[ad_1]
Cryptocurrency extraction malware is responsible for less than previously published Monero (XMR) supply, new research published on January 3rd.
A joint effort by researchers at King's College of London and Carlos III University of Madrid, Spain, has analyzed huge malware bundles over a twelve-year period.
"In this paper, we conduct the largest measure of cryptographic malware to date, analyzing about 4.4 million malware samples (1 million malicious miners)," confirm the authors Sergio Pastrana and Guillermo Suarez-Tangil.
According to their calculations, Monero, which continues to be a favorite target for malign mining, has an illicit supply of about 4.36% – or about $ 56 million in profits.
The figure is somehow less than about 5 percent mentioned as an estimate in the previous research since June 2018.
Nonetheless, Pastrana and Suarez-Tangil say that their number corresponds largely to the existing theories on the scale of Monero's mining malware problem.
"One of the main reasons for the success of this criminal activity is the relatively low cost and the high return on investment," they concluded.
"… Our profit analysis is more reliable than that of related studies.Our results complement these studies, confirming that malignant cryptocurrency is a growing and complex threat that requires effective countermeasures and intervention approaches."
As reported previously by Cointelegraph, XMR's privacy-focused traits mean that it is the element of choice for hidden mining activities. Bad actors insert the code into websites, apps and extensions that, once activated, start using a victim's device to extract the mess.
In October, Google announced stricter restrictions on extensions in its Chrome Web Store as part of efforts to combat the problem.
[ad_2]Source link
