uTorrent's latest update installs a cryptocurrency miner

[redsn0w]

"uTorrent's latest update may be hijacking computers to turn a profit. According to a report from Trusted Reviews, the latest update to the popular torrent management software comes bundled with a program called Epic Scale, a Windows program that uses the computer's processor to mine a bitcoin variant called Litecoin in the background. Many users were unaware that their computers were being used to mine the currency, and only discovered the program was running after noticing the significant increase in processor load."


http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/6/8161251/utorrents-secret-bitcoin-miner-adware-malware


Most people are start interesting on bitcoin (especially the hackers). Here the discussion on the utorrent forum :

- http://forum.utorrent.com/topic/95041-warning-epicscale-riskware-silently-installed-with-latest-utorrent/

[1Referee]

I never understand why people allow to install crap on their computers without knowing what it is.

Before installing you have to option to uncheck the boxes for additional software.

Always do so to prevent these companies from making money while you don't know anything.

[koelen3]

Dude! please no, I use uTorrent daily for my downloads , this will be crazy if someone's using my GPU/CPU's power to mine for themselves .
Though i hardly think that will make them anything.

Edit : Just read that the software was installed along with the uTorrent , so i have already installed uTorrent , no worries for me hopefully
Thank you for the Heads up

[--Encrypted--]

"uTorrent's latest update may be hijacking computers to turn a profit. According to a report from Trusted Reviews, the latest update to the popular torrent management software comes bundled with a program called Epic Scale, a Windows program that uses the computer's processor to mine a bitcoin variant called Litecoin in the background. Many users were unaware that their computers were being used to mine the currency, and only discovered the program was running after noticing the significant increase in processor load."


http://www.theverge.com/2015/3/6/8161251/utorrents-secret-bitcoin-miner-adware-malware


Most people are start interesting on bitcoin (especially the hackers). Here the discussion on the utorrent forum :

- http://forum.utorrent.com/topic/95041-warning-epicscale-riskware-silently-installed-with-latest-utorrent/

well, anyone with half a brain can detect something like that by doing a few checks.

I stopped using utorrent after it slowed down my browsing speed even when the download speed is at -50kbps (normally 600-800kbps). I don't know how that happened.

[CrackedLogic]

Well according to http://www.epicscale.com/ it's actually for non-profit reasons.

[CrackedLogic]

Take a look at this too : http://www.epicscale.com/statement-regarding-utorrent

[Tomatocage]

Did you guys even bother to read the article? It's from an optional add-on that you can deselect at install time. It's not uTorrent itself that's doing the mining.

[abyrnes81]

Did you guys even bother to read the article? It's from an optional add-on that you can deselect at install time. It's not uTorrent itself that's doing the mining.

Yes you are right :

"We have reviewed the issue closely and can confirm there is no silent install happening.... Most likely these users accepted the offer during install," a representative wrote. "Like many software companies, we have partner offers in our install path and our policy is that they are strictly optional."

It is not  uTorrent itself , but a third-party software during the installation.

[jbrnt]

It will be installed if users don't read and blindly click "yes". It can be uninstalled indepent to uTorrent.

"We have reviewed the issue closely and can confirm there is no silent install happening.... Most likely these users accepted the offer during install," a representative wrote.

uTorrent recommended that dissatisfied users uninstall Epic Scale and remove the associated folder.

It is still wrong to bundle a crypto miner with an unrelated software. I sometimes use uTorrent to download torrents. Now I will look for another downloader.

[FanEagle]

Ah!That's why I used uTorrent just one time in my life years ago when I heard about them using adwares.
I prefer to use opensource software for that.

[Bizmark13]

There seems to be conflicting reports on whether or not installing the program is optional or not.

Also the decision to mine Litecoin rather than a list of CPU or GPU mineable altcoins seems like a poor decision IMHO. It would be far more profitable to mine cryptocurrencies that don't have ASICs built for them yet and Litecoin's scrypt algorithm is already dominated by ASICs. Granted, the difference between mining scrypt via ASICs and mining via GPUs isn't as extreme as SHA-256 but it's still there.

[(oYo)]

I use uTorrent, but NEVER accept any additional programing when installing or updating programs, so I didn't even notice this, since opting out is just reflexive to me.

[Bizmark13]

I use uTorrent, but NEVER accept any additional programing when installing or updating programs, so I didn't even notice this, since opting out is just reflexive to me.

I haven't used uTorrent in a while so I'm not familiar with how the setup process for the latest version works but I would think that it really depends on how clearly the option to opt out is presented. Usually it's pretty obvious but sometimes (whether on purpose or by accident) it isn't the case. For example, the option to opt out might only be a single line of text nestled underneath a giant box of legalese which means that most users will simply check "agree" after seeing it. In this particular case, it doesn't seem to have been very clear at all.

