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DIGGING INTO
THE FUTURE OF
CRYPTOMINING BOTNETS
Cryptomining attacks are rapidly emerging as a
destructive reality. Gadi Naveh, Threat Prevention
Evangelist at Check Point, attempts to predict the
future of cryptomining botnets by taking a look at the
progression of cyberattacks.
T
he blockchain sector is now bursting
with innovation, with developers
looking for new, pragmatic ways to
use this secure distributed ledger technology
across a range of applications. And as
always, cybercriminals are among the earliest
adopters and unfortunately helping to push
forward public awareness of the technology.
Cryptomining malware is now by far
the most common event we are seeing
attacking our user base and this is only
the beginning. Since December 2017, the
Coinhive cryptominer, which performs online
mining of the Monero cryptocurrency, has
been the most common type of malware
www.intelligentcio.com
seen globally, impacting nearly 20% of
organisations worldwide over the past
four months. What’s more, volumes of
cryptomining attacks are doubling and re-
doubling month by month.
So, what can we expect over the next couple
of years? I will attempt to predict the future
of cryptomining botnets by analysing the
evolution of cyberattacks which has led to
the current popularity of mining exploits.
Combining this with a look at the current
decentralised computing projects supported
by blockchain technology, I will also suggest
the direction in which these attacks are
heading and why.
“
CRYPTOMINING
MALWARE IS NOW
BY FAR THE MOST
COMMON EVENT
WE ARE SEEING
ATTACKING OUR
USER BASE AND
THIS IS ONLY THE
BEGINNING.
INTELLIGENTCIO
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