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TSPY_ZBOT.ULA

September 19, 2013
 Analysis by: Anthony Joe Melgarejo
 ALIASES:

W32/Zbot.OWZN!tr (Fortinet), TrojanSpy.Zbot (VBA32)

 PLATFORM:

Windows 2000, Windows XP (32-bit and 64-bit), Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista (32-bit and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit)

 OVERALL RISK RATING:
 DAMAGE POTENTIAL:
 DISTRIBUTION POTENTIAL:
 REPORTED INFECTION:
 SYSTEM IMPACT RATING:
 INFORMATION EXPOSURE:

  • Threat Type: Spyware

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted:

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

Infection Channel:

Downloaded from the Internet, Dropped by other malware

This spyware arrives on a system as a file dropped by other malware or as a file downloaded unknowingly by users when visiting malicious sites.

It deletes the initially executed copy of itself.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size:

343,265 bytes

File Type:

EXE

Memory Resident:

Yes

Initial Samples Received Date:

17 Sep 2013

Payload:

Compromises system security, Connects to URLs/IPs

Arrival Details

This spyware arrives on a system as a file dropped by other malware or as a file downloaded unknowingly by users when visiting malicious sites.

Installation

This spyware drops the following copies of itself into the affected system:

  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 1}\{random file name 1}.exe

(Note: %Application Data% is the current user's Application Data folder, which is usually C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, or C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Roaming on Windows Vista and 7.)

It drops the following files:

  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 2}\{random file name 2}.{random file extension}

(Note: %Application Data% is the current user's Application Data folder, which is usually C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, or C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Roaming on Windows Vista and 7.)

It creates the following folders:

  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 1}
  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 2}
  • %Application Data%\Microsoft\Address Book - for all Windows OSs except Vista and 7

(Note: %Application Data% is the current user's Application Data folder, which is usually C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, or C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Roaming on Windows Vista and 7.)

Autostart Technique

This spyware adds the following registry entries to enable its automatic execution at every system startup:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
{random file name 1} = "%Application Data%\{random folder name 1}\{random file name 1}.exe"

Other System Modifications

This spyware adds the following registry keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
{random}

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
WAB

It creates the following registry entry(ies) to bypass Windows Firewall:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\SharedAccess\Parameters\
FirewallPolicy\StandardProfile\GloballyOpenPorts\
List
{random port number 1}:UDP = "{random port number 1}:UDP:*:Enabled:UDP {random port number 1}"

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\SharedAccess\Parameters\
FirewallPolicy\StandardProfile\GloballyOpenPorts\
List
{random port number 2}:TCP = "{random port number 2}:TCP:*:Enabled:TCP {random port number 2}"

Other Details

This spyware connects to the following URL(s) to check for an Internet connection:

  • http://www.google.com
  • http://www.bing.com

It deletes the initially executed copy of itself

NOTES:
This malware connects to randomly generated IP addresses.

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine:

9.300

FIRST VSAPI PATTERN FILE:

10.284.06

FIRST VSAPI PATTERN DATE:

18 Sep 2013

VSAPI OPR PATTERN File:

10.285.00

VSAPI OPR PATTERN Date:

18 Sep 2013

Step 1

Before doing any scans, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 users must disable System Restore to allow full scanning of their computers.

Step 2

Restart in Safe Mode

[ Learn More ]

Step 3

Delete this registry key

[ Learn More ]

Important: Editing the Windows Registry incorrectly can lead to irreversible system malfunction. Please do this step only if you know how or you can ask assistance from your system administrator. Else, check this Microsoft article first before modifying your computer's registry.

  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft
    • {random}
  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft
    • WAB

Step 4

Delete this registry value

[ Learn More ]

Important: Editing the Windows Registry incorrectly can lead to irreversible system malfunction. Please do this step only if you know how or you can ask assistance from your system administrator. Else, check this Microsoft article first before modifying your computer's registry.

  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
    • {random file name 1} = "%Application Data%\{random folder name 1}\{random file name 1}.exe"
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\SharedAccess\Parameters\FirewallPolicy\StandardProfile\GloballyOpenPorts\List
    • {random port number 1}:UDP = "{random port number 1}:UDP:*:Enabled:UDP {random port number 1}"
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\SharedAccess\Parameters\FirewallPolicy\StandardProfile\GloballyOpenPorts\List
    • {random port number 2}:TCP = "{random port number 2}:TCP:*:Enabled:TCP {random port number 2}"

Step 5

Search and delete these folders

[ Learn More ]
Please make sure you check the Search Hidden Files and Folders checkbox in the More advanced options option to include all hidden folders in the search result.
  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 1}
  • %Application Data%\{random folder name 2}

Step 6

Restart in normal mode and scan your computer with your Trend Micro product for files detected as TSPY_ZBOT.ULA. If the detected files have already been cleaned, deleted, or quarantined by your Trend Micro product, no further step is required. You may opt to simply delete the quarantined files. Please check this Knowledge Base page for more information.

Step 7

The following created registry key(s) cannot be identified by the user since there are no reference values in the created key. The only way it can be identified is by comparing the present keys with a backup of the system registry. Note that the said key(s) do not have to be deleted since it won't be harmful to the system:

  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\{random}


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