2010 and Beyond

The year of 2010 has been an interesting for malware researchers. From the attacks on Google through to the ShadowNet there have been many interesting cases that targeted high profile targets. However, traditional threats such as Zeus, Spyeye and fake antivirus software continue to be what most Internet users face on a daily basis. Moreover, while attacks that are motivated by politics and espionage are increasing, money continues to be the primary driving force in the malware ecosystem. Here's my thoughts on some of the trends I've focused on this year that we can expect to continue into 2011.

Political motivated DoS attacks
Denial of service attacks continue to be used in order to deny access to web sites at critical times. While the attacks by Anonymous in support of Wikileaks (see Arbor's analysis here and here) have received much media attention, the website of Wikileaks was attacked just prior to the release of leaked diplomatic cables. However, as the Berkman Center has documented, (distributed) denial of service attacks against non-governmental and independent media continue with an alarming frequency. These attacks are aimed at disabling access to key information resources at specific points in time.

My colleagues Deibert and Rohozinski argue that "[d]isabling or attacking critical information assets at key moments in time—during elections or public demonstrations, for example—may be the most effective tool for influencing political outcomes in cyberspace." In order to achieve this level of "on demand" disruption, those behind the attacks often outsource these types of attacks to botnets for hire thus blurring the boundaries between cybercrime and politically motivated attacks. We can expect to see a continuation of politically motivated DoS attacks in 2011.

Cyber-espionage
The year of 2010 began with the attacks on Google, dubbed Operation Aurora, which dramatically increased awareness of targeted malware attacks and signified that it is acceptable, and even prudent, that companies disclose such attacks. In fact, some companies began including warnings about such attacks in their SEC filings. However, it is not just companies that are the targets of such attacks, human rights organizations and government systems are compromised as well. In April 2010, the Information Warfare Monitor and the Shadowserver Foundation released a report "Shadows in the Cloud: An investigation into cyber espionage 2.0" in which we document a targeted malware network that extracted secret, confidential and restricted documents from the Indian government and military. (While this report was a follow-up to our previous report on cyber-espionage, "Tracking GhostNet" the networks are quite separate.)

While responsibility for such attacks are often attributed to state entities, 2010 also saw a series of attacks linked to the Zeus malware that appeared a lot more like espionage than crime. After Netwitness released a report on the Kneber botnet, a Zeus-based botnet with domain names registered to hilarykneber@yahoo.com, I focused on the connections between that botnet and a series of attacks against .mil and .gov email addresses using social engineering techniques. Have criminals determined that there is a market for sensitive data? It sure seems that way to me.

Abusing the Cloud
In "Shadows in the Cloud: An investigation into cyber espionage 2.0" my co-authors and I analyzed the command and control infrastructure of a network that used a complex and tiered command and control infrastructure that leveraged Twitter, Google Groups, Blogspot, Baidu Blogs, blog.com and Yahoo! Mail in order to maintain persistent control over the compromised computers. Of course, such techniques are not new, in 2009, researchers found that Twitter, Jaiku, Tumblr, Google Groups, Google AppEngine and Facebook had all been used as the command and control structure for malware. In 2010, Sunbelt found a Twitter botnet creator and Trend Micro reports that the "Here You Have" worm used GMail accounts.

During my analysis of malware posted on the Contagio blog, I noticed that the malware used an encrypted connection to Gmail as a means of command and control. (It also used cloud storage at drivehq.com in order to have the compromised computers download additional malware components). As network defenses continue to include traffic analysis, I believe that we will continue to see a move toward using popular services, especially web mail as command and control elements. Unlike connections to well-known dynamic DNS services, connections to Gmail and other popular services do not necessarily stand out and are encrypted.

Big Money
Although there are interesting target malware attacks that appear to have political motives, money continues to be the driving force behind the bulk of malware encountered by most Internet users. Cybercrime is profitable. In 2010, the Information Warfare Monitor released a report that documented the inner workings of Koobface. Koobface is a notorious botnet that leverages social networking platforms to propagate. The operators of Koobface have been able to successfully monetize their operations. Through the use of pay-per-click and pay-per-install affiliate programs, Koobface was able to earn over US$2 million between June 2009 and June 2010 by forcing compromised computers to install fake antivirus software and engage in click fraud. (BlackHat SEO operators monetize their operations in a similar way., see here and here.)

