Analysis by: Erika Bianca Mendoza
 PLATFORM:

Windows 98, ME, NT, 2000, XP, Server 2003

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

  • Threat Type: Worm

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted:

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

Infection Channel: Propagates via removable drives

This worm arrives as an attachment to email messages spammed by other malware/grayware or malicious users.

It drops copies of itself into all the removable drives connected to an affected system. It drops an AUTORUN.INF file to automatically execute the copies it drops when a user accesses the drives of an affected system.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size: 204 bytes
File Type: EXE
Memory Resident: Yes
Payload: Connects to URLs/Ips

Arrival Details

This worm arrives as an attachment to email messages spammed by other malware/grayware or malicious users.

Autostart Technique

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

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Microsoft Photo Browse = %system%\vmchlp.exe

Other System Modifications

This worm adds the following registry keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
shit2 = 06

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
eaters2 = 03

Propagation

This worm drops copies of itself into all the removable drives connected to an affected system.

It drops an AUTORUN.INF file to automatically execute the copies it drops when a user accesses the drives of an affected system.

It modifies the contents of an existing AUTORUN.INF file to automatically execute its dropped copy. It does this by adding the following strings in the .INF file:

  • [autorun]
  • open=RECYCLER\S-1-6-21-2434476521-1645641927-702000330-1542\redmond.exe
  • icon=%SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll,4
  • action=Open folder to view files
  • shell\open=Open
  • shell\open\command=RECYCLER\S-1-6-21-2434476521-1645641927-702000330-1542\redmond.exe
  • shell\open\default=1

Other Details

This worm connects to the following URL(s) to get the affected system's IP address:

  • http://whatismyip.com/automation/n09230945.asp

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine: 8.900

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

Terminate the malware/grayware/spyware process:

[ Learn More ]
  1. If the detected file is displayed in either Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer but you cannot delete it, restart your computer in safe mode. To do this, refer to this link for the complete steps.
  2. If the detected file is not displayed in either Windows Task Manager or Process Explorer, continue doing the next steps.

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.

 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run 
Microsoft Photo Browser = %system%\vmchlp.exe

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.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer 
shit2 = 06
eaters2 = 03

Step 5

Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product to delete files detected as WORM_PROLACO.SMS. 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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