People with a passing awareness of cryptocurrency are becoming increasingly familiar with mining malware. But businesses are drastically failing to curb the growing cybersecurity threats. In the recent past, businesses have seen an almost 27 percent increase in mining malware in the first three months of 2018.
Coinhive, a Javascript malware designed to mineXMR is occupying the top spot on the list of the ten most "most wanted" malware and the second place is occupied by Cryptoloot which is another stealth, undetectable miner of XMR. But worries still prevail regarding the means by which mining malware such as Coinhive and Cryptoloot are gaining footholds in IT systems. Amidst these ambiguities, hackers are increasingly focusing on basic vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities include unpatched bugs in Oracle Web Logic and Microsoft Windows Server 2003.
As a result of the Microsoft Windows Server 2003 vulnerability, as many as 46 percents of the organization's checkpoint surveys have been attacked in April. 40 percent of the organizations have also been hit because of the Oracle Web Logic flaw. In the wake of increasing threat sophistication, organizations are unable to do much to protect themselves against the likes of Cryptoloot and Coinhive.
Moreover, With the adoption of disruptive technologies such as the Internet of Things, the threats are expected to grow at a faster pace than ever before. Hackers keep shifting their strategies and also have recently been able to move from one basic server vulnerability to the next. Thus, their hunt for cryptocurrency prevails, and they are moving to attack the IoT devices which usually are easy targets.
The organizations are slowly learning how to deal with the threats. They are getting a grip on mining malware. But in a business environment where hackers are always finding new ways to target businesses, organizations should invest time, knowledge, and money in securing their businesses first.
