Attackers typically try to pass off malware as legitimate applications or as potentially unwanted programs that users deliberately search for and download, such as cheats or cracks. They often rely on ad and affiliate networks to deliver their creations to victims’ devices. This post examines a less conventional case: a well-known backdoor distributed under the guise of adware. The attackers may have chosen this distribution method because the adware was signed by the developer. On top of that, users often manually add these apps to exclusions, so their useful features don’t get blocked.
Some time ago, a client asked us to analyze a file with the MD5 hash c24e99f9437feacaa63766a3cde3fe3d and add it to our detection database. We initially classified it as adware, but a cursory analysis turned up suspicious network activity, which prompted us to dig deeper. It turned out the sample did far more than serve ads. In fact, its advertising functionality doesn’t even work; instead, it triggers an infection chain that delivers the ValleyRAT backdoor.
Read more…
Source: Kaspersky
Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Security advisory accidentally exposes vulnerable systems
July 6, 2022
A security advisory for a vulnerability (CVE) published by MITRE has accidentally been exposing links to remote admin consoles of over a dozen vulnerable IP devices since at least April 2022. BleepingComputer became aware of this issue yesterday after getting tipped off by a reader who prefers to remain anonymous. The reader was baffled on seeing ...
- Hive ransomware gets upgrades in Rust
July 5, 2022
Hive ransomware is only about one year old, having been first observed in June 2021, but it has grown into one of the most prevalent ransomware payloads in the ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) ecosystem. With its latest variant carrying several major upgrades, Hive also proves it’s one of the fastest evolving ransomware families, exemplifying the continuously changing ...
- AstraLocker ransomware shuts down and releases decryptors
July 4, 2022
The threat actor behind the lesser-known AstraLocker ransomware told BleepingComputer they’re shutting down the operation and plan to switch to cryptojacking. The ransomware’s developer submitted a ZIP archive with AstraLocker decryptors to the VirusTotal malware analysis platform. BleepingComputer downloaded the archive and confirmed that the decryptors are legitimate and working after testing one of them against files ...
- British Army Twitter and YouTube feeds hijacked by crypto-promos
July 4, 2022
The British Army has apologizsed after its Twitter and YouTube accounts were compromised by entities that used them to promote NFTs. As recorded by The Wayback Machine, the @BritishArmy Twitter feed hosted content promoting non-fungible tokens described thusly: “The Anomalies is a collection of special Possessed 1/1s”. According to Web3-watcher Web3 is going just great – the ...
- What to do about inherent security flaws in critical infrastructure?
July 3, 2022
The latest threat security research into operational technology (OT) and industrial systems identified a bunch of issues — 56 to be exact — that criminals could use to launch cyberattacks against critical infrastructure. But many of them are unfixable, due to insecure protocols and architectural designs. And this highlights a larger security problem with devices that ...
- Crypto sleuths pin $100 million Harmony theft on Lazarus Group
July 1, 2022
Investigators at a blockchain analysis outfit have linked the theft of $100 million in crypto assets last week to the notorious North Korean-based cybercrime group Lazarus. The company said it had tracked the movement of some of the stolen cryptocurrency to a so-called mixer used to launder such ill-gotten funds. Blockchain startup Harmony announced June 23 ...