Its hard detection and easy execution made this cyberattack technique in the most practiced during 2018
According to specialists in the ethical hacking and cybersecurity from the International Institute of Cyber Security, one of the cyberattack variants that increased this 2018 was the illegal cryptocurrency mining, also known as cryptojacking.
According to reports from multiple cybersecurity firms, this malicious activity showed an increase of 4000% during this year, in which it was calculated there were over 4 million attacks only in the first quarter of 2018, compared with the 500k cryptojacking incidents registered in the first quarter of 2017.
Cryptojacking attacks are based on cryptocurrency mining software injection into thousands of devices, leveraging its processing capabilities to extract these digital assets without the user’s consent. As a result, the victims’ computer equipment slows down, as well as increasing electricity consumption.
In 2018 hackers began diversifying their methods to hide mining malware, integrating it to legitimate software updates from technology companies, such as Microsoft and Adobe. In addition, hundreds of thousands of routers in all parts of the world were also injected with mining software this year.
If that were not enough, experts in cybersecurity anticipate that, despite the fall in cryptocurrencies’ value, this trend could be maintained during the coming year due to the lack of awareness about this kind of attacks, an easy and economic implementation and its difficulty of detection.
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