The famous Norton 360 antivirus has a new feature to encourage its users to mine cryptocurrency. However, cybersecurity experts are concerned about the potential damage caused by the new product. Critics cite the difficulty of uninstalling the feature and its misuse of electricity. Explanations.
A feature that allows you to mine ether for 15% commission
Dubbed Norton Crypto, the new cloud-based feature was initially released in July 2021. It allows users to maintain a private ether wallet and withdraw 85% of what their devices mine, with Norton earning a 15% commission. . The company indicates that the functionality is only optional and must be activated by the user. She adds that customer devices must have an NVIDIA graphics card with at least 6 GB of memory.
” The wallet key is encrypted and stored securely in the cloud. Only you have access to the wallet. Norton Crypto supports Ethereum transfers from your digital wallet to Coinbase. If users have turned on Norton Crypto but no longer want to use this feature, they can turn it off through Norton 360 by temporarily disabling tampering protection and removing NCrypt.exe from their computer. », Specifies the company.
Norton accused of getting rich at the expense of users
Cybersecurity expert, Cory Doctorow said on Twitter that Norton 360’s new offer allowed his publisher to stealthily install software allowing him to earn commissions. He also regrets that the feature uses more energy than it takes to mine ether under normal conditions.
His colleague Chris Vickery echoed the same concerns. ” Norton roughly amplifies energy use around the world, costing its customers more in electricity use than the customer earns from mining, while still allowing Norton to make a ton of profit. It’s disgusting, disgusting and a trademark suicide », He was offended.
High gas costs which limit the possibilities of withdrawals
The high power consumption of the functionality is not the only aspect criticized by the public. Indeed, Norton has indicated that the transfer of mined ETH could lead to fees that fluctuate depending on the market. However, several users have claimed that transactions are blocked if the total winnings cannot cover the transfer fee.
Citing the aforementioned concerns, software engineer Grady Booch said on Twitter that he had to cancel his subscription to Norton 360. Founder of AndroidPolice.com and APKMirror.com sites, Artem Russakovskii lashed out at Norton by claiming that the company’s product has become malware.
At first glance, Norton’s foray into the mining industry seems like a fiasco. Users do not appreciate the fact of having to bear all the costs associated with the activation of its new functionality. The company will need to resolve this issue quickly if it is to survive in the industry.
Source: databreachtoday.co.
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Luc Jose Adjinacou
Far from having dampened my enthusiasm, an unsuccessful investment in 2017 in some crypto only increased my enthusiasm. I therefore resolved to study and understand blockchain and its many uses and to relay information relating to this ecosystem with my pen.
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