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Norton Is Bundling Cryptomining Software With Its Antivirus
While the feature is turned off by default and can be enabled only on computers that meet certain hardware requirements, it’s not exactly easy to remove it entirely.
Many users install an antivirus to protect themselves from cryptomining malware, such as KryptoCibule, which silently hijacks system resources and uses them to mine various cryptocurrencies.
The users of Norton 360 don’t have to wait for cryptominers to infect their computers because the company behind the popular antivirus software has generously included one with the application.
Called Norton Crypto, the cryptomining tool has been available in Norton 360 since June 2021, allowing users to painlessly mine Ether, the native cryptocurrency of Ethereum.
“As the crypto economy continues to become a more important part of our customer’s lives, we want to empower them to mine cryptocurrency with Norton, a brand they trust” explained Vincent Pilette, CEO of NortonLifeLock, the company that owns the Norton product line. “Norton Crypto is yet another innovative example of how we are expanding our Cyber Safety platform to protect our customer’s ever-evolving digital lives”.
However, not all users of Norton 360 welcome this innovation, and some have already canceled their subscriptions to put some weight behind their disapproval of the new feature. One common complaint users have is that the presence of a cryptominer could make them juicy targets in the eyes of cybercriminals, who have been actively going after cryptocurrency owners ever since Bitcoin became a well-known name.
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While the feature is turned off by default and can be enabled only on computers that meet certain hardware requirements (the presence of a capable NVIDIA graphics card is one of them), it’s not exactly easy to remove it entirely. To do that, it’s necessary to temporarily disable the tamper protection feature Norton 360 uses to prevent malware from disabling it.
What’s more, Norton Crypto is a blatant cash grab because it charges a fee of 15% in addition to the cost of Ethereum’s transaction fees. To put the number into perspective, most other Ethereum mining pools, which anyone can join without much effort, charge just 1 or 2%.
Clearly, someone at NortonLifeLock has decided to pursue what they must believe is a terrific opportunity to join the cryptomining mania, and they’re willing to see how their user base will react.