However, more traditional heists based on stolen banking and credit card credentials continue thanks to malware such as Zeus and SpyEye. This year, law enforcement were able to arrest individuals that used the Zeus malware to steal $70 million dollars. Often, these operations recruit money mules and pack mules to relay stolen money and goods bought with stolen credit cards. This makes it difficult to apprehend those behind these operations.

RX-promotion: A Pharma Shop

More than 65% of spam consists of "pharmaceutical spam" sent through a variety of well known spam botnets such as Rustock and Cutwail. These spam messages use multiple shop brands and sell a variety of drugs, especially Viagra. These pills, sometime fake pills, are shipped to buyers from pharma manufacturers, often in India or China.

There are pharma campaigns that have been found to use thousands of domain names and fast flux DNS techniques which can effectively resist takedown efforts. However, pharma operations are not just centralized campaigns. Much like FakeAV, Pay-Per-Install, and Pay-Per-Click operations, pharma is also organized through affiliate networks. Affiliate networks allow centralized pharma operations to diversify with individual operators maintaining pharma websites and generating incoming traffic through spam or search engine optimization.

This post will focus on RX-promotion (rx-promotion.com) which has been linked to a variety of operations including the payment service ChronoPay. The FDA are aware of Rx-promotion and have sent a warning letter to them in October 2010. Rather than focus on those behind the operation, this post simply focuses on how the affiliate program works and Rx-promotion's pharma brands including:

The Canadian Rx Drugs - http://canadianrx-drugs.com/
Meds Leader - Top Online Pharmacy Supplier - http://medicleader.com/
Health-Refill - http://healthreorder.com/
Men Drugs Shop - http://drugsshopformen.com/
The US Drugs - http://the-us-drugs.com/
Canadian Online Meds - http://canadianonlinemedicine.com/
Trusted Meds Online - http://trusted-drugs-online.com/
MedrugsPlus - http://med-drugs-plus.com/
Internet Drugs Pedia - http://i-drugspedia.com/
The Canadian Rx Drugs - http://herbiedrugs.com/
Always Great - http://always-great.com/
RXED On Green - http://rxed-on-green.com/
StallionsRX - http://stallionsrx.com/
Golden StethoScope - http://golden-stethoscope.com/
Star Of Health - http://star-of-health.com/
RX Pharmacy Center - http://rxpharmacy-center.com/
Cheap Meds List - http://cheap-meds-list.com/
Health Online Leader - http://health-online-leader.com/
Drugs For Us - http://drugsforus.com/
Meds For Us - http://meds-for-us.com/
Great RX Pharmacy - http://great-rx-pharmacy.com/
World Of Drugs - http://world-of-drugs.com/
Number One Clinic - http://numberoneclinic.com/

It is actually quite simple to get started with a pharma affiliate operation and there are even guides that walk users through the process. After creating an account, one can download rx.tar.gz, a package that allows anyone to setup a pharma shop of their own. RX-promotion operates a number pharma brands that are available as themes after setting up the pharma shop. (*See screen shots at the bottom of this post).



Although the brand shops are operated by the affiliates, the shops are connected to the Rx-Promotion infrastructure which provides the backend for the prices, payment and support. The shops make HTTP connections to xml.paymentrx.com and receiving XML updates. Payments are handled through secure.paymentrx.com and customer support is available at rx-drugs-support.com.



As orders are received, the affiliate earns money from Rx-Promotion and can "cash out" through a variety of services.



There is ongoing development of the shop code. Affiliates can easily update their installations through the administrative backend.



In one such update, Rx-Promotion left the "./svn/" directory from the subversion revision control system indicating that their source code and development resides at:

https://nona.smartsol.biz/svn/src/rxpro_shop/public_html

RX-promotion is behind many different pharma brands that are marketed using spam and search engine optimization techniques. RX-promotion provides the backend of the pharma operation while numerous affiliates promote its products in order to receive a portion of the profit generated.

Screenshots of the various pharma brand themes available is the Rx-Promotion shop code:

Always_great



Bench_in_a_park



Bondi_blue



Brushy



canadianonline-lucky



canadianonline



canadianrxdrugs



drugspedia



Golden_sthetoscope



healthrefill



Kettlebell



Life_meant_to_be



Loose_weight_orangy



medsdrugsplus



medsleader



mensdrugs



Modry



Mostly_laconic



Red_on_green



StallionsRx



Star_of_health



theusdrugs-luckymax



theusdrugs



trustedmeds

Pack Mules: The Re-Shipping Fraud & Malware Connection

Malware toolkits are designed to steal information, such as bank account data, and provide cyber criminals with vast quantities of stolen credentials. Every day, credit card numbers stolen by malware such as Zeus and SpyEye are bought and sold in the underground economy. This has given rise to the recruitment of "pack mules."

