Malicious scripts mining Monero have become increasingly popular over the past few months. More and more online platforms are switching on this mining option. In most cases, this occurs without prior warning or user consent. While sites need to find new revenue streams sooner rather than later, secretly mining cryptocurrency with CoinHive is never the best option.
When sites integrate the CoinHive mining script, there is always some backlash. In most cases, website operators don’t even warn users about these major changes. That seems odd, considering the script uses a site visitor’s CPU to mine Monero. It is only normal users should give their consent to do so. Sadly, that is not the case, and some sites are not transparent about this development whatsoever.
CoinHive Becomes More Popular
Salon.com is the latest website to switch to CoinHive mining They do not clarify how much CPU usage is dedicated to this specific process.They do let users opt out but only if they turn off their regular ad blocker. A paid “subscription” is coming soon, even though paywalls have never worked in the slightest. With 25% of the site viewers blocking ads, new revenue streams need to be found rather quickly.
According to the website, they need to counter the popularity of ad-blocking technology. Media sites need to make money to keep producing new content. When people don’t view or interact with traditional ads, a very troublesome situation ensues. A loss of revenue when dealing with paid writers is never an option in this regard. Whether or not using CoinHive will prove to be a smart alternative, has yet to be determined at this point.
It is expected we will see more and more websites embrace this business model moving forward. After all, it is cheap to integrate and doesn’t cost anything to keep active either. It does mean CoinHive will receive a 30% cut of all earnings generated through this script. That is a hefty chunk of money, although it is entirely normal the company receives a cut for their service. Replacing ads with another positive revenue stream is not an easy feat for any site owner as of right now. Cryptocurrency mining is a controversial choice, for obvious reasons.
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