UNICEF transforms malicious mining software into a donation system for children
Ironically, the mechanism usually used for mining malware is now exploited for the good cause. UNICEF gives the opportunity to act for a noble motivation, that of donating the computing power necessary for the mining of cryptocurrencies . An official announcement was made by UNICEF Australia on this subject on 29 April.
Give away computing power as a gift to the charity
According to Tony Andres Tang's announcement, the head of the digital brand and content of UNICEF Australia, they "are transparent in the fact that they borrow the computing power of a computer and they can choose the amount of energy given. "
"The HopePage is fully user initiated, and they have the ultimate power to decide whether to participate or not, " said Andres Tang at ITnews magazine.
https://twitter.com/unicefaustralia/status/990511573553725441
- unicefaustralia
A series of criminal attacks based on several hacking tools hit a large number of organizations - including government websites - last year. One of these tools gave birth to CoinHive, a software sometimes considered malicious - in any case according to the AdBlocks software - which has greatly gained notoriety. He was able to slip quietly into users' computers through plug-ins. The software would have operated the Monero without the owners of the devices are aware.
UNICEF uses a similar mechanism to manage funds without donors having to spend their own money. The donation platform of the charity is also fed by the same mining program as the Monero. The only difference, and this is all the weight advantage of the legitimacy of the system, lies in the request for explicit confirmation addressed to users before any mining.
Help children in need with ease
Users can adjust the computing power they are willing to give. They only have to keep the navigation tab open to contribute, "to give hope, just by being here," as the UNICEF website makes clear. "The longer you stay on the page, the more processor power you give, the more algorithms are solved, which saves cryptocurrency," he wrote on the website. "Mining is perfectly safe for your computer. If you are worried about energy consumption, reduce the processing power you give. "
According to the organization, the website uses computing power to extract crypto-currencies that go directly to the funds.
"Cryptocurrency is automatically transferred to UNICEF Australia and is transformed into real funds that reach children through vital supplies such as clean water, therapeutic food and vaccines. Put the Hope page on your home page to give everyday. "The success of the website is already felt with over 1,600 people donating.
UNICEF has been turning to cryptocurrencies since last February when the organization turned to online gamblers to establish a mining operation. The power of graphics cards have favored this movement. The Game Chaingers websitewould have allowed donations of computing power to help Syrian children. However, the attention paid to the website gradually evaporated.
What do you think of this new UNICEF initiative to use the computing power of computers as a donation to children in need? Let us know in the comments section below.