NCrypt - Downloaded without notice or permission

Tibbies4Life:

I do not want Crypto Mining on my computer but I can't find the Crypto Mining feature or Opt In/Out options on my User Interface so I can be sure it's not enabled.  

It will only show if your GPU is capable of mining.

If you want to check for sure it is not running, look at task manager; if NCrypt.exe is running, ...
I have every confidence that if you don't see the "Norton Crypto" tile at the top of your Norton 360 dashboard that you are not mining.
https://community.norton.com/en/comment/8519417#comment-8519417  

FAQ: Norton Crypto
[...]
Will Norton 360 mine my device without my permission? ›
No. In addition to having a device that meets system requirements, you must also turn on Norton Crypto on your device. If you have turned on Norton Crypto, but you no longer want to use the feature, you can disable it through your Norton Crypto dashboard.
[...]
https://support.norton.com/sp/en/us/home/current/solutions/v138473899

Please review: https://community.norton.com/en/comment/8519484#comment-8519484 

btw ~ NCrypt.exe may be deleted to Recycle Bin

To delete NCrypt.exe temporarily turn off Product Tamper Protection -> remember to turn Product Tamper Protection back on.

Note:  you'll probably need to check if NCrypt.exe is reinstalled with Norton "product" updates.

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btw ~ you may also rename NCrypt.exe 

for example: NCrypt.exe123

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btw ~ Norton also checks your GPU on boot

Category: Crypto Mining
Date & Time,Risk,Activity,Status,Recommended Action,RIG ID
1/5/2022 9:13:43 AM,Info,No viable GPU found that can support crypto mining,Detected,No Action Required

bjm_

Thank you for this information.  I do not see NCryto running anywhere in Task Mgr nor do I have an Opt In interface on the User Interface.  So thank you that gives me the information I have been looking for.  Other posts just say by default it's not activated but didn't give any info how to be assured or look for it.  As always you have been so good to help me. 

FWIW ~ 

“As the crypto economy continues to become a more important part of our customers’ lives, we want to empower them to mine cryptocurrency with Norton, a brand they trust,” said Vincent Pilette, CEO of NortonLifeLock. “Norton Crypto is yet another innovative example of how we are expanding our Cyber Safety platform to protect our customers’ ever-evolving digital lives.”

For years, many coinminers have had to take risks in their quest for cryptocurrency, disabling their security in order to run coinmining and allowing unvetted code on their machines that could be skimming from their earnings or even planting ransomware. Earnings are commonly stored directly on miners’ hard drives, where their digital wallet could be lost should it fail.

Norton Crypto delivers a secure, reliable way for consumers to mine for Ethereum without opening themselves and their devices up to these pitfalls. Once cryptocurrency has been earned, customers can track and transfer earnings into their Norton Crypto Wallet, which is stored in the cloud so it cannot be lost due to hard drive failure.

“We are proud to be the first consumer Cyber Safety company to offer coinminers the ability to safely and easily turn the idle time on their PCs into an opportunity to earn digital currency,” said Gagan Singh, chief product officer at NortonLifeLock. “With Norton Crypto, our customers can mine for cryptocurrency with just a few clicks, avoiding many barriers to entry in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.”

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210602005361/en/ 

I too am a strong proponent of Norton security products. I agree that it should not be automatically downloaded to customers' computers. I realize it's not activated by default, but as I've said elsewhere on Norton Forums, that's beside the point. The point is it should not be downloaded by default in the first place, period. If a Norton customer wants to take advantage of the product offering then they should have the option. The product may be good, I'm not saying it's not. I am simply saying that as a non-security product it should not be bundled with a security product. Further, while Norton may have discosed this back in July or July 2020, that's a long time ago, and it was on a blog/forum that relatively few people check on anything even near a regular basis. I too found out about it from a respected security blog. If not for that I'd still have no idea that NCrypto.exe was on my computer. Well, actually, used to be on my computer. I've deleted it, and am certain it will reappear at the next Norton360 patch update, when I'll have to remember to find and delete. I too am am incensed that the CEO [apparently] stated older people are hesitant about new technologies. If he/she/it said that then the arrogance and condescension speaks volumes. Yes, we may be hesitant, but for some of us that's more due to wisdom of the ages. Sometimes I/we may be hesitant/reluctant, sometimes because it's just a pain in the butt or we're unsure. However, sometimes it's more because we've seen it before and know better than to fall for the new-best-thing simply because it's new. We're less likely to buy into the hype. So, think twice before dismissing based on age. That goes both ways, us older folks could just as easily dismiss the younger, but that's a mistake just as much as it's a mistake for the younger to dismiss the older. We each have much to learn from the other.