RSA Monthly Online Fraud Report -

RANSOMWARE: INFECT ME NOT
June 2012
RSA researchers have been following ransomware campaigns and ransomware Trojan
attack waves and have recently analyzed a new variant that holds infected PCs hostage
until their owners make a €100 payment to the botmaster.
The more interesting part of this malware’s operations is its location ­– what appears to
be a server most likely orchestrating botnet monetization and affiliate infections deals.
Ransomware is the type of malware that can infect a PC and then lock the user’s data
most commonly by encrypting files or by injecting a rogue MBR (master boot record) to
the system’s start-up routine.
Ransomware can come as standalone malicious code or coupled with other malware. This
type of malicious campaign has been on the rise and are ever popular, with many recent
cases combining banking Trojans with ransomware. While the user’s files are typically
locked until the ransom is paid, the victim is still free to browse the Internet, thus
allowing the banking Trojan to continue collecting information on the victim
uninterrupted.
The Trojan involved in the cases studied by RSA is a ransomware that begins by checking
for the future victim’s geo-location and adapting a ransom page to the local language for
thirteen different countries. The fact that this malware aims at 13 specific countries may
seem targeted enough at first sight, but it is only the case of one variant – if this malware
is shared or sold with other criminals, they could easily adapt it to their own targets.
FRAUD REPORT
ANALYSIS OF A RANSOMWARE KIT
The Trojan encrypts the end-user’s personal data (documents, photographs, etc.) and
then demands they pay to receive an unlock code for their system. Once the user pays
with a valid PIN/voucher – the botmaster actually sends back an unlock command and
releases the hold on the PC. Unlocking the PC is a rare occurrence in cybercrime. Most
ransomware botmasters do not have any set-up designed to unlock the PC. Of course,
this case is not an indication to an honorable thief, but rather to a cybercriminal planning
to possibly re-monetize that bot in the future.
Researchers at RSA Trojan Labs obtained and ran the malware’s executable binary and
confirmed that although it begins with typical ransomware deployment, it promptly
moves to checking the victim’s geographic location. In order to define the location
of the infected machine, the malware uses a Windows function called GetUserGeoID
(on the user’s level this can be accessed via Control Panel->Regional and Language
Options->Location). Although this method is simple, it is efficient and rarely deployed
by other similar Trojans.
The malware converts the country name to a unique 3-character ID and then uses that
code in its GET request to the C&C server for a customized ransom message to the victim.
The Trojan receives back the country-specific page on the fly. Unlike other ransomware
variants, this malware downloads an archived file (PK header) containing one main HTML
page, JS/CSS files and the ransom-demanding image presented to the victim.
RSA researchers were able to recognize 13 different ransom kits available for this Trojan.
All kits are located in the same folder, where some countries have two different types of
images that can be downloaded and used by the ransomware (in cases when more than
one language is spoken in that country, such as Belgium).
After the ransomware kit infected the PC, it was downloaded and unpacked locally. This
is the point at which the Trojan begins its primary communication with the botmaster’s
remote server. The communication includes three main purposes:
–– Inform the botmaster of the addition of a new bot, send infected machine’s IP address
(and then used to define the infected PC’s physical location)
–– Obtain a blacklist of potentially fake prepaid card/voucher numbers defined by the
botmaster
–– Ping the botmaster to use the C&C as a drop for the coming ransom payment (in the
shape of a card PIN/voucher number)
This Trojan also makes a few copies of itself and saves them under different names
locally on the infected PC.
RANSOMWARE’S CYBERCRIME SERVER SIDE
Much like other Trojans, this ransomware is managed via server side scripts on the
botmaster’s resources. The variant analyzed in this case used four resources, all of which
were located on the same physical server, using two different IP addresses held with a
Russian-based ISP – typical for the vast majority of ransomware.
RSA was able to deduce that the ransomware analyzed is actually part of a larger
cybercrime operation. The botmasters behind this malware variant are clearly bot-herding
and monetizing their botnets using a loader Trojan, banking Trojans and ransomware
variants. The server hosting the ransomware has proven to also be a drop zone for stolen
credentials amounting to well over €80,000.
page 2
EVEN MORE RANSOMWARE
An additional type of ransomware found on the same server was targeting German
consumers, instructing victims to pay €100 for an unlock code. The message informed
the victim that their system was infected due to infringement and is now locked using
strong AES-256 encryption. The locker claims that the only Anti-Virus software that can
clean the system is “Antivirus System Repair v2.2”/ “Antivirus Harddisk Repair v2.2”, the
fake name used by the cybercriminals. Infected PC owners are told they are to purchase a
prepaid card/voucher for €100 and make the payment to: [email protected].
