The Federal Trade Commission has won an early victory against a company that allegedly made misleading claims about its ability to produce bitcoins for customers.

At the FTC's request, a federal judge has shut down Butterfly Labs, a Missouri-based firm whose specialized computers, which were touted for their ability to produce bitcoins, allegedly went for thousands of dollars but often turned up way late to customers' doorsteps, if they arrived at all.

The FTC alleges that the scam affected 1,000 people at a cost of between $20 million and $50 million. This marks the first time the FTC has ever pursued a Bitcoin case, according to Helen Wong, an FTC attorney.

The computers were designed to produce new bitcoins through the process known as "mining." New bitcoins are created whenever a computer successfully completes a math problem proving the veracity of a series of actual bitcoin transactions. The process is a race — when the puzzle has been solved, the solver gets awarded 25 free bitcoins. Once upon a time, your ordinary computer could have easily cracked the code. But the race has gotten increasingly competitive, such that now only the most advanced computers reap the rewards.

"When a new and little-understood opportunity like Bitcoin presents itself, scammers will find ways to capitalize on the public’s excitement and interest," said Jessica Rich, director of the FTC's consumer protection bureau.

The next step in the case involves a hearing on Sept. 29 to determine whether the court's preliminary ban on the company stays in place.

"Butterfly Labs is disappointed in the heavy-handed actions of the Federal Trade Commission," Butterfly Labs said in a statement. "It appears the FTC has decided to go to war on bitcoin overall, and is starting with Butterfly Labs."

Indeed, the case may signal a broader interest in Bitcoin at the FTC.

"We're always interested in any issues that impact consumers," said Wong, "and we think that the basic consumer principles of making representations to consumers — and meeting them — always apply, no matter what industry you're in."