Avast security researchers once again issued a warning to game prostitutes, because free games from cracked forums and other suspicious sources are likely to carry unpredictable risks. Recently, a cryptocurrency mining malware called Crackonosh has been found to have successfully infected at least 220,000 computers. Security researchers pointed out that this is the result of the victim blindly downloading cracked versions of games such as GTA 5.
The history of the Crackonosh malware can be traced back to 2018, and it has long existed in major cracked forums and games distributed for free on BT websites, such as “Grand Theft Auto V”, NBA 2K19, Far Cry 5, and Live Football 2018 and so on.
Once infected, this malware will secretly install cryptocurrency mining software on the victim’s device to mine Monero without the user’s knowledge. Security researchers suspect that the author of Crackonosh is from the Czech Republic and has illegally earned more than US$2 million.
Avast pointed out that Crackonosh weakened system defenses and installed itself by replacing key Windows system files and abusing Windows security mode. It can circumvent detection by disabling the security software, operating system updates, and using other anti-analysis techniques, making it very difficult to find and delete.
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As with all encrypted mining hijacking malware, users usually only realize what’s going on when they find that the system is slowing down, the related accessories are abnormally worn, and the electricity bill has soared.
At present, Crackonosh has been found in more than ten areas including:
- Philippines: 18,448 victims
- Brazil: 16,584 victims
- India: 13,779 victims
- Poland: 12,727 victims
- United States: 11856 victims
- United Kingdom: 8946 victims
Finally, Monero, which was launched in 2014, is a cryptocurrency that is more difficult to trace than Bitcoin and is therefore popular with some cybercriminals. Previously, the more common mining hijacks used to implant Coinhive (based on JavaScript) into the Pirate Bay, Showtime, Kodi and other services. But even if the compliant Coinhive service was shut down in 2019, the emergence of malware such as Crackonosh proved that the cryptojacking of Monero mining has not disappeared.
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