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:
- Why Web Browser Padlocks Shouldn’t Be Trusted
September 29, 2020
For years, Apple, Firefox, Google and Microsoft relentlessly made the point that in order to avoid rogue sites you must make sure your browser “padlock” is either locked, green or is otherwise indicating a site as being “secure.” Now, cybersecurity firms are stressing that those padlocks are not enough. “You must look beyond the lock,” said ...
- DDoS attacks are getting more powerful as attackers change tactics
September 29, 2020
There’s been a surge in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks throughout the course of this year, and the attacks are getting more powerful and more disruptive. DDoS attacks are launched against websites or web services with the aim of disrupting them to the extent that they are taken offline. Attackers direct the traffic from a ...
- REvil ransomware deposits $1 million in hacker recruitment drive
September 28, 2020
The REvil Ransomware (Sodinokibi) operation has deposited $1 million in bitcoins on a Russian-speaking hacker forum to prove to potential affiliates that they mean business. Many ransomware operations are conducted as a Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), where developers are in charge of developing the ransomware and payment site, and affiliates are recruited to hack businesses and encrypt their ...
- UHS hospital network hit by ransomware attack
September 28, 2020
Universal Health Services (UHS), a Fortune 500 company and one of the largest healthcare providers in the US, has been impacted by a ransomware attack over the weekend. UHS hospitals have been operating without internal IT systems since Sunday morning, according to employees and patients who took to social media today. Some patients have been turned away ...
- Joker Trojans Flood the Android Ecosystem
September 28, 2020
More variants of the Joker Android malware are cropping up in Google Play as well as third-party app stores, in a trend that researchers say points to a relentless targeting of the Android mobile platform. Researchers at Zscaler have found 17 different samples of Joker being regularly uploaded to Google Play during September. Collectively, these have ...
- Microsoft disrupts nation-state hacker op using Azure Cloud service
September 25, 2020
In a report this week, Microsoft said that it disrupted operations of a nation-state threat group that was using its Azure cloud infrastructure for cyber attacks. Microsoft refers to the actor by the name Gadolinium and says that it’s been active for about a decade targeting organizations in the maritime and health industry; more recently, the ...