Bitcoin News and Finance Docker Changes Free-Tier Service Policy Due to Cryptocurrency Mining Abuse Skip to main content

Docker Changes Free-Tier Service Policy Due to Cryptocurrency Mining Abuse

Docker

Docker, a popular cloud computing integration solution, is making changes to its free-tier service due to cryptocurrency mining abuse. The service discontinued its “autobuild” feature due to misuse by bad actors, using it to mine cryptocurrencies in their servers. This is a modus operandi that is now affecting several cloud continuous integration platforms, including GitHub, GitLab, and Microsoft Azure.

Docker Forced to Make Changes to Its Free-Tier Services

Docker, a popular CI cloud service, is making changes to its service policy due to crypto mining abuse. The cloud computer continuous integration service announced last week it will no longer provide its autobuild features to its free-tier service. Docker announced this in a blog post, stating the attacks have grown in recent months, affecting their paying customers. The team declared:

In April we saw the number of build hours spike 2X our usual load and by the end of the month we had already deactivated ~10,000 accounts due to mining abuse. The following week we had another ~2200 miners spin up.

Docker is an immensely popular piece of software that allows applications to run in compartments. This means that a package possesses all the libraries needed to run the app. This new restriction will affect some users that leveraged the autobuild feature for free. The Docker team stated that while this was not an easy decision to make, it was the only measure they could take to mitigate the abuse.

Although Docker is a notable platform affected by this new kind of attack, it is by no means the only one. Several continuous integration cloud base providers are now facing similar attacks, and are also studying countermeasures.

Cloud Computing in the Crosshairs

These attacks are also affecting companies like GitHub, GitLab, and Microsoft Azure, which offer cloud computing services. The attackers hijack the continuous integration services adding code to the apps that change their original function. The virtual machines spawned to compile apps are repurposed to mine cryptocurrencies for their lifespan, affecting the performance of these services.

But the problem goes beyond free tiers. An engineer from CodeShip, a cloud platform, stated in an interview given to The Record that:

Sometimes they pay the small fees for our accounts, which are way cheaper than renting on AWS directly, and mine cryptocurrency at maximum capacity.

While the problem persists, bigger companies can afford to cope with the added performance hit. Small companies, however, will likely be forced to fight these attacks with countermeasures such as the one Docker executed.

What do you think about Docker making changes to its policies due to mining abuses? Tell us in the comments section below.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Custodial Lightning Network Service Attack Discovered by LN ‘Newbie’ — Hacker Strikes 6 LN Custodians

On September 18, a Redditor posted to the r/bitcoin forum and explained how he discovered a way to “attack [the] lightning Network’s custodial services.” The Reddit account dubbed “Reckless Satoshi” wanted to figure out if a “discrepancy between real routing fees and service’s transaction fee can be exploited for a profit.” The researcher disclosed that he wanted to see how large the damage could be and said “it is bad.” 6 Lightning Network Custodial Services Attacked, Researcher Discloses Findings to Offenders Prior to Public Disclosure A Redditor called Reckless Satoshi published a disclosure post on r/bitcoin this past Saturday and disclosed how he had found a vulnerability with routing fees and some of the Lightning Network’s custodial services. The research attack was done in good faith and after it was complete he disclosed the bugs to the offending services before publishing his findings. Reckless Satoshi used the Lightning Network (LN) attack on six different services incl...

Axie Infinity Down 40% Since Last Week’s Price High, Protocol Revenue Outshines Competitors

Last week, the game token leveraged within the Axie Infinity gaming universe skyrocketed to all-time highs, while other crypto markets remained extremely lackluster. During the last seven days, Axie Infinity’s platform token has dropped significantly in value shedding more than 12%. Meanwhile, the game platform’s smooth love potion token has slid over 8% over the last 24 hours. Axie Infinity Down More Than 40% Since All-Time High Not too long ago, the axie infinity (AXS) token was a topical conversation because it reached an all-time high on July 15. At the time, AXS managed to capture $28.93 per unit and since then it has shed 12.8% during the last seven days. The axie infinity (AXS) token is used within the blockchain-based game that involves battles between token-based creatures called “Axies.” AXS is used for the game’s governance system as well as other actions within the game. At the time of writing axie infinity (AXS) is exchanging hands for $16.70 per coin. AXS/USD on Ju...

Play-to-Earn Game From Polker (PKR) Exchange Listing – Endorsed by Akon

The Play-to-Earn NFT based Polker.Game ‘s native token $PKR has been officially listed on the popular centralized exchange BitMart. Polker.game has been in the spotlight recently as Akon, the American R&B superstar and record producer gave his official endorsement of polker stating that the “game is revolutionary” and that Polker is “hands down.. the best play to earn, NFT game in the space.”. With the BitMart listing and celebrity endorsement from Akon, Polker is perfectly positioned to become a major player in the Play-to-Earn league. Watch Akon’s Video Here What is Play-to-Earn? Although not a new concept, play-to-earn has become a trending term due to the popularity of the NFT game AXIE infinity. In the past, previous play-to-earn games have also achieved success – however, thanks to the huge amount of development in the blockchain space in recent years the gaming experience is now massively improved. Play-to-Earn games are essentially free to play and open to anyone and...

China to Crack Down on Copyright Infringement Through NFTs

Authorities in China are going after creators of digital collectibles based on other people’s works of art, the use of which was not authorized. The government offensive is part of a campaign to combat online copyright infringement and piracy with the participation of several departments. Regulators in China Move to Strengthen Copyright Supervision of Online Platforms The National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC) has recently launched a campaign against copyright infringement and piracy on the internet, together with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, and the State Internet Information Office of the People’s Republic. A major objective of the initiative is to improve copyright supervision of online businesses by investigating cases involving the sale and distribution of infringing products on short video, live broadcast and e-commerce platforms, and promptly dealing with infringing content, the agency announced in a press r...
Blogarama - Blog Directory