Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Write For Us
    • Newsletter
    • Contact
    Instagram
    About ChromebooksAbout Chromebooks
    • News
      • Stats
      • Reviews
    • AI
    • How to
      • DevOps
      • IP Address
    • Apps
    • Q&A
      • Opinion
    • Podcast
    • Gaming
      • Google Games
    • Blog
    • Contact
    About ChromebooksAbout Chromebooks
    Home - News - Chrome says goodbye to cryptocurrency mining extensions
    News

    Chrome says goodbye to cryptocurrency mining extensions

    Kevin TofelBy Kevin TofelApril 2, 2018No Comments2 Mins Read
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Chrome extensions that mine cryptocoins in the background will soon be a thing of the past. Today the Chromium Blog announced that Google will no longer accept new Chrome Web Store extensions that perform this mining. And by the end of June, any existing extensions like these will be de-listed from the Chrome Web Store.

    A look at this chart from the Chromium Blog explains why this has been an issue: Mining can significantly spike the CPU usage, which leads to performance degradation. And since speed is one of the the “three S’s” for Chrome OS — the others being secure and simplicity — these extensions are the antithesis of the platform.

    Of course, the other obvious reason for this action is that this type of mining doesn’t benefit the user. Instead, whoever writes an extension like this, even if it provides some other useful end-user functionality, gains any financial benefit from the mining activities. Who wants to suffer performance degradation and not be compensated for it? Not me.

    Google is basically calling these extensions malicious software. And they’re right to do so.

    If I was a Chrome Admin at a school or office and people kept complaining that their systems were suddenly much slower, I’d be livid at the possibility for such malicious activity causing grief. For those that are Chrome device or browser administrators, you might want to check the Chrome policy for only allowing approved apps and extensions; not just for this particular situation but to ensure that one-off extensions aren’t causing other issues.

     

    Chrome Chrome OS Chrome Web Store Extensions
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Kevin Tofel
    • Website

    After spending 15 years in IT at Fortune 100 companies, Kevin turned a hobby into a career and began covering mobile technology in 2003. He writes daily on the industry and has co-hosted the weekly MobileTechRoundup podcast since 2006. His writing has appeared in print (The New York Times, PC Magazine and PC World) and he has been featured on NBC News in Philadelphia.

    Comments are closed.

    Trending Stats

    The Average Length of a Chrome Tab Session in 2025

    July 1, 2025

    21 Google Chrome Statistics And Trends In 2025

    June 24, 2025

    Top 40 AI Usage Statistics and Trends In 2025

    June 19, 2025

    Chromebook Statistics 2025

    June 12, 2025

    Google Search Statistics in 2025 [Updated]

    June 10, 2025
    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Write For Us
    • Newsletter
    • Contact
    © 2025 About Chrome Books. All rights reserved.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.