Compute Hijacking

Compute Hijacking is a specialized form of Resource Hijacking where adversaries specifically target computational resources within an application or system to serve their own objectives. This Impact sub-technique involves attackers illicitly leveraging processing power, memory, or computational services of the compromised environment to execute unauthorized workloads such as cryptocurrency mining operations, distributed computing tasks, or large-scale data processing. The exploitation typically occurs after initial access has been established, allowing attackers to execute malicious code that monopolizes CPU cycles, GPU resources, or container orchestration platforms. Unlike other Impact techniques that focus on destruction or data exfiltration, Compute Hijacking aims to parasitically extract value over extended periods while attempting to remain undetected. Organizations may observe symptoms such as unexplained performance degradation, increased power consumption, abnormal CPU utilization patterns, or unexpected cloud computing bills. This technique is particularly prevalent in cloud-native and containerized environments where computational resources are elastically scalable and billing is consumption-based.