Claude Code AI agent caught a crypto miner hiding on a developer’s overheating Mac
A developer using Claude Code to help build a temperature monitor app was warned by the coding agent about a hidden crypto miner running on their system.
Claude Code, an AI coding agent, detected a crypto miner running on a developer's overheating MacBook. The coding agent alerted the human user that the machine was running an unauthorized cryptomining software, identified as xmrig, consuming an enormous 1175% CPU and 12 cores. The developer, UntilHEX, on Reddit, confirmed that the malware's presence explained why their Mac was underperforming. The mysterious infection was reportedly added to the Mac's startup tasks on August 29.
Claude Code noticed the malware's malicious CPU activity, which likely led to its discovery. The AI agent suggested removing the startup item and moving the infected files into a quarantine folder to mitigate the issue. After taking action, the malware was effectively eliminated, and a subsequent Malwarebytes scan confirmed the cleaning process' success.
This incident highlights the importance of AI agents like Claude Code in identifying and neutralizing threats, even in seemingly benign situations like developing temperature monitor apps.
Written by urgent.news from Tom's Hardware's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
