Security researchers have just found out that hackers have infected countless Facebook Messenger users with malware so that they can mine the bitcoin alternative, Monero. Cryptocurrency has been making big headlines lately. The currency that allows users the ultimate security for anonymous purchases has become vastly popular and profitable.
Seeing a money-making opportunity in the cryptocurrency, Monero, cybercriminals used a program to target machines so they can get as many devices in order to maximize the money they make.
The program responsible is “Digmine.” Digmine is designed to look like a video file but will quickly and rather secretly infect your device with malware if you click on it. As of right now, it only works on the desktop version of Facebook Messenger when you’re using Google Chrome as a browser.
Even if you are not using Facebook Messenger desktop ad Chrome, Digmine is not the greatest thing for the health of your computer. Although the purpose of this malware is to mine cryptocurrency, it also makes your information vulnerable to other hackers. Because it targets Facebook Messenger, this can also mean a loss of security for you and all of your friends on Facebook.
Even beyond the information security problems, there is also the negative impact that Digmine has on your computer’s performance. Your computer will end up running much slower and maybe vulnerable to other problems.
The recent Facebook Messenger hack may inspire many more cyber criminals to do the same. Using malware as a means for obtaining cryptocurrency is nothing new, but hopefully, Facebook will take adequate measures to secure Facebook Messenger in the future.