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Mac App Store App 'Calendar 2' Mines Cryptocurrency by Default, but Feature is Being Removed [Updated]
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This crypto mining leeching is getting out of control. From websites to apps it’s going on all over the place. People can’t even get their hands on GPUs to play games or for development without paying double or triple the retail price for cards in some cases. This has become a plague similar to the way iAP destroyed mobile gaming as well as other pay once apps that used to be great. So much potential gone.
Ironically, in many cases the electricity bills erase the profits ordinary people make running power hungry rigs 24/7. It’s unbelievable how people get sucked in to easy money or a “digital gold rush.”
Ironically, in many cases the electricity bills erase the profits ordinary people make running power hungry rigs 24/7. It’s unbelievable how people get sucked in to easy money or a “digital gold rush.”
Interesting approach, I have to say. I don't see how this is any different that advertising supported features-- trading your resources for their product. Crypto-mining is more resource intensive, while ads are a combination of resources, time, and screen real-estate.
There two stories here:
To those complaining about how wasteful cryptocurrency mining is, I agree-- but some of us feel the same about advertising and entire apps such as Facebook and Instagram. Being a waste of resources hasn't been a reason to block apps in the past.
There two stories here:
- One is that there was a bug in the app similar to earlier bugs that didn't turn ads off after an IAP, to the best of my knowledge Apple hasn't pulled buggy apps like this in the past.
- The other is that app makers now see crypto-mining as a form of reimbursement for IAPs. The delay in pulling the app probably has more to do with this than the bug causing resource use. Apple needs a policy on this, and that will almost certainly take more than 24 hours to formulate.
To those complaining about how wasteful cryptocurrency mining is, I agree-- but some of us feel the same about advertising and entire apps such as Facebook and Instagram. Being a waste of resources hasn't been a reason to block apps in the past.
I have no idea how crypto currencies work at all...but from what I have read above, I can use electricity to get a token and sell that token to get dollars (of some sort) which I can then buy gold....a true philosophers stone?
I'm a bit split on this one. On one hand, if I could get something like Spotify Premium/Apple Music from letting the app use 20-35% of my CPU whilst it's running, I'd prefer that to paying for the service. It's not exactly environmentally sound though, and that makes me dislike it quite a lot :/
But in order for a block chain to exist, you need a token. You cannot separate the ‘currency’. When will you people get it?
This is what I think (that Apple has no official policy yet and is probably scrambling to come up with one). Obviously crypto mining done without your permission (whether an App, malware or a website) is deplorable. With all the negative press around illegal mining it never occurred to some users might allow it in exchange for services. It’s not that much different than advertising.
However there needs to be some rules. A simple Yes/No to mining is not enough. You should be able to specify limits (CPU/GPU usage, time of day, battery percentage...). You can’t just take over someone’s device and run mining at 100%.
Article claims Apple left the app despite knowing and then provides zero evidence they know about it.
Simply put, a blockchain is just a distributed ledger. You can record data in a “block” and it can’t be changed later on.
While the most common use of a blockchain is currency, that doesn’t mean it’s the only thing it can be used for. You could use a blockchain to keep track of any type of data/transaction you choose.
Eddy is too busy yukking it up in Austin. He'll look into next week when he returns to the spaceship.
You have to reward the nodes for storing and verifying the information and provide an incentive for them to not try screwing things up. I can't think of a way to do that without it being a currency and without it being centralized somewhere. But I've also forgotten for the 10th time some of the details on how this works, so someone oughtta prove me wrong if I'm wrong.
Qbix…. is that a Chinese company? Most of the crypto mining facilities and mining hardware are in China.
I think the assumption is Apple approved the app with the updated cryptocurrency feature. Now, if they didn't approve it, that says something else altogether about the security of the app store.
Actually, that’s called a database. A hash secured database is a blockchain. Each block is secured by a hash and cross references the hash from the previous block. This is why it’s called blockchain - because it’s a link of hashed blocks (or ledgers). In order to hash blocks you need computing power. For that you need equipment and electricity.
The point of a distributed ledger is that there are multiple (hopefully thousands of) computer systems verifying and recording each transaction. In the case of Bitcoin these are the miners, who are rewarded for maintaining the records by being given blocks of Bitcoin. Then there are nodes, which enforce consensus rules on the network and send transactions to miners to be propagated.
The security of the ledger/blockchain depends on the amount of computing power, and node count.
With new blockchains, that have low computing power, they are much easily to be compromised with a brute force computer attack. And blockchains with low node count run the risk of the entire system being shutdown/censored. What good is a blockchain if it can’t store records?
Blockchain is having a record that is distributed and immutable (meaning it cannot be altered or deleted). In order to do that, a token is necessary. Without it, it’s just a database like we’ve had for years.
I encourage you to dig deeper, bitcoin is fascinating.
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Nodes listen and verify new transactions to send to miners (to be put into blocks). Miners are the ones receiving the incentives (block rewards and mining fees)
None of what you said counters what I said.
You previously said you can't separate the currency from the token. This is patently false. You can have a blockchain without currency.
You can separate the currency from blockchain. But then the advantages of it being a blockchain are lost.
At that point there is zero advantages, or difference, between a blockchain without a currency and a regular database.
Which is why it’s silly when someone sees value in blockchain without cryptocurrency.
Nope just don't use a device to mine at all..... If Apple had any sense of their approval process as they keep trying to reassure developers,they would get the message.
The fact Apple hasn't said anything doesn't mean they don't know...
The obvious thing for any company to do is when u are too embarrassed you know you've stuffed up is you keep quiet about it. As whoever approved it knows exactly what they did, they would not have missed it,, particularly it was clearly viable. Apple would have wanted to know how this is done. And someone at Apple just overlooked it..
If there was no shame, why aren't they responding?
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If someone has information they need stored with increased security over a traditional database, then they might consider that ability worth the extra cost (processing power/electricity).
So do many websites and casual games.
I smell BS or is that complete incompetence with a hint of lies?
#1: Here is the source code for Monero Miner:
https://github.com/monero-project/monero
#2: Yep, that is how we write the JS code in web browsers too. Gotta catch the crypto. Thank you for visiting.
#3: Maybe I underestimated the global use of Calendar 2. The run was good while it lasted mates. Next time, throttle the cycles to keep the user unaware.
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Please take this as an honest observation to your post. I really am not trying to be inflammatory.
Isn't that what most everything is? I give up my life to put money in the pocket of my boss and hopefully myself as well. My boss could very well make enough money that it requires burning down a forest to print his paycheck. He can certainly say he is richer than me.
Aren't US dollars only a promise ( agreement ) between people. The paper money is actually worthless, only its agreed upon value.
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I must disagree with you, sort of. Blockchain may be the next big thing in technology; like the wheel.
I can think of amazing uses for it that have nothing to do with currency that would benefit society as a whole.
I do agree that currency is the path to global acceptance, but not the end game of the technology.
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It’s like yeast. Yeast by itself is nothing new, or special. But combine it with flour and water and you make (open source) bread.
You can and will have non-currency applications off the bitcoin blockchain.
The blockchain doesn’t serve a purpose without a token/currency. Non-currency applications can/should be built off existing (and most secure) blockchains like bitcoin.
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