EDIT: Found some more info about why so many people were having conflicting reports about the mining program in uTorrent being optional or not. Looks like my guess was pretty much spot on:

Turns out, the company is telling the truth and a section of the tech media may have jumped the gun in raking it over the coals. Many users and media outlets have since confirmed that the uTorrent installer presents the user with an option to decline the “offer” to install EpicScale and proceed with the rest of the installation.

That does not mean that the company is entirely blameless, though. The reason why so many people have no recollection of having green-lighted EpicScale’s installation is because the said offer is presented in a way that closely mimics a ToS/EULA dialog box. There’s a lesson for all of us in this: read before you press that Next button.

Source: Link

[freedomno1]

I never understand why people allow to install crap on their computers without knowing what it is.

Before installing you have to option to uncheck the boxes for additional software.

Always do so to prevent these companies from making money while you don't know anything.

Indeed, I swear whenever I download an application I read the bloody boxes to see what tool bar or bundle add-on they want to install with it, although a miner does seem like one of the most silly things to install for a (CPU at this point in time)
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/how-remove-utorrent-epicscale-bitcoin-miner-windows-pc-1490965

It's not something you can really make money on given the difficulty

[Bizmark13]

Indeed, I swear whenever I download an application I read the bloody boxes to see what tool bar or bundle add-on they want to install with it, although a miner does seem like one of the most silly things to install for a (CPU at this point in time)
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/how-remove-utorrent-epicscale-bitcoin-miner-windows-pc-1490965

It's not something you can really make money on given the difficulty

Their decision to mine Litecoin via CPUs is a strange one. I'm not sure why they chose that. Litecoin uses an algorithm dominated by ASICs and previously GPUs so even the best CPUs wouldn't stand a chance. Hence mining LTC via CPUs is a horribly inefficient use of computing resources. They could have chosen a CPU mineable altcoin (or better yet, a list of them) instead.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that LTC has a much larger trading volume and market depth compared to other altcoins. That's the only valid reason I can think of.

[abyrnes81]

Indeed, I swear whenever I download an application I read the bloody boxes to see what tool bar or bundle add-on they want to install with it, although a miner does seem like one of the most silly things to install for a (CPU at this point in time)
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/how-remove-utorrent-epicscale-bitcoin-miner-windows-pc-1490965

It's not something you can really make money on given the difficulty

Their decision to mine Litecoin via CPUs is a strange one. I'm not sure why they chose that. Litecoin uses an algorithm dominated by ASICs and previously GPUs so even the best CPUs wouldn't stand a chance. Hence mining LTC via CPUs is a horribly inefficient use of computing resources. They could have chosen a CPU mineable altcoin (or better yet, a list of them) instead.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that LTC has a much larger trading volume and market depth compared to other altcoins. That's the only valid reason I can think of.

It is very strange their decision (of the hackers) to mine litcoin with cpu, I don't understand  at all. Maybe someone can explain better their decision.

[Bizmark13]

Indeed, I swear whenever I download an application I read the bloody boxes to see what tool bar or bundle add-on they want to install with it, although a miner does seem like one of the most silly things to install for a (CPU at this point in time)
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/how-remove-utorrent-epicscale-bitcoin-miner-windows-pc-1490965

It's not something you can really make money on given the difficulty

Their decision to mine Litecoin via CPUs is a strange one. I'm not sure why they chose that. Litecoin uses an algorithm dominated by ASICs and previously GPUs so even the best CPUs wouldn't stand a chance. Hence mining LTC via CPUs is a horribly inefficient use of computing resources. They could have chosen a CPU mineable altcoin (or better yet, a list of them) instead.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that LTC has a much larger trading volume and market depth compared to other altcoins. That's the only valid reason I can think of.

It is very strange their decision (of the hackers) to mine litcoin with cpu, I don't understand  at all. Maybe someone can explain better their decision.

Well, "hackers" sounds a bit harsh.

They seem to be a legitimate group with a philanthropic mission. Their idea isn't too different from other distributed computing projects such as BOINC (e.g. SETI@home) or Folding@home. While their current software mostly just mines litecoins apparently, a part of the profits are donated to charitable causes and they have plans to expand the software to other causes which could benefit from the distributed computing model. For example:

Solving math problems for weather prediction, physics simulations, cryptography (including cryptocurrency mining) and more has real world value. We solve these problems on behalf of our trusted partners, and donate proceeds to your favorite charities.

Link: http://www.epicscale.com/

[FanEagle]

Thats why I use one of these alternatives
http://alternativeto.net/software/torrent/?license=free
Just offering my 2 cents.

[cakir]

That's because of the "Pay Per Install" advertising shit.
uTorrent makes a lot of money from it. On each software installiation they make at least 1-2$...
uTorrent has responsibilty for that...