Mining from PC? It is not safe and why you should stop it
This should be crypto 101. If you are mining from your Personal Computer then we advise you to stop it. Especially if you are mining from the same computer that you use for your wallets.
Mining on personal computer can be harmful for your components and it can even be a threat to your highly sensitive personal data. How?
Well, you cannot mine Bitcoin using PC, but with 1000s of altcoins out there you might be tempted to try mining them. Especially during the launch and when the difficulty is low you can even try solo mining. But is not recommended to mine such coins using your PC or Laptop.
Basically you'll need the wallet and the mining software to start mining the altcoin.
First of all do not install wallets of these newly launched altcoins. The wallet could be malicious and may potentially contain virus which can be designed to steal coins from other wallets that you've locally installed.
Second do not download and install miners on your computer. Especially closed source miners. You'll never know what's inside the closed source software. They may install malicious app on your PC to steal your highly sensitive information such as wallet files, login details and crypto accounts.
Not just miners, but stay away from anything that is closed source. Whether it be wallet, exchange app or any crypto related apps. Also never download any software's from unverified sources.
Always have a separate machine for mining and a separate one to store your wallets. If you can't afford a dedicated mining rig then atleast move your funds to hardware wallets such as ledger.
Remember to encrypt your wallet and make sure to double check your wallet address when sending / receiving crypto. Especially when you copy paste cryptocurrency address make sure the actual intended address is not replaced by the hacker's address.
Add two factor authentication and be sure to check the links when you visit an exchange. Proceed with your login details only when you are sure it is the official website.
Every year thousands of crypto users are becoming victims to phishing and other malicious attacks. So stay safe.