What will cybercriminals think of next?
Just like central banks and governments have developed manipulation tactics, like currency intervention to artificially inflate the value of paper money, now, cybercriminals have innovated a brazen method of theft that allows for undetected use of a victim’s computer to mine cryptocurrency.
Cryptojacking occurs when a criminal with the intent of using it to "mine" cryptocurrency remotely controls your computer. Cryptojacking used to exclusively be executed when the victim unknowingly installed a program designed to mine cryptocurrency. Recently, an outbreak of "in-browser cryptojacking" has victimized individuals who never downloaded a rogue application.
Employing popularized JavaScript code, hackers have figured out how to manipulate a computer that merely visits an infected website. JavaScript runs on just about every website you visit making it impossible to be reasonably discriminating when web browsing. Adding to the simplicity of penetration is the fact that the JavaScript code responsible for in-browser mining doesn’t need to be installed by the victim.
When the unsuspecting victim visits the site, the JavaScript code initiates and begins the process of hijacking the processing and cryptocurrency mining power of the visitor’s computer. From there, it uses the manipulated computer to mine for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Mining itself, involves the process of solving complicated mathematical equations in order to process transactions and "mine" additional new currency.
Often, cryptojacking is completely unnoticed by the user. Some possible signs of cryptojacking can be that the fan or cooling system on their computer might kick in or start to work at a furious pace or they may notice their browser start to move slowly. There is generally no other odd behavior that would tip off the victim in real time to the fact that they have been infiltrated by hackers.
The rise in popularity and value of cryptocurrency has made cryptojacking an attractive new racket for cybercriminals. Bitcoin and other lucrative cryptocurrency investments have mobilized profiteers toward this new and innovative enterprising venture. Most of the victims are unaware of any vulnerability until they receive an inflated electric bill after the fact, mostly due to a cryptojacking threat pushing an infected PC to its limits using massive amounts of computing power.
A report from November of 2017, on the website Digiconomist, estimated that it required roughly 215 kilowatt-hours (KWh) to process a single Bitcoin transaction. Based on statistical averages, American households consume 901 KWh per month. Based on that number, a single Bitcoin transaction requires almost exactly the amount of energy needed to power an American home for a week.
One of the sites that has been confirmed as a landing spot for victims is the popular and often cited political website, Politifact.com. The Pulitzer Prize winning and oft-criticized site was infected by a cryptojacking script despite the security efforts and protocols employed by the sites operators.
Other widespread instances of cryptojacking include the particularly insidious inside job perpetrated by the site operators of the websites for the television network Showtime and the popular torrent site, Pirate Bay. Both sites had cryptomining code installed but the act was carried intentionally by website administrators that profited directly from unsuspecting visitors to the websites.
The landscape is continually changing for vigilant web users, site administrators and IT professionals while new innovations from criminals all over the world drive a digital black market that boasts profits in the billions of dollars. Stay tuned.
Julio Rivera is an entrepreneur, small business consultant and political activist. He contributes to RightWingNews.com and NewsNinja2012.com, and had previously covered boxing and baseball for the now defunct "The Urban News" in his native Paterson, N.J. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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