Even though the profitability of cryptocurrency mining malware is gradually declining, cybercriminals are still experimenting with malware types. One of the latest trojanized cryptocurrency miners is called Autom Malware and it runs via a basic script file. According to cybersecurity experts, the first recorded Autom Malware attacks date back to 2019. Most of them were carried out against honeypot servers, special servers that are intentionally left in a vulnerable state.
If Autom manages to get into your system, it will perform additional tasks in addition to implementing the final cryptocurrency miner. To get started, create a new user account with the alias akay and try giving it administrator privileges. If successful, all cryptocurrency mining tasks will be executed through the account in question. Although the initial versions of Autom Malware did not attempt to circumvent security software, subsequent updates introduced such measures.
Remember that the cryptocurrency mining operation can cause some annoying problems like:
▸Problems with system stability if the CPU is not cooled well enough
▸System performance hampered because the miner uses most of the available CPU resources
▸It reduces the life of the CPU, the fan and even the power supply
▸Increased CPU temperature due to increased power usage
The distribution technique of Autom Malware is not clear. Criminals may be exploring various tricks to deliver the payload to their victims: spam email, fake downloads, deceptive advertisements, or even pirated software and games. The attack is carried out with the use of a malicious shell script called ‘autom.sh’.
