Norton Added ETH Mining To Its Antivirus Software Services

Norton added ETH mining to its group of Antivirus software services as a new addition to its lineup as we can see more in our latest Ethereum news today.

With crypto mining becoming the subject of a very fierce debate, some are really questioning the substance and the timing behind the news. A select number of Norton 360 customers that joined the early adopter program got their invites to mine ETH today and the program is expected to expand and include all 13 million Norton customers in the next few months. While explaining the odd pairing, the company said that crypto mining is filled with risks and often involves disabling security and weak antivirus software that allows for unvetted code which leaves miners vulnerable to ransomware or other types of attacks.

Norton added ETH mining and claims to address these issues by enabling the users to easily and safely mine crypto through its user-friendly Norton antivirus platform. The CEO Vincent Pilette said that crypto is becoming a huge part of our lives and from that perspective, it makes sense to offer the users interested in mining a chance to do it on Norton:

“As the crypto economy continues to become a more important part of our customers’ lives, we want to empower them to mine cryptocurrency with Norton, a brand they trust. Norton Crypto is yet another innovative example of how we are expanding our Cyber Safety platform to protect our customers’ ever-evolving digital lives.”

The earnings are channeled into a cloud-based crypto wallet and the company pointed out that this will eliminate the problem of lost funds on hard drives or failure. In terms of “cashing-in”, one spokesperson said that the software will incorporate a button that allows users to transfer to a Coinbase wallet. The ETH transition from a proof of work mining system to a Proof of Stake is maybe two years ago. As such, in the near future, mining on Ethereum will stop existing.

Speaking to CNN, Norton addresses this point and said that mining Ethereum is the initial crypto on offer. But they are considering adding other reputable cryptos in the future and at this point, there is no indication of which another crypto is being considered:

“While the company will start slow, with a focus on helping customers safely mine Ethereum, NortonLifeLock is considering adding reputable crypto currencies in the future.”

The environmental impact of crypto mining was thrust firmly into the center of attention and some would argue that offering users a low barrier of entry to mine crypto will make additional environmental damage. Add to the inability of domestic energy users to choose their energy source, the likelyhood of fossil fuel use gets higher.