Cryptocurrency Miners Explained: Why You Don’t Want This on Your PC

[Shane Atilano]

UTorrent recently created headlines for cryptocurrency junkware integration. Of all the junk programs compiled by installers, cryptocurrencies like Epic Scale are some of the worst.

Modern malware also makes money by extracting bitcoins. Even if you don't care about most junk software, cryptocurrency mining software is something you don't want on your computer.

Cryptocurrency 101:

You've probably heard of bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency. It is a digital currency, and new currencies are created by "mining". This is a computationally intensive task and requires a lot of computing power. In fact, the computer is rewarded for solving difficult math problems. This computing power is used to verify transactions, so the full number of herbs is needed for the cryptocurrency to work.

Bitcoin is not the only cryptocurrency. The junk Epic Scale software that comes with the uTorrent installer does not try to mine bitcoins - it tries to mine Litecoin, which is inspired by bitcoin and is very similar to it.

Mining actually costs you money:

Use mining programs on your computer's hardware resources and use them to mine bitcoins, litecoins, or any other type of cryptocurrency. And no, even if your hardware generates investing money for them, you won't get any of that. They get all the money from running your hardware.

What's worse is that your desktop or laptop at home isn't powerful enough to use bitcoin, litecoin, or other cryptocurrencies. For it to be profitable, it requires special mining equipment with special hardware and cheap electricity. So even if you let your computer run bitcoins for your own profit, you will lose money. If your computer consumes more energy, you will spend your electricity bill and gain less if it costs you energy.

In other words, cryptocurrency, such as Epic Scale crapware or other malware programs that work the same way, run your electricity bills with little profit. The only reason they can make a profit is that they don't pay the electricity bills - you. You pay extra for electricity, so authors of junk software or malware can make a fraction of that profit. That's ridiculous.

We will not even talk about the environmental impact of using all that excess energy. But this is a factor that should not be overlooked.

Heat and performance issues:

So far, it's been a bad deal. It's better if you pay a few bucks to a company like Epic Scale, and they prevent your electricity bill from coming out - you save.

But the problem is not just financial. These types of software run when your computer is in a low-power state, causing unnecessary resources to run. So instead of using a little power and cold running, your computer will run at full power when you're not using it, and the fans will turn on tall equipment to dissipate all the heat. If the software is not programmed correctly - or is too selfish - it can continue to run even when you are using your computer, slowing down tasks and ensuring that your computer always runs at full speed. Excessive heat can actually cause damage, especially if your hardware is already depleted or if your computer is full of dust and poorly ventilated.

Frankly, we can't stress this - running a program like Epic Scale has no advantage. You won't get any of that. Epic Scale captures all the scientific articles, and you have to deal with all the problems.