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BKDR_DARKMOON.ZY

October 08, 2012
 Analysis by: Roland Marco Dela Paz
 ALIASES:

Symantec: Backdoor.Darkmoon; Kaspersky: Backdoor.Win32.Inject.joz

 PLATFORM:

Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003

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

  • Threat Type: Backdoor

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted: Yes

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW


This backdoor arrives as an attachment to email messages spammed by other malware/grayware or malicious users. It may be dropped by other malware. It may be unknowingly downloaded by a user while visiting malicious websites.

It opens a hidden Internet Explorer window. It connects to a website to send and receive information.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size:

45,056 bytes

File Type:

PE

Memory Resident:

Yes

Initial Samples Received Date:

17 Mar 2011

Payload:

Compromises system security, Connects to URLs/Ips

Arrival Details

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

It may be dropped by other malware.

It may be unknowingly downloaded by a user while visiting malicious websites.

Installation

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

  • %System%\msxhlconfer.exe

(Note: %System% is the Windows system folder, which is usually C:\Windows\System on Windows 98 and ME, C:\WINNT\System32 on Windows NT and 2000, or C:\Windows\System32 on Windows XP and Server 2003.)

Autostart Technique

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

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Active Setup\Installed Components\{53AD4DE0-7592-55E4-156C-0366E6FE96BC}
StubPath = "%System%\msxhlconfer.exe"

Other System Modifications

This backdoor adds the following registry keys as part of its installation routine:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Local AppWizard-Generated Applications

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Local AppWizard-Generated Applications\
bricks

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Local AppWizard-Generated Applications\
bricks\Recent File List

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Local AppWizard-Generated Applications\
bricks\Settings

Backdoor Routine

This backdoor opens a hidden Internet Explorer window.

It connects to the following websites to send and receive information:

  • {BLOCKED}nmlgb.3322.org

  SOLUTION

Minimum Scan Engine:

8.900

Step 1

For Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 users, before doing any scans, please make sure you disable System Restore to allow full scanning of your computer.

Step 2

Identify and terminate files detected as BKDR_DARKMOON.ZY

[ 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 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. Before you could do this, you must restart in Safe Mode. For instructions on how to do this, you may refer to this page If the preceding step requires you to restart in safe mode, you may proceed to edit the system registry.

 
  • In HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software
    • Local AppWizard-Generated Applications
  • In HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Active Setup\Installed Components
    • {53AD4DE0-7592-55E4-156C-0366E6FE96BC}

Step 4

Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product to delete files detected as BKDR_DARKMOON.ZY. 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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