When using stolen credit card numbers to make purchases online, criminals do not provide their own identity or location information. Instead, criminals post advertisements on job search Web sites in order to lure "pack mules" to act as intermediaries in their criminal operations. These intermediaries receive merchandise on the criminal's behalf and re-ship it to a location under the control of the criminals. This operation is known as "re-shipping fraud" and is similar to the ways in which some criminals recruit "money mules" to open bank accounts for transferring stolen funds.

Re-shipping is tightly intertwined with malware activity. This is demonstrated by the fact that the Web sites used to recruit pack mules are hosted on the same servers that host the command-and-control servers of Zeus botnets. I have been exploring (see Clustering Zeus Command and Control Servers Part 1 and Part 2) clusters of Zeus activity in an attempt to better understand the connections among the criminals behind different functions within the botnet ecosystem. I have found that although Zeus is a popular malware toolkit that any aspiring criminal can use to setup a botnet capable of stealing credit card and banking information, there is a cluster of malicious Zeus servers which indicate that there is a "core" of Zeus operations.

In this blog post, I analyze the pack mule recruiting Web site, "Sullivan and Myers," (sullivanmyers.com) and explore its links with Zeus botnets and the broader malware underground. This investigation indicates that these concentrations of malicious activities go beyond operating command-and-control servers and extracting banking information to other aspects of the criminal enterprise. This includes exploitation (through "exploit packs") and the recruiting of pack and money mules.

Pack Mule Recruitment

In order to recruit pack mules, criminals setup Web sites that purport to belong to a legitimate shipping and receiving business, and post advertisements that link to the "business" on job search Web sites and forums. This can be seen in the case of Sullivan and Myers, a fake business created for the purpose of recruiting pack mules.



Sullivan and Myer's job posting invites interested applicants to complete an online application form and submit a resume to hr@sullivanmyers.com. Sullivan and Myer’s contact information (address, phone, and fax number) is also supplied. The application form, contact information, and the company's Web site appear to have been designed to create a sense of legitimacy. Although there are some indicators that suggest the company may be fake, such as awkward language and occasional errors (using "Myers & Sullivan" instead of "Sullivan and Myers"), the overall presentation is passable. To some applicants, the company may appear to be legitimate.



After submitting a resume, applicants are given additional information about the position. The applicants are informed that they will be receiving packages which they are to re-package and send to the company's "consumers." The applicants are told that they can earn up to USD3000 per month.

Human Resource hr@sullivanmyers.com

Your documents has been verified and checked; you seem to be a suitable
candidate for Junior Packing Specialists' position and we are glad, that you are
interested in this opening.

Following, you'll find information about Sullivan & Myers and additional details
about Junior Packing Specialist position.

Sullivan & Myers (NASDAQ: SUM) is a well known printing and typography company
that offers wide variety of printing, publishing and general advertising
services. Company is based in US with headquarters in GA, Atlanta. If you want
to find out more about Sullivan & Myers, please visit our web site
www.sullivanmyers.com

This is a part-time job with a flexible schedule. Work time is not
limited, but to be successful you need to devote at least 10hrs per week to it,
though those who work up to 20hr/week have best results in the company.

This is a part-time job and it can be rendered at home, thus all but few

communications will be handled online, because of this job requirements include
acceptable level of computer literacy and Internet access. There is no entrance
or any other hidden fee. The company covers all the fees related to this
employment.

Junior packing specialist's job is quite simple, currently Sullivan & Myers
provide a complex package of services for a network of a well-known consumer's
electronics company, you will be receiving scheduled packages from them. The
parcels mostly consist of electronics and consumer goods with no oversized
deliveries. You shall receive a specialized packing paper from Sullivan & Myers
or its affiliates, part of it will be a decal paper, picturing different
advertisements from our client's partner, some might only be protective wrapping
to provide additional security to fragile goods. Junior Packing specialist's job
is simple, you need to repack each package & parcel and make sure that
consistence of package is fully operational or/and lacking visual defects and
forward it to consumers via USPS or FED EX. You might receive up to 10 packages
per week (during your trial period) thus as we already mentioned we require at
least 10hrs to be dedicated to this job.

