Analysis by: Erika Bianca Mendoza
 Modified by: Rhena Inocencio
ALIASES:

HackTool:Win32/PWDump (Microsoft), Spyware.Ardakey (Symantec)

 PLATFORM:

Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP (32-bit, 64-bit), Windows Vista (32-bit, 64-bit), Windows 7 (32-bit, 64-bit)

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

  • Threat Type: Hacking Tool

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted: No

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

Infection Channel: Downloaded from the Internet, Dropped by other malware

This hacking tool arrives on a system as a file dropped by other malware or as a file downloaded unknowingly by users when visiting malicious sites. It arrives as a component bundled with malware/grayware packages. It may be manually installed by a user.

It does not have any propagation routine.

It does not have any backdoor routine.

It does not have any downloading capability.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size: Varies
File Type: EXE, DLL
Memory Resident: Yes
Initial Samples Received Date: 19 Dec 2012
Payload: Steals information

Arrival Details

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

It arrives as a component bundled with malware/grayware packages.

It may be manually installed by a user.

Installation

This hacking tool drops the following component file(s):

  • %Windows%\wshextpw.dll - also detected as HKTL_PWDUMP

(Note: %Windows% is the Windows folder, where it usually is C:\Windows on all Windows operating system versions.)

Its DLL component is injected to the following process(es):

  • lsass.exe

Other System Modifications

This hacking tool deletes the following files:

  • %Windows%\wshextpw.dll - deleted after injection

(Note: %Windows% is the Windows folder, where it usually is C:\Windows on all Windows operating system versions.)

Propagation

This hacking tool does not have any propagation routine.

Backdoor Routine

This hacking tool does not have any backdoor routine.

Download Routine

This hacking tool does not have any downloading capability.

Other Details

This hacking tool does the following:

  • Dump LanMan and NTLM hashes
  • Dump password hashes
  • Dump password hash histories

NOTES:

The injected %Windows%\wshextpw.dll creates the following non-malicious files:

  • %System%\LSASecrets.txt
  • %System%\PWCache.txt
  • %System%\PWHashes.txt

The dumped data are stored to the created non-malicious files.

This is a command line tool which requires administrator privileges to perform its intended routine.

This hacking tool risks the exposure of system account information, which may then lead unauthorized use of the affected system.

It does not have rootkit capabilities.

It does not exploit any vulnerability.

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine: 9.300
SSAPI PATTERN File: 1.357.00
SSAPI PATTERN Date: 19 Dec 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

Search and delete these files

[ 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.  
  • %System%\LSASecrets.txt
  • %System%\PWCache.txt
  • %System%\PWHashes.txt

Step 3

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