Social petition website Change.org has recently launched a cryptocurrency-mining screensaver that will mine Monero (XMR) whenever users aren’t actively using their computers. The project, dubbed “The Mining Screensaver” will transfer mined funds to the Change.org Foundation.
According to a webpage the organization created, it launched the crypto-mining screensaver in cooperation with a marketing agency, Traceylocke Brazil. Per the page, the program ensures it only mines when users aren’t using their computers.
Change.org estimates that if 10,000 users let their computers mine XMR for 12 hours a day, it could generate $10,000 per month. The software is currently only available for Windows users, and there’s no available information on whether it’ll be developed for other platforms.
Explaining how the screensaver works, Change.org described how cryptocurrency mining works, and added:
This is legal, safe, simple and has nothing to do with hacker activities, viruses or any other digital threats. It’s actually an alternative economic system that has the potential to revolutionize the way money circulate in the society. So why not using this system to create something good?
It’s believed Change.org’s crypto-mining screensaver runs a modified version of the popular Coinhive script, used by cybercriminals to target unsuspecting users with cryptojacking malware, a trend that increased by 629% in Q1 this year.
This is notably not the first time an organization uses cryptocurrency-mining software for charitable purposes. Unicef Australia has launched a page that also mines Monero, called “The Hopepage.” At press time, it has over 19,300 computers mining the cryptocurrency for Unicef. The page was built using Authedmine, a modified version of Coinhive’s product.
Change.org is a platform cryptocurrency activists often turn to in an attempt to increase adoption and fight attacks against the ecosystem. As an example, an ongoing petition asks Jeff Bezos, the chief executive officer of e-commerce giant Amazon, to start accepting Bitcoin.
As CryptoGlobe covered, a petition attempting to backpedal the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to ban cryptocurrencies garnered over 22,000 signatures. The petition failed as India’s Supreme Court moved forward with the ban. Last week, however, local news outlets reported the country may halt the ban, and see cryptos as commodities.
