Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
As cryptocurrency values increase and draw more attention, individuals with ill intent are looking to hijack smart phones and desktop computers to mine digital currencies. Opera Software AS, a Norway-based browser developer, wants to prevent that for users of its technology.
Opera introduced an anti-mining feature to its mobile browser Monday. The technology blocks mining scripts that Opera says could use up to 4.5 hours of a smart phone’s battery time if left unimpeded. Opera says a test on Samsung Galaxy S8 and HTC One smart phones showed that such scripts can increase processor use up to 100%, which can shorten battery life and make the phone overheat.
The anti-mining feature is activated by default when the ad blocker on Opera Mini, which can be used on iOS devices from Apple Inc., or Opera for Android is activated. It automatically detects and stops mining scripts written into a Web page’s code. Earlier in January, Opera updated its desktop browser to thwart cryptocurrency mining scripts.
Anecdotal evidence indicates the problem is not uncommon. A consumer used a Buenos Aires Starbucks Wi-Fi service, where the Internet service provider surreptitiously mined a Bitcoin prior to connecting the user to the service, reported Vice.com in December.
In October, ad blocker AdGuard said its research showed that in the three-week period since crypto-mining initially went viral last fall it had already been found in 220 Web sites, potentially affecting 500 million users.
Bitcoin, the most well-known digital currency, has garnered much attention since peaking near $20,000 per coin in December. Just last week, however, the cryptocurrency’s value plunged to $9,650, and early Monday stood at approximately $10,399, according to Coindesk.com.
