Here's something we haven't seen before: security camera recorders hacked and used to mine bitcoin.The issue was first reported by Johannes Ullrich, an instructor at the SANS Technology Institute – a computer security training organization.Last Friday, he discovered malicious software infecting the Hikvision DVRs used to record video from security cameras.The malware jumps from device to device, trying to infect any other machines it can find on the network.But it also tries to earn a little scratch for its creators by mining bitcoins, a processor-intensive activity that would probably slow down any infected DVR.Though this is a novel method, it's hardly the first time hackers have tried to bust their way into other people's hardware in order to make some bitcoin, the popular digital currency.The bitcoin system is run by independent machines spread across the globe, and if you contribute processing power to the system, you receive some bitcoin in return.This is called mining, and hackers often seek to mine using any machines they can gain control of – including security camera DVRs.Most malicious software is written for Linux or Windows machines, but Ullrich has seen this new malware infect routers and DVRs in the past.

That usually happens accidentally when a worm written for a Windows or Linux system spreads to strange devices that happen to be running the same operating system.But here, the malicious code "was actually complied for the ARM processor that's running these devices, he says, "so they kind of knew what they were into."Since Friday, Ullrich has also spotted the malware running on a router.He couldn't immediately be reached for comment.The low-powered ARM chip is one of the worst possible processors you could pick for the crypto-heavy calculations that make up bitcoin mining.Last week, we wrote about some Android malware that was remarkably ineffective in making money in the crypto currency game.But the fact ARM is being targeted is a side-effect of the phenomenon known as the Internet of Things.With increasingly powerful computers out on the network, recording video, running our mobile phones, and even operating as thermostats, it's giving hackers a lot of alternatives to their tried and true targets.

Although the Hikvision malware could be used to spy on anyone it infects, it doesn't seem to do that.Apparently, all it wants to do is scan the network for other machines to infect and mine bitcoins, Ullrich says.The malicious software seems to spread using the default usernames and passwords for the Hikvision devices, which most people do not change after setting them up.It took just one day for a low-end, Internet-connected digital video recorder to become infected with malware that surreptitiously mined Bitcoins on behalf of the quick-moving attackers.bitcoin buy in suratThe feat, documented in a blog post published Monday by researchers at the security-training outfit Sans Institute, was all the more impressive because the DVR contained no interface for downloading software from the Internet.bitcoin armory video

The lack of a Wget, ftp, or kermit application posed little challenge for the attackers.To work around the limitation, the miscreants used a series of Unix commands that effectively uploaded and executed a Wget package and then used it to retrieve the Bitcoin miner from an Internet-connected server.Monday's observations from Sans CTO Johannes Ullrich are part of an ongoing series showing the increasing vulnerability of Internet-connected appliances to malware attacks.bitcoin c'est quoiIn this case, he bought an EPCOM Hikvision S04 DVR off eBay, put it into what he believes was its factory new condition, and connected it to a laboratory "honeypot" where it was susceptible to online attackers.litecoin live transactionsIn the first day, it was probed by 13 different IP addresses, six of which were able to log into it using the default username and password combination of "root" and "12345."bitcoin casino free faucet

One of the attackers went even further.After gaining root control of the video recorder, the hacker used standard Unix "echo" commands entered through the telnet interface to install a Bitcoin-mining app.Theoretically, the DVR was now solving the complex cryptographic problems required for the operators to mint new digital coins.Using packet-sniffing software to monitor the data the compromised box was sending over the Internet, Ullrich was able to determine it was connecting to a mining server that relies on large numbers of machines to carry out the work.bitcoin pool proof of work"Throughout the day, the server periodically pushes parameters to the miner, but I haven't seen the miner return anything yet, which probably underscores the fact that these miners are pretty useless due to their weak CPUs," Ullrich wrote.ethereum price november 2016

"The DVR did get infected multiple times, but none of the attackers changed the default password, or removed prior bitcoin miners."The Hikvision DVR joins a growing list of other devices, including Android smartphones and routers made by Linksys, D-Link, and Asus with Bitcoin-mining malware.As Ullrich notes, the stripped-down hardware contained in these devices makes them an unlikely host for such demanding apps.bitcoin wallet for chromeIt's possible attackers are targeting the devices deliberately under the theory that even low-powered devices will deliver results if enough of them are enslaved at one time.bitcoin mining setup windowsIt's also possible attackers are indiscriminately taking control of large numbers of devices for laughs or simply because they can.Ullrich said the Hikvision DVR didn't ask him to change the default password during setup.