Watch Out for WannaMine

The name “WannaMine” is a coined term that refers to a malware family that uses the network spreading capabilities of WannaCry to deliver cryptomining malware rather than ransomware.

Cryptomining is when crooks secretly get your computer to do the calculations needed to generate cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin and then keep any cryptocoin proceeds for themselves.

To make money with cryptomining it requires a lot of electricity to deliver the heavy processing power on lots of computers. By illegally installing cryptominers inside your network, the badguys steal your resources to do their work.

If malware like WannaMine can penetrate your network, you are at serious risk of other malware at the same time, including ransomware. Don’t ignore WannaMine infections if they show up – where one crooks goes, others will surely follow.