A couple weeks ago ThePirateBay users’ browsers started to stutter. It made users suspicious, finally after static page being loaded, processor shouldn’t be overloaded. All scripts are loaded, content is downloaded and displayed, processor hasn’t got much to do.
Here comes suprise!
After content being loaded processor usage significantly increased! Some of the users, even report that after ThePirateBay page being loaded on the computer with eight core processor, processor usage was increasing to 100%!*
As a programmer I would laugh hard in the first moment, that somebody released such a bad code.
Programmers started to read code executed on the web page. After a while turned out, it hides a shocking surprise. The page was hiding this script:
https://coin-hive.com/lib/coinhive.min.js
It comes from webpage: coin-hive.com
Script was using processor resources and simply was mining Monero for given wallet.
I can only imagine shock, laugh and indignation of programmers, who found it in the code.
Almost perfect crime. Stealing users electricity.
ThePirateBay, the true Business combers
Even more makes me laugh, that script is childishly easy to implement on the webpage and it is only matter of time until ThePirateBay finds many imitators, the small business combers.
I think Cryptocurrencies will surprise me for a long time.
For that moment it is worth to know, if you are entering some webpage and your computer is starting to behave oddly, there is huge possibility you are mining monero for somebody.
But calm down.
Danger won’t last forever
In the long term, web browser creators will provide update and block possibility of exploitation your computer resources in such impudent way.
BONUS:
Link to tutorial how to mine with your users web browsers:
I recommend subscribe this gentleman, he is amazing in his explanations. He has got account on steemIt too:
.
Script Improvement
I started to think how to upgrade this script.
WebGl – Technology which provides access to your GPU resources in web browser. It serves mainly for creation browser games and simulations, but in all why no to use it for different purposes?😊
It would be good idea to take advantage of this technology. I think that way we will use everything web browser offers.
Typing the right phrase we can find already implemented WebGl miner for bitcoin:
https://github.com/derjanb/hamiyoca
There is only matter of time before the same will be done for monero, especially someone is already looking for programmer to do this:
https://www.upwork.com/job/Talented-Modern-Javascript-Miner-Needed-for-XMR-Monero-WebGL-other-tech-for-CPU-GPU-mining-across-devices_~017870b3f7ab38bc8d/
*Data about processor draining are taken from article:
https://www.bitsonline.com/pirate-bay-monero-users-computing-power/
(I hope business Comber is the right and funny term for people making business on such things. Correct me if I’m wrong.)