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TROJ_FAKEALE.IG

February 24, 2011
 Analysis by: Kathleen Notario
 PLATFORM:

Windows 2000, XP, Server 2003

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

  • Threat Type: Trojan

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted: No

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW


This Trojan adds registry entries to enable its automatic execution at every system startup.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size:

514,560 bytes

File Type:

EXE

Memory Resident:

Yes

Initial Samples Received Date:

22 Oct 2010

Installation

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

  • %Application Data%\hotfix.exe

(Note: %Application Data% is the current user's Application Data folder, which is usually C:\Windows\Profiles\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 98 and ME, C:\WINNT\Profiles\{user name}\Application Data on Windows NT, and C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Application Data on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003.)

Autostart Technique

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

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
Shell = %Application Data%\hotfix.exe

Other System Modifications

This Trojan adds the following registry entries:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\Schedule
AtTaskMaxHours = 48

Dropping Routine

This Trojan drops the following files:

  • %Application Data%\{random numbers}.bat
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At1.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At2.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At3.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At4.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At5.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At6.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At7.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At8.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At9.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At10.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At11.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At12.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At13.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At14.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At15.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At16.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At17.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At18.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At19.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At20.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At21.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At22.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At23.job
  • %Windows%\Tasks\At24.job

(Note: %Application Data% is the current user's Application Data folder, which is usually C:\Windows\Profiles\{user name}\Application Data on Windows 98 and ME, C:\WINNT\Profiles\{user name}\Application Data on Windows NT, and C:\Documents and Settings\{user name}\Local Settings\Application Data on Windows 2000, XP, and Server 2003.. %Windows% is the Windows folder, which is usually C:\Windows or C:\WINNT.)

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine:

8.900

VSAPI PATTERN File:

7.562.05

VSAPI PATTERN Date:

22 Oct 2010

VSAPI PATTERN Date:

10/22/2010 12:00:00 AM

Step 1

For Windows ME and XP users, before doing any scans, please make sure you disable System Restore to allow full scanning of your computer.

Step 2

Restart in Safe Mode

[ Learn More ]

Step 3

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 NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
    • Shell = %Application Data%\hotfix.exe
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Schedule
    • AtTaskMaxHours = 48

Step 4

Search and delete these files

[ Learn More ]
There may be some component 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%\{random numbers}.bat
%Windows%\Tasks\At1.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At10.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At11.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At12.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At13.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At14.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At15.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At16.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At17.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At18.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At19.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At2.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At20.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At21.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At22.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At23.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At24.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At3.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At4.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At5.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At6.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At7.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At8.job
%Windows%\Tasks\At9.job

Step 5

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