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Posted: September 28, 2015

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	8/10
Infected PCs:	166

First Seen:	September 28, 2015
Last Seen:	May 22, 2023
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

Currency is an adware application that may be distributed along with free software. Currency modifies arbitrary Web pages during their loading times to force their inclusion of additional sponsored content, such as hotlinks to Currency's affiliates. This function is a minor security risk, in addition to potentially harming your browser's stability or performance, which is why malware experts always recommend you removing Currency with an anti-adware product.

When Your Browser's Words Turn into Other People's Currency

Most corporations with even tangential relationships with the software industry have acknowledged the hard reality of the billions of dollars of profit in adware. However, such profits may not be backed up by distribution models that encourage the intentional installation of advertising-specialized software. Instead, adware programs utilize methods of installation skirting around the PC owner's consent in various ways. Currency is a recent adware product that may show off one of the most popular strategies: bundling with other freeware.

Currency was confirmed for being bundled with a limited edition of the Chrome Notepad extension recently, a version that has since removed itself from circulation. The Chrome Notepad is, by itself, an extension dedicated to syncing browser text notes using built-in Chrome features. However, Currency specializes in the entirely unrelated 'feature' of injecting advertisements into Chrome Web pages.

Currency may modify your Web pages as Chrome loads them by injecting extra HTML links. These links may be keyed to keywords already present on the Web page. Currency advertisements' affiliate links are contextual in nature, such as offering advertisements for anti-adware software from links related to 'advertising software' or 'pop-ups.' may be the case, Currency doesn't provide any settings or controls for disabling its injected links from these unrelated Web pages.

Tightening Currency's Coin Purse

Currency has not been seen delivering threatening advertisements or similarly hostile content to any PC user intentionally. Despite that fact, most PC users should strive for reducing their contact with unnecessary advertising networks, particularly those promoted by software via suspiciously brief distribution campaigns. Content from Currency advertisements may be an easy and effectively unfiltered gateway into exposure to attacks such as fake software patches and phishing tactics, as well as common advertisements.

Malware analysts only have verified Currency bundles being included with the version 3.8.5 of Chrome Notepad, and other versions of that extension may be free of this adware. Some PC users also have reported the presence of automatic installations for the Chrome Remote Desktop apps in conjunction with this adware. If you have any problems with removing Currency or its symptoms from Chrome, use anti-adware products to scan your PC. Keep all unnecessary programs (including your Web browser) closed until the scans are complete. Currency hasn't been seen being installed to other browsers, although there are no technical reasons why its campaign couldn't extend to Internet Explorer, Firefox, Edge or even Apple's Safari.

Currency Ads

Threat Metric

When Your Browser's Words Turn into Other People's Currency

Tightening Currency's Coin Purse

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