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:
- Microsoft finds Raspberry Robin worm in hundreds of Windows networks
July 1, 2022
Microsoft says that a recently spotted Windows worm has been found on the networks of hundreds of organizations from various industry sectors. The malware, dubbed Raspberry Robin, spreads via infected USB devices, and it was first spotted in September 2021 by Red Canary intelligence analysts. Cybersecurity firm Sekoia also observed it using QNAP NAS devices as command ...
- #StopRansomware: MedusaLocker
June 30, 2022
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Department of the Treasury, and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) are releasing this CSA to provide information on MedusaLocker ransomware. Observed as recently as May 2022, MedusaLocker actors predominantly rely on vulnerabilities in Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to access victims’ networks. ...
- Black Basta Ransomware Operators Expand Their Attack Arsenal With QakBot Trojan and PrintNightmare Exploit
June 30, 2022
Since it became operational in April, Black Basta has garnered notoriety for its recent attacks on 50 organizations around the world and its use of double extortion, a modern ransomware tactic in which attackers encrypt confidential data and threaten to leak it if their demands are not met. The emerging ransomware group has continued to ...
- Toll fraud malware: How an Android application can drain your wallet
June 30, 2022
Toll fraud malware, a subcategory of billing fraud in which malicious applications subscribe users to premium services without their knowledge or consent, is one of the most prevalent types of Android malware – and it continues to evolve. Compared to other subcategories of billing fraud, which include SMS fraud and call fraud, toll fraud has unique ...
- Countering hack-for-hire groups
June 30, 2022
As part of TAG’s mission to counter serious threats to Google and our users, we’ve published analysis on a range of persistent threats including government-backed attackers, commercial surveillance vendors, and serious criminal operators. Today, we’re sharing intelligence on a segment of attackers we call hack-for-hire, whose niche focuses on compromising accounts and exfiltrating data as ...
- The SessionManager IIS backdoor
June 30, 2022
Following on from Kaspersky earlier Owowa discovery, Kaspersky researchers continued to hunt for more backdoors potentially set up as malicious modules within IIS, a popular web server edited by Microsoft. And they didn’t come back empty-handed… In 2021, Kaspersky noticed a trend among several threat actors for deploying a backdoor within IIS after exploiting one of ...