To the successful applicants we offer a position on a trial period (30
business days, from the first actual assignment). This is the period when you
will be trained and shall receive 24/7 online and phone support, while earning
money. The evaluation of employees on a trial period is usually at least one
week before the end of their trial period. During the trial period, the
supervisor can recommend termination. At the end of the trial period, supervisor
makes his decision.

The trial period is paid $1390 USD per month. For every successful mail/parcel
forwarded you will receive $35, also you shall receive an additional bonus of
$15 per parcel that you send at the day of delivery, for example, if you have
received a parcel at 01.05.2010 and forwarded it at the same day, you shall
receive not $35 but $50 commission. Your total income, with the current volume
of clients, will be added up to $3000 USD per month. Your base salary, after
trial period, will go up to $1900 per month, plus $45 per parcel you forward.

You may ask for additional hours after trial period, or proceed full-time.
If you are interested in this job, please reply to this e-mail and our HR
managers will send you all required paperwork.

Next, applicants are sent a contract and are then instructed to send copies of identification and proof of residency for a background check to minimize fraud. This is an important step because if, at a later point, the applicant determines that the company is not legitimate and wants to quit, the criminals behind this operation could attempt identity theft or otherwise compromise the individual.

Human Resource hr@sullivanmyers.com:

In this e-mail, you will find attached legal document specifically a labor
contract for Junior Packing Specialist position in Sullivan & Myers.

Make sure you read it carefully, familiarize yourself with all aspects of
the agreement and in case if you agree with the terms do the following:

1. Print out two (2) copies of the labor contract.
2. Sign both parts, you must sign it on the bottom of EVERY page,
plus at the end of the document.
3. Forward one part to Sullivan & Myers HR department at
hr@sullivanmyers.com or fax it to 1-(678)-866-2530
4. Keep one signed copy for yourself.

The contract becomes valid from the moment of the reception of the
correctly filled copy of the contract. It should be noted that the validity
of the contract in the electronic form is identical to the contract signed
in personal presence of both parties.

In order to minimize fraudulent activities we have implemented strong
security policy, we are running mandatory background checks for every
successful candidate. Background check includes but is not limited to,
criminal, financial or personal records that are available publicly. In VERY
rare cases, Sullivan & Myers may enforce PI. As a part of our security
policy we ask you to make an electronic copy of your ID, driving license or
any other legal document that may verify your identity (any utility bill
will do, if your domicile is mentioned there) and send it attached with the
same e-mail or fax it to 1-(678)-866-2530.

You will receive additional information when your forwarded contract will
be examined and verified by our attorneys.

*NOTE: Requires manual signature.

After receiving the signed contract, the criminals confirm the mailing address of the new "employee." At this point, the new employee will begin receiving packages of goods bought with stolen credit card information and forwarding these goods to the criminals behind the operation. When law enforcement tracks down the operation, they will be led to the address of the pack mule rather than the masterminds behind the operation.

The Malware Connection

Locating Sullivan and Myers within the malware ecosystem exposes the criminal connections of those behind the re-shipping fraud operation. The Web site sullivanmyers.com is registered to the e-mail address migray71@yahoo.com and resolves to the IP address 194.28.112.11. Migray71@yahoo.com is linked to significant malicious activity.

The hosting history of sullivanmyers.com firmly places the domain within concentrations of malicious activity. Currently, the Web site is hosted on a server with the IP address 194.28.112.11. This server also hosts azkinternational.com (azkint@bronzemail.net), fotosharedownloads.com (hosting@haiau.tv) and fotoshare-dknc.com. Fotosharedownloads.com and fotoshare-dknc.com are Web sites that host malware, and azkinternational.com appears to be another pack mule recruiting Web site.

Sullivanmyers.com has been hosted on a number of servers that have hosted significant amounts of malicious activity in the last year. Currently, these servers are hosting domain names registered to known malicious e-mail addresses.

