decrypting myths
CRYPTOJACKING:
What is it and
how could your
organisation be at risk?
Cryptojacking is the hot new
way for criminals to make
money, with a recent McAfee
study highlighting a 600%
increase in the frequency of
such cyberattacks during the
first quarter of 2018 – a sure
sign that cybercriminals are
increasingly exploiting the
digital currency technology.
Barry Shteiman, VP Research
and Innovation at Exabeam,
shares his views on the topic.
W
What is cryptojacking?
Cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin and
Monero, are created by using computing
energy to solve complex maths
problems. When a problem is solved, a
new piece of currency is made. This is
called mining.
While cryptocurrencies are being traded
around the world, what we don’t see are
the hundreds of thousands of crypto-
specialised computers and servers that
are ‘mining’ such currencies to release
new cryptocurrency into circulation.
We’re actually at the point now where
Bitcoin mining centres have become the
majority of the network. These are places
around the world where mining takes
place on a large scale, usually where
energy is either inexpensive or free.
Bitmain, a Chinese manufacturer of
Bitcoin mining hardware, runs its own
mining operation. Last year it pulled
in between US$3 and US$4 billion
in profits. There is a profit motive in
cryptomining, even with a small-scale
operation. Large-scale cryptomining
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Issue 06
requires specialised machines that have
high processing demands. Examples
include ASIC miner machines with their
substantial electricity appetite. But with
the right software, anyone can operate at
a smaller, less profitable implementation
using a single laptop.
One of the significant challenges related
to cryptomining is the huge amount of
energy that it consumes.
Alex de Vries, a Bitcoin specialist at
PwC, estimates that the current global
power consumption for the servers that
run Bitcoin’s software is a minimum of
2.55 gigawatts (GW), which amounts
to energy consumption of 22 terawatt-
hours (TWh) per year – almost the
same as Ireland. Or, put another way,
cryptocurrency uses as much CO 2
per year as one million transatlantic
flights. As a result of the massive energy
consumption of mining machines,
malicious actors look for ways to mine
cryptocurrency without having to absorb
the costs. And when cryptomining is
done illegally, without authorisation,
it turns into the aptly-named crime of
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