Cryptocurrency mining rampant in higher education

Higher education institutions are the biggest target for illicit cryptocurrency mining, data shows. Illicit cryptocurrency mining, or cryptojacking, is gaining popularity among cyber criminals, and 60% of this activity is being carried out at higher education institutions, a study has revealed. Universities are a top target of illicit cryptocurency mining because they have high bandwidth capacity networks, according to the Attacker behaviour industry report by automated threat management firm Vectra. The report is based on analysis of cyber attack detections and trends from a sample of 246 opt-in enterprise customers using the Vectra Cognito platform to detect hidden attacker behaviours and identify business risks. Higher education institutions are also a prime target because they typically host a lot of students on their networks who are not protected.