2010-11-06 223.25.242.61

- binmop.com - migray71@yahoo.com
- glazsystem.net - annepark@gmail.com
- nonameal.com - descartez@hotmail.com
- unknownplaces.net - mcthomas34@first-host.net

2010-09-24 27.131.32.153

- antiviruslab.info - mcthomas34@first-host.net
- bransac.com - descartez@hotmail.com
- myweb-analytics.net - migray71@yahoo.com
- organte.com - ddgrimes@earthlink.net

2010-09-13 113.11.194.158

- trackingcounter.net - trackingcounter.net@protecteddomainservices.com

2010-07-03 113.11.194.148

- baidum.net - edgar.marcha@verizon.net
- hpnet.in - socks5service@list.ru
- kiaz.org - analizsite@gmail.com
- kingolat.com - ddgrimes@earthlink.net
- mainspain.info - edgar.marcha@verizon.net
- maturesdf.com - MillieDiaz4@aol.com
- southdomens.com - southdomens@googlemail.com
- tarstall.ru - boats@qx8.ru
- topmilkyway.net - ddgrimes@earthlink.net
- truetry.org - analizsite@gmail.com
- vuvuzelya.net - edgar.marcha@verizon.net

The domain names listed above resolve to IP addresses of servers that were previously used to host sullivanmyers.com. While some of the domain names have already been linked to malicious activity, some have not. However, they are associated with e-mail addresses that have been used to register malicious domain names in the past.



Using data from MalwareDomainList and ZeusTracker, we can see the extent to which domain names registered by migray71@yahoo.com are engaged in malicious behavior and linked through co-hosting to other malicious domain names. These malicious domain names have been active throughout 2010 and have been used to host exploit packs, such as Pheonix and Eleonore; downloaders, such as Oficla/Sasfis, Fake Antivirus, the RussKill DDoS tool and multiple versions of the Zeus Trojan; and associated drop zones and command-and-control servers. This e-mail address was also used to register sosanni.com, a command-and-control server for the Ambler botnet.



The most interesting connection within this cluster links the activity of domain names registered with migray71@yahoo.com to the Ambler botnet and to a cluster of malicious Zeus activity. The domain name sosanni.com (migray71@yahoo.com – 121.101.216.205) was an Ambler command-and-control server that was operated by the same set of actors that administered a cluster of Zeus command-and-control servers registered with a variety of well- known e-mail addresses, including hilarykneber@yahoo.com, edgar.marcha@verizon.net, and MillieDiaz4@aol.com.

The hilarykneber@yahoo.com e-mail address was made infamous after Netwitness revealed the existence of a Zeus-based botnet associated with that email address that had compromised over 74,000 computers around the world. An association with the Kneber botnet indicates that those behind the operation have no shortage of stolen credit card numbers that could be used to make purchases that are re-shipped through the pack mule operation. Moreover, this cluster was found to be not only operating a Zeus botnet, but a SpyEye and the Ambler botnet as well. This indicates that the criminals are diversifying their operations using multiple forms of malware that are designed to steal credit card numbers, bank account information, and other credentials.

However, there are some limitations to this analysis. Just because domain names are hosted on the same server, it does not mean that there is necessarily a direct connection between them. There are a variety of "bullet proof" Web hosting companies that provide stable hosting to a wide variety of malicious activity. Online criminal prefer these services because the "bullet proof" hosts ensure that malicious Web sites remain online despite efforts of the security community to take them down.

Domain names registered with the same e-mail address provides a stronger link because this indicates that the domain names are under the control of one entity. However, domain names registered to the same e-mail address may not be directly linked. There are a variety of services available within the malware underground that include domain registration. For example, the domain name southdomens.com (southdomens@googlemail.com) is hosted on a server that sullivanmyers.com was formerly hosted on. The server is also associated with a service that provides domain name registration. If domain registration services register domain names for multiple clients with the same e-mail address, it provides a weak (rather than strong) link between malicious activity clustered around domain names registered with the same e-mail address. Domain names registered with the same e-mail address may be distributed by the supplier to an array of disparate criminals. So, rather than indicating a strong connection between the malicious actors using the domain names, it simply shows that disparate malicious actors sought the services of the same domain name provider.



Keeping these limitations in mind, I believe that while there are specialized roles within the malware ecosystem, there appears to be a significant portion that is quite centralized. In this case, domain names registered with the same e-mail addresses not only inhabit servers full of malicious activity, but are also associated with "pack mule" recruitment, exploit packs, and Zeus and Ambler command-and-control servers. While the exact nature of the connections between them are unclear, these concentrations indicate that a discrete set of criminals are behind an operation that goes full circle—from exploiting victims, to harvesting credentials to acquire goods which are relayed through a network of pack mules back to the criminals.

