What Is Cryptojacking?

Cryptojacking is the unauthorized use of someone else’s computer to mine cryptocurrency. This is often done through malware that is installed on the victim’s machine, or through the use of a website that runs cryptocurrency mining code in the background without the user’s knowledge or consent.

The illegal mining of cryptocurrencies on another person’s computer is known as crypto jacking. This is frequently accomplished by infecting the victim’s computer with malware or by using a website that secretly mines cryptocurrencies in the background without the user’s knowledge or agreement.

Working of Cryptojacking

In the world of cryptocurrencies, coin mining is a legal operation that adds new currency to circulation. The method involves paying out currency to the first miner to successfully solve a challenging computational challenge. By solving that issue, blocks of validated transactions are finished and added to the blockchain of a cryptocurrency.

In essence, miners are being compensated for acting as auditors. They are undertaking the work of confirming the legitimacy of Bitcoin transactions. The only way to introduce new cryptocurrencies into circulation is through mining, which also helps the Bitcoin ecosystem and lines the pockets of its participants. The process of earning cryptocurrencies through coin mining often requires a significant amount of processing power and energy.

The cryptocurrency ecosystem is also constructed in a way that makes mining more difficult and decreases the rewards with time and with increased mining competition. Due to constantly escalating costs, real cryptocurrency coin mining has become an exceedingly expensive endeavor.

Cybercriminals reduce mining costs by merely taking energy and computation resources. They obtain access to systems that will perform the computational job illegally using a variety of hacking techniques, and they then force these hijacked systems to deliver the results to a server under the hacker’s control.

Cryptojacking attack methods

1.Malware

Malware is short for malicious software, which refers to any program or code that is intentionally designed to harm or exploit computer systems. Malware can take many forms, including viruses, Trojans, ransomware, spyware, and adware. Cryptojacking malware is a type of malware that infects a victim’s computer and uses its resources to mine cryptocurrency without the user’s knowledge or consent. This type of malware is often spread through phishing emails, infected software downloads, or drive-by downloads from compromised websites.

2.Drive-by-downloads

Drive-by-downloads are a type of attack in which malware is automatically downloaded and installed onto a victim’s computer without their knowledge or consent. This type of attack is typically carried out through malicious websites or ads that deliver malware when a user visits the site or clicks on the ad. In the case of crypto-jacking, drive-by-downloads can be used to deliver cryptocurrency mining software that runs on the victim’s machine and uses its resources to mine cryptocurrency for the attacker’s benefit. Drive-by-downloads can also be used to deliver other types of malware, such as viruses, Trojans, and spyware.

3. Social engineering:

Social engineering is a type of attack that relies on tricking people, rather than exploiting technology, to gain access to sensitive information or systems. In the context of crypto jacking, social engineering attacks can take the form of phishing emails or malicious websites that pose as legitimate software or app updates, tricking users into downloading and installing cryptocurrency mining software. This software then runs on the user’s machine, using its resources to mine cryptocurrency for the attacker. Social engineering attacks can be very effective because they exploit human behavior and emotions, such as trust and urgency, to bypass technical security measures.

4.Supply chain attacks

Supply chain attacks are a type of attack in which attackers compromise the software or hardware supply chain to include malicious code in legitimate products. In the case of cryptojacking, supply chain attacks can be used to include cryptocurrency mining code in legitimate software or devices, such as computer systems, mobile devices, or internet of things (IoT) devices.

When these products are used, the mining code runs in the background, using the resources of the infected device to mine cryptocurrency for the attacker. Supply chain attacks can be difficult to detect and can have a widespread impact, as they can affect a large number of users or customers who have obtained the compromised product. To defend against supply chain attacks, it is important to follow best practices for software and hardware security, such as keeping software updated, verifying the authenticity of software and hardware components, and implementing secure development practices.

5.Cloud computing services

Cloud computing services refer to the delivery of computing resources, such as servers, storage, databases, and applications, over the internet. Cloud computing services are provided by companies like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, and they allow customers to rent computing resources on demand. In the case of cryptojacking, attackers can use cloud computing services to run large-scale cryptocurrency mining operations, using the resources of the cloud provider’s customers.

This type of attack is possible because cloud computing services allow users to run their own code, and attackers can exploit misconfigured or unsecured cloud resources to mine cryptocurrency at scale. To defend against crypto-jacking in cloud computing environments, it is important to follow best practices for cloud security, such as implementing network segmentation, using encryption, and monitoring suspicious activity.

6.Botnets

A botnet is a network of infected computers that are controlled by an attacker to perform malicious activities, such as launching attacks, spreading malware, or mining cryptocurrency. In the case of cryptojacking, attackers can create botnets by infecting large numbers of computers with malware, and then using these infected machines to mine cryptocurrency.

Botnets are particularly effective for cryptojacking because they allow attackers to pool the computing resources of many machines, increasing the speed and efficiency of cryptocurrency mining. Botnets can also be used to launch other types of attacks, such as denial of service (DoS) attacks, spamming, and data theft. To defend against botnets, it is important to keep software and systems updated, implement firewalls, and use anti-malware and anti-virus tools to detect and remove malware infections.