BKDR_ALINA.NG

 Analysis by: Anthony Joe Melgarejo

 ALIASES:

TrojanSpy:Win32/Alinaos.E (Microsoft), Infostealer.Alina (Symantec), Troj/Trackr-Gen (Sophos), W32/Spy.POSCARDSTEALER.D!tr (Fortinet), Win32/Spy.POSCardStealer.D trojan (ESET)

 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:
 INFORMATION EXPOSURE:

  • Threat Type: Backdoor

  • Destructiveness: No

  • Encrypted: No

  • In the wild: Yes

  OVERVIEW

Infection Channel:

Dropped by other malware, Downloaded from the Internet

This backdoor is also known as BlackPOS.

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

It runs certain commands that it receives remotely from a malicious user. Doing this puts the affected computer and information found on the computer at greater risk.

It deletes the initially executed copy of itself.

  TECHNICAL DETAILS

File Size:

60,928 bytes

File Type:

EXE

File Compression:

UPX

Memory Resident:

Yes

Initial Samples Received Date:

24 Jul 2013

Payload:

Connects to URLs/IPs

Arrival Details

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

  • %User Profile%\Application Data\{file name}.exe

(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.)

Autostart Technique

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

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\
CurrentVersion\Run
{file name} = "%User Profile%\Application Data\{file name}.exe"

Backdoor Routine

This backdoor executes the following command(s) from a remote malicious user:

  • Update itself
  • Set intervals of checking for update and download link
  • Set intervals of sending of logs and log level

It connects to the following URL(s) to send and receive commands from a remote malicious user:

  • http://{BLOCKED}ns.com/forum/login.php
  • http://{BLOCKED}zus.com/forum/login.php

It posts the following information to its command and control (C&C) server:

  • act = Action type ([d]ownload, [l]og or [c]ard data)
  • b = Volume serial number
  • c = Computer Name
  • v = Malware build version
  • p = Malware Installation path
  • ldata = log data
  • cdata = card (track) data

Other Details

This backdoor deletes the initially executed copy of itself

NOTES:

Where {file name} can be any of the following:

  • dwm
  • win-firewall
  • adobeflash
  • desktop
  • jucheck
  • jusched
  • java

It scans the memory of all running processes to retrieve card track data.

It skips to scan the following processes:

  • explorer.exe
  • chrome.exe
  • firefox.exe
  • iexplore.exe
  • svchost.exe
  • smss.exe
  • crss.exe
  • wininit.exe
  • steam.exe
  • devenv.exe
  • thunderbird.exe
  • skype.exe
  • pidgin.exe

It uses the following regular expressions as pattern for scanning track data:

  • ((%?[Bb´`]?)[0-9]{13,19}\^[A-Za-z\s]{0,26}/[A-Za-z\s]{0,26}\^(1[2-9])(0[1-9]|1[0-2])[0-9\s]{3,50}\?)
  • ([0-9]{13,19}=(1[2-9])(0[1-9]|1[0-2])[0-9]{3,50}\?)
  • (((%?[Bb´`]?)[0-9]{13,19}\^[A-Za-z\s]{0,26}/[A-Za-z\s]{0,26}\^(1[2-9])(0[1-9]|1[0-2])[0-9\s]{3,50}\?)[;\s]{1,3}([0-9]{13,19}=(1[2-9])(0[1-9]|1[0-2])[0-9]{3,50}\?))

    Here are the templates of the data it sends using HTTP POST:


    [Download/Update]
    act=d&b={volume serial number}&c={Computer Name}&v={Malware build version}&p={Malware Installation path}


    [Sending log data]
    act=l&b={volume serial number}&c={Computer Name}&v={Malware build version}&p={Malware Installation path}&ldata={encrypted log data}


    [Sending Card data]
    act=c&b={volume serial number}&c={Computer Name}&v={Malware build version}&p={Malware Installation path}&cdata={encrypted card data}

    It accepts the following execution parameters:


    [Installation]
    alina={initial malware path and file name}

    {initial malware path and file name} is used so its dropped copy can delete it.


    [Update]
    update={Current Installation Path};{New Installation Path}

  •   SOLUTION

    Minimum Scan Engine:

    9.700

    FIRST VSAPI PATTERN FILE:

    10.174.06

    FIRST VSAPI PATTERN DATE:

    25 Jul 2013

    VSAPI OPR PATTERN File:

    10.175.00

    VSAPI OPR PATTERN Date:

    25 Jul 2013

    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

    Scan your computer with your Trend Micro product and note files detected as BKDR_ALINA.NG

    Step 3

    Restart in Safe Mode

    [ Learn More ]

    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\CurrentVersion\Run
      • {file name} = "%User Profile%\Application Data\{file name}.exe"

    Step 5

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