Analysis by: Sammy Chua
ALIASES:

ADWARE\MultiPlug.Gen7 (Avira); MultiPlug-FVQ. (McAfee); a variant of Win32/Adware.MultiPlug.EV application (ESET-NOD32)

 PLATFORM:

Windows

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

  • Threat Type: Adware

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted: No

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

Infection Channel: Downloaded from the Internet

This adware arrives on a system as a file dropped by other malware or as a file downloaded unknowingly by users when visiting malicious sites. It may be manually installed by a user.

It connects to certain websites to send and receive information.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size: 1,102,848 bytes
File Type: EXE
Memory Resident: Yes
Initial Samples Received Date: 12 Feb 2015
Payload: Connects to URLs/IPs

Arrival Details

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

It may be manually installed by a user.

Installation

This adware drops the following non-malicious files:

  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\temp.ca
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images\loader.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images\progressbar.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images\loader.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images\progressbar.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini.txt
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini.task
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{random value}.ini.tmp
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\bg.ca

(Note: %User Temp% is the user's temporary folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.)

It drops the following copies of itself into the affected system:

  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{malware filename}.exe
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{GUID}\{malware filename}.exe

(Note: %User Temp% is the user's temporary folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.. %All Users Profile% is the All Users folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.)

It creates the following folders:

  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images
  • %Program Files%\{application name}
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{GUID}
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{random folder 2}

(Note: %User Temp% is the user's temporary folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.. %Program Files% is the Program Files folder, where it usually is C:\Program Files on all Windows operating system versions; C:\Program Files (x86) for 32-bit applications running on Windows 64-bit operating systems.. %All Users Profile% is the All Users folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.)

Autostart Technique

This adware drops the following shortcut pointing to its copy in the User Startup folder to enable its automatic execution at every system startup:

  • %User Startup%\{malware filename}.lnk

(Note: %User Startup% is the current user's Startup folder, which is usually C:\Windows\Profiles\{user name}\Start Menu\Programs\Startup on Windows 98 and ME, C:\WINNT\Profiles\{user name}\Start Menu\Programs\Startup on Windows NT, and C:\Documents and Settings\{User name}\Start Menu\Programs\Startup.)

Other System Modifications

This adware adds the following registry keys:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\
CLSID\{GUID}

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\
{GUID}

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\WebApp

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\WebApp\
Styles

It adds the following registry entries:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\
CLSID\{GUID}
(Default Value) = "{application name}"

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\
{GUID}
DisplayName = "{name of application}"

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\
{GUID}
{uninstall key} = ""%Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.exe" {command-line argument}"

It modifies the following registry entries:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Internet Explorer\Main
Start Page = "http://websearch.swellsearch.info/?pid={number}&r={installation date}&hid={number 1}&lg={language}&cc=JP&unqvl={number 2}"

(Note: The default value data of the said registry entry is "{user's start page}".)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Internet Explorer\Main
Start Page = "http://websearch.swellsearch.info/?pid={number}&r={installation date}&hid={number 1}&lg={language}&cc=JP&unqvl={number 2}"

(Note: The default value data of the said registry entry is "{user's start page}".)

Dropping Routine

This adware drops the following files:

  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.dat
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.exe
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.dll
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.tlb
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{installer filename}.{installer extension}
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{installer filename}.{installer extension}.tmp
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{GUID}\{malware filename}.dat
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{random folder 2}\{random filename}.ini
  • %Desktop%\{malware filename}.lnk

(Note: %Program Files% is the Program Files folder, where it usually is C:\Program Files on all Windows operating system versions; C:\Program Files (x86) for 32-bit applications running on Windows 64-bit operating systems.. %User Temp% is the user's temporary folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.. %All Users Profile% is the All Users folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.. %Desktop% is the desktop folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Desktop in Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\Desktop in Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.)

Download Routine

This adware downloads the file from the following URL and renames the file when stored in the affected system:

  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/addons/sinstall.exe
  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/addons/ezdownloader.exe

It saves the files it downloads using the following names:

  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\hpds_setup.exe
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\EzDownloader_setup.exe

(Note: %User Temp% is the user's temporary folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Temp on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Local\Temp on Windows Vista (32- and 64-bit), Windows 7 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8 (32- and 64-bit), Windows 8.1 (32- and 64-bit), Windows Server 2008, and Windows Server 2012.)

Other Details

This adware connects to the following website to send and receive information:

  • http://r1.{BLOCKED}s.org/
  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/images/sidebar.jpg
  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/images/accept.png
  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/images/next.png
  • http://i1.{BLOCKED}ary.info/images/titlebar.png
  • http://{BLOCKED}cter.info/?e={data}
  • http://c1.{BLOCKED}nal.org/?step_id={data}&sf={data}&installer_id={data}

NOTES:

{application name} may refer to the following:

  • EZDownloader
  • FSymbols Stickers for Facebook
  • myselfcoupon
  • UniDeals
  • UnIDeALsa
  • youtubeadblocker

{uninstall key} in the registry path may refer to the following:

  • SilentUninstall
  • QuietUninstallString
  • UninstallString

This malware installs unwanted extensions to browsers.

It opens the following URL after installation:

  • http://{BLOCKED}filessoft.info/

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine: 9.700

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

Note that not all files, folders, and registry keys and entries are installed on your computer during this malware's/spyware's/grayware's execution. This may be due to incomplete installation or other operating system conditions. If you do not find the same files/folders/registry information, please proceed to the next step.

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_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID
    • {GUID}
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall
    • {GUID}
  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software
    • WebApp

Step 4

Restore this modified 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\Internet Explorer\Main
    • From: Start Page = "http://websearch.swellsearch.info/?pid={number}&r={installation date}&hid={number 1}&lg={language}&cc=JP&unqvl={number 2}"
      To: Start Page = "{user's start page}"
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main
    • From: Start Page = "http://websearch.swellsearch.info/?pid={number}&r={installation date}&hid={number 1}&lg={language}&cc=JP&unqvl={number 2}"
      To: Start Page = "{user's start page}"

Step 5

Search and delete this file

[ Learn More ]
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.
  • %User Startup%\{malware filename}.lnk
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.dat
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.exe
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.dll
  • %Program Files%\{application name}\{installer filename}.tlb
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{installer filename}.{installer extension}
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{installer filename}.{installer extension}.tmp
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{GUID}\{malware filename}.dat
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{random folder 2}\{random filename}.ini
  • %Desktop%\{malware filename}.lnk
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\temp.ca
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images\loader.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images\progressbar.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images\loader.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images\progressbar.gif
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini.txt
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps\{random value}.ini.task
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\{random value}.ini.tmp
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\bg.ca
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\hpds_setup.exe
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp\EzDownloader_setup.exe

Step 6

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.
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\images
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\steps
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername 1}\temp
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}
  • %User Temp%\{random foldername}\images
  • %Program Files%\{application name}
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{GUID}
  • %All Users Profile%\Application Data\{random folder 2}

Step 7

Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product to delete files detected as ADW_MULTIPLUG.GC. 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.


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