Websites using CoinHive

Okay, let s break down CoinHive, a service that allowed website owners to mine cryptocurrency using visitors browsers. Keep in mind that CoinHive shut down in March 2019. This information is for historical and informational purposes.

What was CoinHive?

CoinHive was a JavaScript-based service that enabled website owners to embed a cryptocurrency miner into their website. When visitors accessed the site, their computers would use processing power to mine Monero (XMR). In return, the website owner would receive a portion of the mined Monero. The idea was presented as an alternative to traditional advertising revenue models.

How it Worked (In brief):

1. Website Integration: Website owners would embed a small JavaScript code snippet provided by CoinHive into their website s HTML.
2. Visitor s CPU Usage: When a visitor browsed the website, the JavaScript code would run in their browser, using a portion of their CPU power to solve cryptographic puzzles for Monero mining.
3. Monero Mining: The mined Monero was sent to CoinHive.
4. Revenue Share: CoinHive would take a cut and then distribute the remaining Monero to the website owner based on the amount of processing power contributed by the visitors.

Revenue (For the Website Owner - when it existed):

• Revenue depended entirely on the amount of CPU power contributed by visitors.
• Factors included:
  • Number of visitors: More visitors meant more potential mining power.
  • CPU power of visitors devices: More powerful CPUs mined faster.
  • Mining intensity (throttling): Website owners could control how much CPU power was used, balancing mining revenue with visitor experience (too much CPU usage slowed down the site).
  • Monero price: Fluctuations in Monero s price directly impacted revenue.
• Realistically, most sites generated relatively small amounts of revenue compared to traditional advertising. Large sites with sustained high traffic had the potential to earn more.

Alternatives (Historical, as CoinHive is defunct):

When CoinHive was active, there were a few other similar services, but none achieved the same level of popularity. Some examples included:

• Crypto-Loot: Similar in concept to CoinHive, but generally less well-known.
• JSEcoin: Another JavaScript-based miner.
• WebMinePool: Yet another option, also not as widely used.

Important Notes about Alternatives:

• Legitimacy Concerns: Many of these alternatives were also associated with concerns about transparency and user experience.
• Current Viability: The browser-based cryptocurrency mining landscape has changed significantly. Browser vendors actively block these types of miners due to the negative user experience.

Pricing (Historical, as CoinHive is defunct):

CoinHive operated on a revenue-sharing model. They took a percentage of the mined Monero as their fee. The exact percentage varied over time but was typically around 30%. The website owner received the remaining 70%.

Customer Care (Historical, as CoinHive is defunct):

• Limited Documentation: CoinHive s documentation was relatively sparse.
• Community Forums: Users often relied on online forums (e.g., Reddit, Stack Overflow) for support and troubleshooting.
• Email Support (Limited): CoinHive offered some email support, but response times could vary.
• No Dedicated Account Managers: There were no dedicated account managers for individual website owners.

Why CoinHive Shut Down:

CoinHive shut down in March 2019 due to a combination of factors:

• Monero Hard Fork: A Monero hard fork (a change to the blockchain) made their mining algorithm less efficient.
• Decreasing Monero Price: The price of Monero declined significantly, making mining less profitable.
• Browser Security Measures: Browsers like Chrome and Firefox started implementing stricter security measures to block or limit cryptocurrency mining scripts, making it harder for CoinHive to operate effectively.
• Negative Reputation: The practice of cryptojacking (mining cryptocurrency without user consent) became increasingly unpopular, and CoinHive was often associated with it, even though it offered an opt-in solution.

Ethical Considerations (Important):

The use of CoinHive and similar services raised significant ethical concerns:

• User Consent: Many websites used CoinHive without explicitly informing visitors or obtaining their consent. This cryptojacking was considered unethical and even malicious.
• CPU Usage: Even when consent was obtained, excessive CPU usage could slow down visitors computers, drain their batteries (on laptops and mobile devices), and impact their browsing experience.
• Transparency: Lack of transparency about how much CPU power was being used and how much Monero was being mined.

In summary: CoinHive was a service that enabled website owners to mine Monero using visitors browsers. While it offered an alternative revenue model, it raised ethical concerns about user consent and CPU usage. Due to changes in the Monero network, browser security measures, and public perception, CoinHive shut down in 2019. The landscape of browser-based cryptocurrency mining has largely disappeared due to these issues and technological shifts.