radio emissions. A hardware design flaw or device modifications made by the user could cause unintended emissions. The FCC has not made any determination about whether other Antminer S5 devices generate spurious emissions.

          
                      
                  