Koobface: Inside a Crimeware Network

The Information Warfare Monitor (Citizen Lab, Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto and the SecDev Group, Ottawa) announce the release of Koobface: Inside a Crimeware Network by Nart Villeneuve, with a foreword by Ron Deibert and Rafal Rohozinski.

The full report can be accessed here (local mirror):

Globe and Mail coverage of the report can be accessed here:

Koobface is a notorious botnet that leverages social networking platforms to propagate. Since, people are much more likely to execute a malicious file if it has been sent to them by someone they know and trust, the Koobface operators, known as "Ali Baba and 40 LLC" have developed a system that that uses social networking platforms such as Facebook to send messages containing malicious links. These links redirect users to false YouTube pages that encourage users to download malicious software masquerading as a video codec or a software upgrade.

In late April 2010, I discovered archive files on a well known Koobface servers that provided an inside look at the operations and monetization strategies of the Koobface botnet. The contents of these archives revealed the malware, code, and database used to maintain Koobface. It also revealed information about Koobface’s affiliate programs and monetization strategies. There are three main issues that have stood out for me throughout this investigation.

The first is the level of Koobface's financial success. The operators of Koobface have been able to successfully monetize their operations. Through the use of pay-per-click and pay-per-install affiliate programs, Koobface was able to earn over US$2 million between June 2009 and June 2010 by forcing compromised computers to install malicious software and engage in click fraud. This, of course, does not occur in a vacuuum but within a malware ecosystem that sustains and monetizes botnet operations.

The second concerns the countermeasures taken by Koobface against the security community.Koobface maintains a banlist of IP addresses that are forbidden from accessing Koobface servers. In addition, Koobface operators carefully monitor whether any of their URLs have been flagged as malicious by bit.ly or Facebook and they also monitor their malware links with the Google Safe Browsing API. This is part of a trend where malware authors check their malicious software against a variety of security products to ensure that there is only limited protection.

Finally, botnets such as Koobface present significant, but not impossible, challenges for law enforcement. Botnet operators leverage geography to their advantage, often exploiting Internet users from all countries but their own. While the total amount of criminal activity that the botnet operators engage in may be significant, the distribution of that criminal activity across multiple jurisdictions means that the criminal activity in any one jurisdiction is minimal. In addition, botnet operators leverage Internet infrastructure around the world, making it difficult to interfere with their operations.

However, botnet operators, such as those behind Koobface, do make mistakes. Information sharing and persistent monitoring can uncover the details of botnet operations. Therefore, it is important that the law enforcement and security community continue to share information and work closely together. An understanding of the inner workings of crimeware networks allows law enforcement to pursue leads and the security community to develop better defenses against malware attacks.

This report was made possible thanks to the guidance and encouragement of Ron Deibert and Rafal Rohozinski, the principal investigators of the Information Warfare Monitor. This report is built upon the research of members of the security community and I would like to thank all those who have documented the operations of Koobface over the years, especially Dancho Danchev and Trend Micro’s Threat Research Team. I would like to acknowledge and thank Chris Davis and Jose Nazario for sharing their knowledge and providing advice. In addition, I would like to thank the RCMP, the FBI, the UK Police, and AusCERT for their assistance. Finally, a special thanks is due to Jan Droemer who discovered the same data and shared his analysis and insights.

For more information on Koobface, see:

The Real Face of KOOBFACE: The Largest Web 2.0 Botnet Explained

“The Heart of KOOBFACE: C&C and Social Network Propagation

Show Me the Money! The Monetization of KOOBFACE

Web 2.0 Botnet Evolution: KOOBFACE Revisited

Koobface Gang Responds to the "10 Things You Didn't Know About the Koobface Gang Post"

Koobface – the social network trojan

Nobel Peace Prize, Amnesty HK and Malware

There have been two recent attacks involving human rights and malware. First, on November 7, 2010, contagiodump.blogspot.com posted an analysis of a malware attack that masqueraded as an invitation to attend an event put on by the Oslo Freedom Forum for Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo. The malware exploited a known vulnerability (CVE-2010-2883) in Adobe Reader/Acrobat. The Committee to Protect Journalists was hit by the same attack.

On November 10, 2010 Websense reported that website of Amnesty Hong Kong was compromised and was delivering an Internet Explorer 0day exploit (CVE-2010-3962) to visitors. In addition, Websense reports that the same malicious server was serving three additional exploits: a Flash exploit (CVE-2010-2884), a QuickTime exploit (CVE-2010-1799) and a Shockwave exploit (CVE-2010-3653).

