Protecting your business from ever-growing reach of cryptojacking

RANSOMWARE, a form of malware, has been making global headlines in recent years. Using social engineering methods such as phishing, cybercriminals deploy a ransomware payload to hold an entire system or devices hostage. Victims' data remain encrypted and inaccessible until the infection is removed, usually after a lump-sum ransom is paid.

However, as organisations improve their cybersecurity posture to defend against ransomware, cybercriminals are starting to hijack organisations' computing power to cash in on an easier and more profitable alternative - cryptojacking.

Cryptojacking is often referred to as illegal bitcoin mining, cryptomining or cryptocurrency mining. The motive behind cryptojacking is simple - for profit. It is incredibly lucrative, has a much lower barrier to entry and is a very passive method of generating funds. Once an attacker places cryptojacking malware in an environment, there is nothing left for them to do except wait as the cryptocurrency is generated and delivered to their wallet.