Millions of Dogecoins, currency based on a meme, are reported stolen

There was much sadness for some owners of Dogecoins -- a digital currency that started out as a joke but has now become a popular way to tip someone on the Internet.

On Christmas day, hackers digitally robbed 21 million Dogecoins, an amount whose reported value on virtual-currency exchanges is between $14,900 to $17,200.

The Dogecoin currency was created earlier this month to poke fun at Bitcoin, a new form of currency that is being used to purchase products and services.

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But in recent weeks, the coin -- based on a meme of a dog -- has been used by some people for tipping online. It is now being traded and purchased, turning it into a Bitcoin-like currency.

But on Christmas, numerous users were surprised to find that their Dogecoins were missing from their Dogewallet, a service with which users can keep their digital currency.

Dogewallet has apologized for the hack attack and promised to refund Dogecoin owners.

“The hacking incident was extremely unfortunate for the Dogecoin community and all members of the Dogecoin community,” Dogewallet told TechCrunch. “We’re trying our best to make sure users can retrieve their lost Dogecoins.”

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