Open source search results for this malware and email show that it was used vastly in
recent ransomware infection campaigns.
Ransom Message Presented
to Users of Infected Machine,
Demanding €100 Payment
for Fake AV
CONCLUSION
Ransomware has been gaining speed among cybercriminals and bot-herders, likely
because this extortion method works and keeps paying off, as victims believe that if they
pay, their system will be unlocked.
With ransom amounts averaging €100, it seems as though botmasters behind these
scams keep the fee relatively low, possibly so that the victim may prefer to pay it in hopes
of releasing the hold on their PC rather than contact a support professional. Another
factor keeping victims quiet are typical ransomware accusations, including things such
as software and music infringement. It is very possible that users do not know they were
infected by malware and are not keen on contacting someone about it, thus allowing this
type of malware to enjoy its continued popularity.
page 3
In May 2012, phishing volume increased
by seven percent, with a total of 37,878
global attacks identified by RSA. The bulk
of the increase observed in the past two
months is a result of highly targeted
phishing campaigns launched against a
small number of financial institutions.
38970
40000
37878
35558
35000
30000
25191
25000
23097
29974
28365
26907
Source: RSA Anti-Fraud Command Center
Phishing Attacks per Month
24019
22516
21119
21030
19141
20000
15000
10000
5000
376
351
321
300
313
303
281
281
Jan 12
Feb 12
300
298
288
298
Source: RSA Anti-Fraud Command Center
349
350
256
Number of Brands Attacked
The number of brands targeted by phishing
attacks throughout May increased by four
percent, and fifty percent endured less
than five attacks.
May 12
Apr 12
Mar 12
Feb 12
Jan 12
Dec 11
Nov 11
Oct 11
Sept 11
Aug 11
Jul 11
Jun 11
400
May 11
0
250
200
150
100
50
0
May 12
Apr 12
Mar 12
Dec 11
Nov 11
Oct 11
Sept 11
Aug 11
Jul 11
Jun 11
May 11
page 4
US Bank Types Attacked
12%
11%
10%
19%
6%
14%
9%
6%
19%
3%
12%
9%
16%
76%
69%
67%
61%
69%
74%
75%
Aug 11
Sept 11
Oct 11
Nov 11
13%
21%
30%
86%
68%
76%
58%
82%
62%
May 12
12%
Apr 12
25%
Mar 12
20%
Feb 12
23%
Jan 12
20%
20%
Dec 11
12%
Jul 11
80
Jun 11
Phishing attacks against U.S. nationwide
bank brands decreased by 20 percent while
credit unions saw a 13 percent increase in
phishing volume in May.
7%
11%
18%
60
40
20
0
Source: RSA Anti-Fraud Command Center
100
May 11
Brazil 2%
a
Australia
South Korea
Canada
China
Germany
Colombia 1%
UK
Canada 3%
Top Countries by Attack Volume
After being targeted by 28 percent of
worldwide attacks in April, Canada saw a
huge drop in attack volume in May to just
three percent. The UK remains the most
heavily targeted country for the third
consecutive month, enduring more than
60 percent of global phishing volume in
May.
42 Other Countries 6%
United Kingdom 63%
U.S. 25%
page 5
a
US
ChinaChina
3%
S Africa
France 3%
Italy
Canada
Netherlands
India
Bras
Italy 3%
Canada 3%
Top Countries by Attacked Brands
India 4%
The countries with the most attacked
brands in May were the U.S., UK, and
Australia, accounting for 47 percent of all
phishing attacks. Brands in Brazil, India,
Canada, China, France and Italy also
continue to remain highly targeted by
phishing.
Brazil 4%
38 Other Countries 33%
Australia 5%
United Kingdom 11%
U.S. 31%
Portugal 1% France 1%
a
US
Spain 2%
S Africa
China
Italy
Canada
Netherlands
1%
Netherlands
India
Japan 2%
Canada 2%
Top Hosting Countries
The U.S. saw an increase of ten percent in
the number of phishing attacks it hosted
in May – increasing to 66 percent, or two
out of every three attacks. Brazil also
remained a top host with nine percent and
Germany with four percent.
U.K. 2%
Germany 4%
Brazil 9%
U.S. 66%
60 Other Countries 10%
page 6
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holders. JUN RPT 0612