This Point-of-Sale(PoS) malware was discovered on April 2015 attempting to target certain US-based airports. PoS devices infected by this malware should be considered compromised due to its info-stealing routines.
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 modifies the Internet Explorer Zone Settings.
It logs a user's keystrokes to steal information.
It deletes itself after execution.
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 and executes them:
- %Application Data%\Java\JavaUpdate.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, 7, and 8.)
It drops the following component file(s):
- %Application Data%\Java\DLLx64.dll
(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, 7, and 8.)
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
Java Update Manager = "%Application Data%\Java\JavaUpdate.exe"
Other System Modifications
This Spyware adds the following registry keys:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Tracing\JavaUpdate_RASAPI32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Tracing\JavaUpdate_RASMANCS
It adds the following registry entries as part of its installation routine:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\
Associations
LowRiskFileTypes = ".exe;.bat;.reg;.vbs;"
Web Browser Home Page and Search Page Modification
This Spyware modifies the Internet Explorer Zone Settings.
Information Theft
This Spyware accepts the following parameters:
- cs= status code
- p= os version + platform + computername
- m= sessionID
- ls= stolen data
- v= client version
It logs a user's keystrokes to steal information.
Stolen Information
This Spyware sends the gathered information via HTTP POST to the following URL:
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.64.84/a0d19de489970cf7276ebf390ef0cf23/
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.10.1/connect/2
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.68.58/52ff5b94d95a03c5/eklemek.php
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.68.58/afdah/eklemek.php
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.68.58/ufke/eklemek.php
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.88.204/connect/2
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.65.112/connect/2
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.65.112/connect/5
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.65.112/connect/9
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.65.23/connect/3
- http://{BLOCKED}.{BLOCKED}.30.19/mndn39oaom54lt3lk/
- http://{BLOCKED}axis-1.name/a0d19de489970cf7276ebf390ef0cf23/
- http://{BLOCKED}-promos.com/ujakj/ek.php
- http://{BLOCKED}-catalogs.com/dkok/ek.php
Other Details
This Spyware deletes itself after execution.
NOTES:
This spyware acquires VNC passwords of the following for remote control:
- RealVNC
- TightVNC
- UltraVNC
- WinVNC
It scans the memory of all running processes except for the following:
- alg.exe
- csrss.exe
- lsass.exe
- smss.exe
- spoolsv.exe
- svchost.exe
- System
- winlogon.exe
- wuauclt.exe
It uses a constant User-Agent:
Mozilla/4.0(compatible; MSIE 7.0b; Windows NT 6.0
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
Identify and terminate files detected as TSPY_POSNEWT.SM
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- Windows Task Manager may not display all running processes. In this case, please use a third-party process viewer, preferably Process Explorer, to terminate the malware/grayware/spyware file. You may download the said tool here.
- If the detected file is displayed in either Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer but you cannot delete it, restart your computer in safe mode. To do this, refer to this link for the complete steps.
- If the detected file is not displayed in either Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer, continue doing the next steps.
To terminate the malware/grayware/spyware process:
- Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product and take note of the name of the malware/grayware/spyware detected.
- Open Windows Task Manager. To do this, press CTRL+SHIFT+ESC.
- View the list of all running programs. To do this:
• For Windows 2000, XP, Server 2003, Vista, 7 and Server 2008 users, click the Processes tab.
• For Windows 8, 8.1 and Server 2012 users, click the Details tab. - In the list of running programs, locate a malware/grayware/spyware file detected earlier.
- Select the detected files, then press either the End Task or the End Process button, depending on the version of Windows you are using.
- Do the same for the remaining detected malware/grayware/spyware files in the list of running programs.
- To check if the malware/grayware/spyware process has been terminated, close Task Manager, and then open it again.
- Close Task Manager.
Step 3
Delete this registry value
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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
- Java Update Manager = "%Application Data%\Java\JavaUpdate.exe"
- In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Associations
- LowRiskFileTypes = ".exe;.bat;.reg;.vbs;"
To delete the registry value this malware created:
- Open Registry Editor. To do this:
» For Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 users, click Start>Run, type regedit in the text box provided, and then press Enter.
» For Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 users, click the Start button, type regedit in the Search input field then press Enter.
» For Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 users, right-click on the lower left corner of the screen, click Run, type regedit in the text box provided, and then press Enter. - In the left panel of the Registry Editor window, double-click the following:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER>Software>Microsoft>Windows>CurrentVersion>Run - In the right panel, locate and delete the entry:
Java Update Manager = "%Application Data%\Java\JavaUpdate.exe" - In the left panel of the Registry Editor window, double-click the following:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER>Software>Microsoft>Windows>CurrentVersion>Policies>Associations - In the right panel, locate and delete the entry:
LowRiskFileTypes = ".exe;.bat;.reg;.vbs;" - Close Registry Editor.
Step 4
Delete this registry key
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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_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Tracing
- In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Tracing
To delete registry keys this malware/grayware created:
- Open Registry Editor. To do this:
» For Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 users, click Start>Run, type regedit in the text box provided, and then press Enter.
» For Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 users, click the Start button, type regedit in the Search input field then press Enter.
» For Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012 users, right-click on the lower left corner of the screen, click Run, type regedit in the text box provided, and then press Enter. - In the left panel of the Registry Editor window, double-click the following:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE>SOFTWARE>Microsoft>Tracing - Still in the left panel, locate and delete the key:
JavaUpdate_RASAPI32 - Again Still in the left panel, locate and delete the key:
JavaUpdate_RASMANCS - Close Registry Editor.
Step 5
Search and delete these files
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There may be some files that are hidden. Please make sure you check the
Search Hidden Files and Folders checkbox in the "More advanced options" option to include all hidden files and folders in the search result.
- %Application Data%\Java\DLLx64.dll
To delete malware/grayware files:
For Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003:
- Right-click Start then click Search....
- In the File name* input box, type
- %Application Data%\Java\DLLx64.dll
- In the Look In drop-down list, select My Computer then press Enter.
- Once located, select the file then press SHIFT+DELETE to delete it.
- Repeat the said steps for all files listed.
*Note: The file name input box title varies depending on the Windows version (e.g. Search for files or folders named or All or part of the file name.).
For Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows Server 2012:
- Open a Windows Explorer window.
- For Windows Vista, 7, and Server 2008 users, click Start>Computer.
- For Windows 8, 8.1, and Server 2012 users, right-click on the lower left corner of the screen, then click File Explorer.
- In the Search Computer/This PC input box, type:
- %Application Data%\Java\DLLx64.dll
- Once located, select the file then press SHIFT+DELETE to delete it.
- Repeat the said steps for all files listed.
*Note: Read the following Microsoft page if these steps do not work on Windows 7.
Step 6
Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product to delete files detected as TSPY_POSNEWT.SM. 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 the following Trend Micro Support pages for more information:
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