Analysis by: Pearl Charlaine Espejo
ALIASES:

Win32/Neurevt.I (ESET-NOD32); Trojan-Ransom.NSIS.Onion.je (Kaspersky); RDN/Ransom!ey (McAfee); W32/CAXO!tr (Fortinet); Trojan:Win32/Skeeyah!bit (Microsoft)

 PLATFORM:

Windows

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

  • Threat Type: Trojan

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted:

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

This Trojan 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 itself after execution.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size: 266,205 bytes
File Type: EXE
Initial Samples Received Date: 30 May 2015

Arrival Details

This Trojan 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 Trojan drops the following copies of itself into the affected system and executes them:

  • %ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe (for Windows Vista and above)
  • %Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe (for Windows XP and below)

(Note: %ProgramData% is the Program Data folder, where it usually is C:\Program Files in Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData 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.. %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.)

It drops the following files:

  • %Application Data%\11 The Notorious B.I.G. - Everyday Struggle.flac
  • %User Temp%\{random characters}.tmp\stripers.dll
  • %ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10\desktop.ini (for Windows Vista and above)
  • %Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10\desktop.ini (for Windows XP and below)

(Note: %Application Data% is the Application Data folder, where it usually is C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\Users\{user name}\AppData\Roaming 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.. %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.. %ProgramData% is the Program Data folder, where it usually is C:\Program Files in Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData 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.. %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.)

It creates the following folders:

  • %ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10 (for Windows Vista and above)
  • %Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10 (for Windows XP and below)

(Note: %ProgramData% is the Program Data folder, where it usually is C:\Program Files in Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP (32- and 64-bit); C:\ProgramData 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.. %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.)

Autostart Technique

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

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Windows Search 5.3.10 = "%Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe" (for Windows XP and below)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Windows Search 5.3.10 = "%Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe" (for Windows XP and below)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
Windows Search 5.3.10 = "%ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe" (for Windows Vista and above)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Windows Search 5.3.10 = "%ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe" (for Windows Vista and above)

It adds the following Image File Execution Options registry entries to automatically execute itself whenever certain applications are run:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\
{filename}.exe
Debugger = ""%ProgramData%\Windows Search 5.3.10\{random filename}.exe" /uac /ifeo" (for Windows Vista and above)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\
{filename}.exe
Debugger = ""%Program Files%\Common Files\Windows Search 5.3.10" /uac /ifeo" (for Windows XP and below)

Other System Modifications

This Trojan adds the following registry keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AppDataLow\
Software\{UID}

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AppDataLow\
Software\MyMailClient

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AppDataLow\
Google Updater (for Windows Vista and above)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Logitech, Inc. (for Windows XP and below)

It adds the following registry entries as part of its installation routine:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\
Zones\1
2500 = "3"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\
Zones\2
2500 = "3"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\
Zones\3
2500 = "3"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\
Zones\4
2500 = "3"

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\AppDataLow\
Google Updater
LastUpdate = "{hex values}" (for Windows Vista and above)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Logitech, Inc.
WindowLayout = "{hex values}" (for Windows XP and below)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Internet Explorer\Main
NoProtectedModeBanner = "1"

Other Details

This Trojan connects to the following possibly malicious URL:

  • http://{BLOCKED}werss.com/power/logout.php

It deletes itself after execution.