The latest Edward Snowden leak and the FBI’s shut-down last week of an online drug market might not seem connected. But they actually have an important common thread: an unregulated virtual currency called bitcoin.

Snowden’s latest bombshell, published by the Washington Post, shares details of NSA’s infiltration of Tor, an Internet browser that cloaks its users in anonymity. Meanwhile, the FBI shuttered the black market online drug seller Silk Road and arrested its founder, Ross Ulbricht, for narcotics trafficking, computer hacking conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy.

What do these stories have to do with each other, and what do either have to do with bitcoin?

In an effort to maximize secrecy, Silk Road’s operators made it only accessible using Tor, and the only currency they accepted was bitcoin, one of several virtual digital currencies that, like Tor, also affords a great deal of anonymity to its users. Partly because of cash-like qualities, bitcoin is gaining popularity in tech-savvy communities—and drawing the attention of government regulators around the world.

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