Virtual currency predictions for 2018

Hackers also have New Year’s resolutions. And according to experts, who analyzed the frequency and targets of online hacks this year, it appears that 2018 will bring a new wave of cyber-attacks. And cryptocurrency seem to become more attractive to them.

Virtual coins keep rising in popularity, although there are a very controversial topic with lots of supporters and opponents.

A10 Networks (American software and hardware solutions provider) warns that virtual currencies could become the main target for cybercriminals.

There have been some major data breaches this year, involving names such as Uber (57 million users had their personal data stolen), Equifax (around 146 million clients were hacked), NiceHash (lost 4,700 bitcoins) and many others. And the future doesn’t seem to look any brighter:

‘I think the digital transformation is the underlying motivation for hackers [...] So expect the frequency, the size, the volume of hacks to continue to increase in 2018 […] It could be a professional, could be an innocent teenager who has nothing to do at home – it can come from anywhere’, stated Lee Chen, A10 Networks CEO for CNBC.

‘Fear in the CrytpoCurrency space runs with the wind […] They can be compromised via selected, targeted Cyber Intrusion leading to a hack with malware or ransomware […] Many complaints filed with CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) relate to consumers indicating their Blockchain registered Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin and others are being hacked. Since there is no insurance or guarantees, investors’ fear is properly placed as their hard earned funds could be stolen hours, weeks or months after purchase’, also explained Jim Angleton, President for Aegis FinServ Corp. (https://www.forbes.com)  

The reassuring news though is that companies are also becoming aware of this virtual currency hacking storm and are starting to take more serious the importance of taking proper precaution measures and strengthening their security.  

Here are some of the cryptocurrency predictions for the year to come:

Web mining will increase in 2018. Web mining is basically an online mining strategy that works by installing a certain malicious script on a web-page. A compromised site is easy to crack and ‘mine’ with this technique. Hackers use it to steal visitors’ money by mining their computers with the help of the script. This form of cyber-attack is definitely expected to increase in frequency next year.

Users will have to purchase more cryptocurrency because hackers who will attack their devices will ask for ransoms in virtual coins. Why do they choose to operate like that? Because the cryptocurrency market is one of the most unregulated ones so far, so it is easier to be defrauded.

People worldwide will start using virtual coins more. As risky as they might seem, virtual coins will become even more popular in the years to come. A lot of the cryptocurrency fears are based on the lack of information and the novelty of this monetization option. However, people will tend to be more excited about this trend, than scared. Estimates show that by the end of the next year more than 50 million people from all around the Globe will own at least one cryptocurency or more.

Bitcoin will no longer be the most used and known virtual coin. Investors interested in cryptocurrencies will also start to use Ethereum, Dash, Ripple, Litecoin and others.