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University students in the United States are threatening cryptocurrencies in their dormitories to pay their student loans, even if they are secretly.
According to a study by the computer security company Vectra, about 60% of US mining traffic comes from computers with IP addresses connected to colleges and universities.
This means that students use free electricity in their dormitories to extract cryptocurrencies.
Extraction consumes around 215 kilowatt hours of energy per transaction. Experts say the total energy consumption of the bitcoin network could be equivalent to the amount of electricity used to light two million US homes.
Despite the ban in US universities, the number of students resorting to encryption is increasing, the increase can be attributed in particular to the bitcoin price boom since 2017.
The mining bitcoin can cost anywhere between $ 3,000 and $ 10,000, depending on the state and cost of electricity prevalent in that area.
However, it is not always the students' fault, because hackers who are not part of the university can turn to students and use their computer power to perform the job test and earn money.
Such hacking incidents may go unnoticed for a long time, as it is difficult to keep track of such hidden practices.
Cryptocurrency mining malware is on the rise, according to McAfee technology manager Steve Grobman, responsible for security.
"Crypto Currency mining is an optimal form of cybercrime through these vectors compared to data theft and ransomware," said Grobman.
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