What is Cryptojacking and should you be worried?

You may
have seen or heard about Cryptojacking over the past few months and it being
identified as an emerging threat this year. What is Cryptojacking and should
you be worried about it?

Here at
Dave’s Computers in New Jersey, we like to keep up to date with threats like
these. It helps us help you and allows us time to develop strategies for
protecting against it and for recovering data afterwards should you lose it.
That’s the case with Cryptojacking. It doesn’t delete data but it does take over
your computer.

What is Cryptojacking?

Cryptojacking
is the hijacking of a computer to mine cryptocurrency for criminals. Just like
malware can turn your computer into a data miner, spam relay or other nefarious
use, this malware makes your computer work for someone else’s gain.

Cryptocurrency
is earned by allowing your computer to perform complex calculations to help
currencies like Bitcoin maintain a ledger. In return for your help, you are
rewarded with a portion of cryptocurrency. Performing these calculations is
called mining and it takes many, many hours to earn even a single Bitcoin or
other digital currency.

Enterprising
criminals developed a way to sidestep all the effort. Instead of using their
own computers and electricity, they designed malware that gets your computer to
do it for them. This is cryptojacking. The malware includes everything required
to mine cryptocurrency and sets your computer to work mining on behalf of the
criminals.

How is cryptojacking
malware delivered?

The most
common cryptojacking malware is delivered via browser infection. This means it
can infect Windows, Mac and in theory, Linux computers too. A website can be
infected with this malware that will run when you have the window open. Some
websites can have infected ads or code embedded to download the code to your
computer too but these are less common.

Some
popular, legit websites have been infected in the past including the LA Times
website and the TV network Showtime. It isn’t just pirate websites or lower
quality ones that are susceptible.

How can you tell if you
have been cryptojacked?

There are
some easy ways to identify if you have been subject to cryptojacking. Your
processor runs constantly at high utilization, your computer fans run at full speed
when they shouldn’t to keep the system cool, your computer does not seem as
fast as usual or you see unusual browser activity or processor utilization with
certain websites open.

Usually, if
your computer seems to be working harder than it should be with no good reason,
it is time to check it out. Open Task Manager or close your browser to see if things
calm down. If they do, re-open your browser to see if it starts up again.

How to protect yourself
from cryptojacking?

Use good
internet hygiene and you should avoid the majority of cryptojacking attempts.
That includes not going to the darker places on the internet, not clicking on
random links on a page or through email and being aware of where you are and
where you are going online.

Here are
some practical things you can do to protect from cryptojacking:

1. If you’re following a link, hover
   over it first to see if it matches. If it doesn’t use a URL shortener like
   Bit.ly, be careful about following it.
2. Run a malware and antivirus scan
   regularly and perform periodic data backups to prevent data loss.
3. Run your browser in a sandbox if you
   can.
4. Use an ad blocker or use host file
   blocking.
5. Be aware of exactly what you are
   downloading if you download anything. Run an antivirus scan before opening
   anything you do download.

Cryptojacking
is increasing and is set to become the biggest online threat in 2019. Use these
common sense tips to prevent your own computer earning money from criminals. Be
safe out there!

If you need
help with IT security or anything to do with computers, visit Dave’s Computers
in New Jersey. We are here to help!