Opera Bowser will protect you against Cryptocurrency

The Opera browser today released its 50^th version of its web browser. And an important part of the latest update is that the browser will make sure no one can mine cryptocurrencies in your browser. Not many people know this, but with your browser, users can be tricked into mining cryptocurrencies like BitCoin without their knowledge.

However, on the other hand, browsers and JavaScript aren’t the most efficient way to mine coins. But at the same time, the high number of users who run these scripts make up for that. Reports say that mine coins like Monero use compute-heavy algorithms. With this CPUs can compete with what is generally a GPU-centric approach. Interestingly, a similar approach is also used by North Korea hacking units to mine coins.

More popular web browsers like Chrome and Firefox have available extensions that will perform the same service. However, on Opera, the new cryptojacking feature is automatically enabled when you turn on the browser’s ad blocking tool.

“We are fans of cryptocurrencies but we simply don’t accept that websites are using people’s computers to mine coins without their knowledge or consent,” said Krystian Kolondra, head of Desktop Browser at Opera. “With the new Opera 50, we want to kick off 2018 by providing people a simple way to regain control of their computers.”