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TSPY_ZBOT.SM16

July 28, 2013
 Modified by: Jaime Benigno Reyes
 ALIASES:

PWS:Win32/Zbot.gen!AJ (Microsoft), PWS-Zbot.gen.aow (McAfee)

 PLATFORM:

Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows 7

 OVERALL RISK RATING:
 REPORTED INFECTION:
 SYSTEM IMPACT RATING:
 INFORMATION EXPOSURE:

  • Threat Type: Spyware

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted:

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

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.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size:

151,040 bytes

File Type:

EXE

Memory Resident:

Yes

Initial Samples Received Date:

30 Nov 2012

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:

  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random1}\{random}.exe
  • %Application Data%\{random1}\{random}.exe (Windows 7 only)

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

  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random1}
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random2}
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random3}
  • %Application Data%\{random1} (Windows 7 only)
  • %Application Data%\{random2} (Windows 7 only)
  • %Application Data%\{random3} (Windows 7 only)

(Note: %User Profile% is the current user's profile folder, which is usually C:\Documents and Settings\{user name} on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003, or C:\Users\{user name} on Windows Vista and 7.. %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} = ""%User Profile%\Application Data\{random1}\{random}.exe""

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
{random} = "%Application Data%\{random1}\{random}.exe" (Windows 7 only)

Other System Modifications

This spyware adds the following registry keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
{random}

Dropping Routine

This spyware drops the following files:

  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random2}\{random}.{random}
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random3}\{random}.{random}
  • %Application Data%\{random2}\{random}.{random} (Windows 7 only)
  • %Application Data%\{random3}\{random}.{random} (Windows 7 only)

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

Other Details

This spyware connects to the following possibly malicious URL:

  • http://{BLOCKED}7.cc/link.php|file=config.bin

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine:

9.300

FIRST VSAPI PATTERN FILE:

9.540.08

FIRST VSAPI PATTERN DATE:

22 Nov 2012

VSAPI OPR PATTERN File:

9.541.00

VSAPI OPR PATTERN Date:

22 Nov 2012

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.

  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\{random}

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} = ""%User Profile%\Application Data\{random1}\{random}.exe""
  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
    • {random} = "%Application Data%\{random1}\{random}.exe"  (Windows 7 only)

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.
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random1}
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random2}
  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{random3}
  • %Application Data%\{random1} (Windows 7 only)
  • %Application Data%\{random2} (Windows 7 only)
  • %Application Data%\{random3} (Windows 7 only)

Step 6

Reset Internet security settings

[ Learn More ]

Step 7

Restart in normal mode and scan your computer with your Trend Micro product for files detected as TSPY_ZBOT.SM16. 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.

NOTES:
The created registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\{random} 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 if the users have one. Note that the key need not to be deleted since it won't cause the user system any harm.


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