On Friday, the fact-checking website PolitiFact was found to hog its visitors' CPU cycles by using maliciously added JavaScript to mine the cryptocurrency Monero:
A fact-checking website was hacked to mine cryptocurrency over the internet browsers of its unsuspecting visitors. The Pulitzer Prize-winning website, PolitiFact, is devoted to sorting out the truth in US politics. But on Friday, it was found secretly hogging the computer resources of those who visited the site.
Independent security researcher Troy Mursch tweeted about the issue after noticing signs of a cryptocurrency miner in the website's code.
[...] Mursch said the code comes from a company called Coinhive, which developed a controversial cryptocurrency miner to help businesses find a new way to generate online revenue.
However, the Coinhive miner tends to be used in sketchy websites that pirate content or offer porn, according to AdGuard, an ad-blocking service. These sites often struggle to make money from online advertising, so they have to experiment with new ways to make money. AdGuard found 220 websites using a cryptocurrency mining code in a study it released on Thursday.
Does this count as good or bad press for a small-time cryptocurrency?
Also at TechCrunch, The Register, and Cryptovest. Coinhive blog statement from September regarding malicious use.
Previously: Showtime Streaming Service Included JavaScript to Mine Cryptocurrency Using Web Browsers
(Score: 4, Insightful) by crafoo on Sunday October 15 2017, @12:26PM (6 children)
Javascript was a mistake.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by takyon on Sunday October 15 2017, @12:30PM (4 children)
Visitors consented to running that cryptocode by a.) visiting the website and b.) having JavaScript turned on. No mistakes were made!
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 15 2017, @12:42PM
Let me pimp your butt... oh! Without a day, without a day, ah ha haaaaa!
(Score: 1) by HyperQuantum on Sunday October 15 2017, @11:58PM (2 children)
Most people don't even know that something like Javascript actually exists, let alone that it can be turned off.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday October 16 2017, @02:54AM (1 child)
If they don't feel it, they do consent!
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 16 2017, @09:17AM
Interesting argument.
Recently we had here a story about a camera in a bnb bedroom, hidden in a smoke detector. [soylentnews.org] Applying your logic to that case, we have to conclude that all those who didn't notice the camera (and thus were not aware of its existence) did consent to the recording.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 15 2017, @01:51PM
How often you find a site that doesn't load properly without javascript... to only find static content on that site after you activate it.