What Is Cryptojacking?

Date First Published: 17th June 2023

Topic: Cybersecurity

Subtopic: Threats To Systems, Data & Information

Article Type: Computer Terms & Definitions

Difficulty: Medium

Difficulty Level: 7/10

CONTENTS

Signs Of Cryptojacking

Learn about what cryptojacking is in this article.

Cryptojacking is the unauthorised use of someone else's computing resources to mine cryptocurrency. Cryptojacking malware often installs itself on computers using deception tactics, or sometimes by a drive-by download, and is designed to silently run in the background without the user being aware, so it does not usually harm any files or data. This means that cryptojacking can go unnoticed by the user for several days, weeks or even months. The goal of cryptojacking is obvious - to make money by mining valuable coins. Cryptojacking can target individuals, massive institutions, and even industrial control systems.

The only thing that is usually stolen is the user's computing resources, which is done without the user's permission or knowledge in order for cybercriminals to maliciously generate new cryptocurrency and perform the complex mathematical operations required to mine cryptocurrency and send the results to the cryptojacker's server. Cryptocurrencies rely on individuals to produce the power in order to produce new blocks and reward people who supply the computing power with cryptocurrency, which would be the cryptojacker, not the targets. People who exchange computing resources for currency are called miners.

Some cryptojacking malware can be a form of a worm which automatically infects other devices over a network to make as many copies as possible. The worm may also be able to detect if any other cryptojacking malware is already installed. If it is detected, the worm disables it.

Signs Of Cryptojacking

Below are 6 signs that a computer is infected with cryptojacking malware:

Slower computer performance. The most obvious sign of cryptojacking is a sudden decline in computer performance. Due to the cryptomining process, computers with cryptojacking malware often run slower than usual, crash, and abruptly shut down due to overusage of computing resources.
Overheating. Cryptojacking malware can heavily consume computer resources and cause components to overheat. Overheating of the CPU can cause instabilities in the processing of computer instructions and even destroy it.
Odd CPU activity spikes, such as spikes of CPU activity occurring every 30 minutes or at a certain time every day. However, cryptomining processes can be disguised as legitimate processes and cryptojackers sometimes adjust their usage to prevent detection, making it harder to detect by this method.
Higher electricity costs. Mining cryptocurrency requires a lot of electricity. A sudden increase in electricity costs can be a sign of cryptojacking.
Batteries draining more quickly than usual. Crytojacking can also cause batteries to overheat.
Malware detected by your antivirus. Strong antivirus software protects against cryptojacking malware. If you think that your computer is infected with cryptojacking malware, have run an antivirus scan and it has found malware, you should investigate in more detail whether your computer is being used for cryptomining. Obviously, not all malware is used to steal computing resources to mine cryptocurrency, but if you have removed the detected malware and you are no longer experiencing any of the signs above, then your computer was likely infected with cryptojacking malware.