What is Cryptojacking?

Getting online will expose your devices to a lot of threats. By setting up your Internet connection you’re connecting to a place where many hackers and scammers also live. This article will teach you about one of the threats of getting online with your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone, cryptojacking.

Cryptojacking is a risk of getting online alongside getting hacked and getting your devices infected with malware. If you have infected your device by visiting scamming websites, reading this article is vital for you. By reading this article you will learn about what cryptojacking is and what you can do to prevent it. And also what to do if your device is infected with cryptojacking malware. 

Everything about Cryptojacking

Cryptojacking is malware that can infect your device when surfing on the Internet. Cryptojacking malware can be downloaded through malicious ads or out of date browser plugins, including some outdated WordPress plugins. The act of Cryptojacking is a cryptocrime that starts an unwanted process on users’ devices. The process includes the device processing powers on a mining pool. This means some portion of the device’s mining power is included in mining acts. Of Course the mining rewards won’t be going to the crypto criminals wallets and not the users. 

Why does cryptojacking happen?

Hackers perform cryptojacking on victim devices for the purpose of profits. They use your devices to mine crypto. Then The crypto they gain for mining rewards is the purpose of these crypto criminals. As a result, the crypto will be moved to the hacker’s wallet.

Cryptojacking malware runs automatically on your devices. Then it connects your device to a mining pool to mine crypto using the device. Hackers design this malware in a way not to be noticed by users easily.

Cryptojacking malware causes your device to overheat. It causes device damage and even total device failure in the long run.

How does cryptojacking work?

Cryptocriminals design malicious software that runs the cryptojacking process on your device. This type of malware runs on your device automatically without the user’s consent. This section will explain how this malicious software actually works and mine crypto using the processing power of your smartphone. 

Your device could be a personal computer (PC), a laptop, a tablet or even your smartphone. Doesn’t matter which type your device is, if it has computing powers, it can be used to mine crypto and thus that device is vulnerable to infection of cryptojacking malware. The hackers can infect your device in different ways:

You could download the cryptojacking code by clicking on a malicious link in your mailbox. After clicking on the link, the website will download the cryptojacking code on your computer. And then it runs the cryptojacking process on your device automatically. 

The hackers could also have infected a website or a browser plugin and also website ads with cryptojacking malware. So as soon as you visit that website, click on the ad, or install the infected plugin on your browser the malicious software autoruns on your device and includes your device in crypto mining pools. Then it causes your device to overheat. 

How to prevent cryptojacking?

To prevent cryptojacking you must remember to check links before you click on them. So not clicking on links sent in spam emails can help with preventing cryptojacking. 

Be careful about what ads you click on. As infected ads and websites can download the cryptojacking code on your device very easily. Don’t install outdated plugins and add-ons to make sure you keep your devices safe.

How to detect cryptojacking on your device?

You can check your devices and find out if hackers have infected your devices. The infected device will be experiencing lower performance as it runs much slower than usual and causes many lags. 

To identify cryptojacking you can look for a peaking point in your device’s performance timeline. If it started to work slowly after you installed a certain add-on (plugin) or after you were surfing on the Internet Tuesday night. 

Q&A

What does cryptojacking do to your computer?

cryptojacking starts a resource-intensive process on your device. The malware uses your processing power to mine crypto using your device. This process overheats your device and shortens your device lifespan and computer damage in some cases.

Is cryptojacking a ransomware?

Hackers write most of the ransomwares for specified targets. Ransomware needs time to develop, plan, research and also a lot of time. Hackers need time to deploy ransomware too. Cryptojacking malware is less complicated and they target a huge number of devices. 

Where can cryptojacking be executed?

Cryptojacking scripts run automatically when you download the code on your device. You could be downloading malware through malicious ads or installing date WordPress plugins.