Clouds should be responsible for stolen computers – Canalys • The Register

Canalys Forums APAC Canalys CEO Steve Brazier has suggested that cloud providers should have similar accountability to credit card companies when accounts are hacked and used to mine cryptocurrency.

As cryptocurrencies collapsed around the world and the cost of mining the digital assets through their own devices eroded the remaining value, miners turned to creative means to continue their chosen profession or hobby.

“They can’t afford to provide the computing power. But they can hack the public clouds,” Brazier said at the Canalys Forums APAC 2022 event. “They are taking advantage of small businesses around the world by gaining access to different people’s public cloud accounts.”

The CEO of the analyst firm explained that the cumulative illicit use of public clouds for crypto mining in 2022 has been estimated at $100 million or more so far and is growing rapidly. But when it comes to who is responsible for the stolen computers, public cloud providers let the channel take responsibility for any disputes.

Brazier argued that “public cloud providers must be accountable for misuse of the systems they build.”

He added:

The CEO called the scenario “the biggest scandal growing in the industry this year.”

But cloud computing wasn’t the only tech industry affected by this year’s crypto winter. Brazier said the decline in cryptocurrency values ​​attributed to poor semiconductor results over the past few quarters, coupled with a downtrend in the PC market, is causing a “major distortion in the tech industry.”

Brazier said the semiconductor industry was “very quiet about how much money they were making for crypto miners” and that not only did industry players not want to disclose the sources of revenue, but also “took steps to try to restrict the disclosure of this data.” avoid”. ®