After recent turbulence in the crypto market, Atlas VPN has found that new modifications of cryptojacking software – used in the act of hijacking a computer and using it to mine digital assets against the user’s will – grew 3,8-times in Q3 2022.
As many as 153 000 new variants of malicious mining software were detected by Kaspersky in the third quarter of the year. In Q2, the number of new cryptojacking variants stood at around 41 000.
However, data also reveals that the number of cryptojacking victims did not change significantly. In fact, it decreased slightly.
Analysts believe that fraudsters were trying to capitalize on the predicted growth in the crypto market. However, the predictions fell short, the market did not expand to new heights, and their strategy did not come to fruition.
Nevertheless, cryptojacking is still one of the most common online threats. The number of victims each quarter range from 300 000 to 500 000.
Cryptojacking is a relatively new threat, which emerged rapidly due to the impressive financial rewards of cryptocurrency mining.