The malicious domain name hosting the exploits mailexp.org (74.82.168.10) has been serving malware since Sept. 2010. The domain mailexp.org was registered in May 2010 to y_yum22@yahoo.com. mailexp.org was formerly hosted on 74.82.172.221 which now hosts the Zhejiang University Alumni Association website.

The malware dropped from the Internet Explorer exploit (CVE-2010-3962)
scvhost.txt
MD5: ca80564d93fbe6327ba6b094ae3c0445 VT: 2 /43

The malware dropped from the Flash exploit (CVE-2010-2884)
hha.exe
MD5: 0da04df8166e2c492e444e88ab052e9c VT: 2 /43

The malware dropped from the QuickTime exploit (CVE-2010-1799)
qq.exe
MD5: 3e54f1d3d56d3dbbfe6554547a99e97e VT: 16 /43

The malware dropped from the Shockwave exploit (CVE-2010-3653)
pdf.exe
MD5: 3a459ff98f070828059e415047e8d58c VT: 0/43

Both ca80564d93fbe6327ba6b094ae3c0445 and 3a459ff98f070828059e415047e8d58c perform a DNS lookup for ns.dns3-domain.com, which is an alias for centralserver.gicp.net which resolves to 221.218.165.24 (China Unicom Beijing province network).

The domain name "ns.dns3-domain.com" has been associated with a variety of malware going back to May 2010. This domain name, dns3-domain.com is registered to zhanglei@netthief.net, the developer of the NetThief RAT.

Malware attacks leveraging human rights issues are not new. I have been documenting them for some time (see, Human Rights and Malware Attacks, Targeted Malware Attack on Foreign Correspondent’s based in China, "0day": Civil Society and Cyber Security). However, one of the issues that Greg Walton and I raised last year, is a trend toward using the real web sites of human rights organizations compromised and as vehicles to deliver 0day exploits to the visitors of the sites – many of whom may be staff and supporters of the specific organization. Unfortunately, we can expect this to continue.

Clustering Zeus Command and Control Servers Part 2

In Part 1 of "Clustering Zeus Command and Control Servers" I focused on clustering Zeus command and control servers based on three criteria: IP addresses, domain names, and email addresses used to register domain names. Using data drawn from ZeusTracker and MalwareDomainList, I observed that while a wide variety of criminals may set up disparate Zeus operations there may be “core” set of Zeus operations clustered around domain names registered five email addresses: abuseemaildhc@gmail.com, hilarykneber@yahoo.com, steven_lucas_2000@yahoo.com, tahli@yahoo.com and michell.gregory2009@yahoo.com. Beyond the common email addresses and co-hosting on servers with the same IP addresses (which, in general are hosting a wide variety of malware) the exact nature of the relationships remains unclear.

It is clear that there are certain servers that facilitate an abundance of malicious activity. However, caution must be exercised when conclusions are drawn regarding specific (groups of) actors operating discrete segments of botnet command and control servers among a common malicious infrastructure. Malware groups are often the customers of other malware groups or work with affiliates to propagate and monetize malware. Different groups may propagate malicious domain names that belong to other groups, or different groups may propagate common malicious domains that are provided by an affiliate network. In addition, there are malicious networks that provide hosting services to malware distributors and botnet operators. Therefore, links that appear between a variety of actors may not be as solid as the technical data alone would lead one to believe.

In order to examine these relationships further, I'm going to layer some qualitative data and analysis on the Zeus data analyzed in Part 1. Based on information I obtained from some of the command and control servers listed below (this is deliberately vague), combined with common file paths and the presence of the same files on different combinations of these servers, I believe that the following command and control domain names constitute of cluster of malicious activity operated by the same set of operators:

freehost21.tw – hilarykneber@yahoo.com - 109.196.143.60
bstservice.biz – accounseller@gmail.com - 195.5.161.73
fivefingers31.org – edgar.marcha@verizon.net - 195.149.88.86
coolparts31.tw – admin@google.name - 121.101.216.205
fhjslk21.com.tw – hilarykneber@yahoo.com - 195.5.161.208
bananajuice21.net – hilarykneber@yahoo.com - 109.196.143.56
cpadm21.cn – Dalas_Illarionov@yahooo.com - 91.212.41.31
gamecp12.cn – GameNet2010TX@yahoo.com - 222.73.37.203
admcp21.cn – Maria_lucas_2000@yahoo.com - 91.212.41.31
subaruservice.cn – hilarykneber@yahoo.com - 59.125.229.79
elektronservice.net – Steven Lucas steven_lucas_2000@yahoo.com - 59.125.229.79
promo-standart.info – MillieDiaz4@aol.com - 121.101.216.205
cpadm21.org – admin@cpadm21.org - 193.104.94.81
decp31.org – hilarykneber@yahoo.com - 119.255.23.209
coolparts31.org – skeletor71@comcast.net - 61.4.82.216
sosanni.com – migray71@yahoo.com - 121.101.216.205

This post will explore the relationships between these domains and other malicious activity, primarily Zeus activity, undertaken by other domain names registered with the same email addresses in order to explore the theory that there is a "core" of Zeus activity. While the malicious activity primarily relates to Zeus there are some significant exceptions. The domain name sosanni.com was used as a command and control server for the Ambler botnet. For the period I observed the Ambler activity, over 5000 IP addresses from compromised computers, 99% of which were from Russia, checked in with the command and control server. In addition, I found that coolparts31.tw was acting as a SpyEye command and control server in addition to a Zeus command and control server.



This screenshot shows the relationship between the command and control domain names, the malicious activity associated with them and the IP address that the domain name resolves to. While there are several instances in which some domain names were co-hosted on the same server, nearly half were not. This makes sense as operators will seek to diversify their hosting in order to avoid a complete shutdown should one of their command and control servers be taken down or blocked. In fact, look at the time span, covering October 2009 to September 2010 we can see how the operators moved their operations from one server to the next.



This operators of this malware cluster tend to host their command and control servers in Eastern Europe and China.



In order to assess this clusters possible linkages within the broader malware ecosystem, the data set was expanded to include a) other domain names registered with the same email addresses and b) the IP addresses of the servers associated with the malicious activity imported from ZeusTracker and MalwareDomainList. This extends the geographic scope of the hosting servers into North America, as well as the previous locations in Eastern Europe (UA, RU, CZ, MD) and South East Asia (CN, TW).

Looking at the relationships between the domains we see that there are two interesting clusters, and arguable a few smaller ones as well. These represent concentrations of servers registered with the same email addresses. The two main clusters are domain names registered to: steven_lucas_2000@yahoo.com and hilarykneber@yahoo.com.



An interesting fact about the "Lucas" cluster becomes apparent when you look at the time line of malicious activity (the date when the domain name was added to ZeusTracker or MalwareDomainList). The Lucas cluster is primarily active January - November 2009 (although there is some subsequent activity) while very few domains registered with other email addresses are active.



This is followed by the introduction of the "Kneber" domains which begin on the tail end of the Lucas cluster's activity. The Kneber domain names begin in November 2009 and continue into October 2010. While the domain names registered with the remaining email addresses do also roughly follow a similar pattern of beginning while the previous one tails off, Kneber remains fairly constant once it begins.

In Part 1, I showed that there are clusters of Zeus activity that around a set of email addresses used to register domain names. Using qualitative data from my investigations, I've found a Zeus cluster that uses domain names registered by some, but not all, of these key email addresses including steven_lucas_2000@yahoo.com and hilarykneber@yahoo.com. This cluster has transitioned through domain names registered by a variety of email addresses over the last year. When the data set is expanded to include all the domain names registered by these email addresses in ZeusTracker and MalwareDomainList we see the same pattern of transition play out. This supports the theory that while Zeus is a toolkit that allows anyone to create a botnet, there is a "core" of Zeus activity.

However, this cluster of 16 domain names is only a small portion of the "core" Zeus activity associated with five key email addresses. According to DomainTools, about 1839 domain names in total:

abuseemaildhcp@gmail.com is associated with about 717 domains
hilarykneber@yahoo.com is associated with about 449 domains
steven_lucas_2000@yahoo.com is associated with about 110 domains
tahli@yahoo.com is associated with about 263 domains
michell.gregory2009@yahoo.com is associated with about 300 domains

These email addresses have been used to registered a variety of domain names associated with all manner of malicious activity, not exclusively Zeus activity. While this could be part of a centralized effort to distribute command and control servers to be operated by sub-groups, I am not sure that it is best to attribute all the malicious activity across these domains to the same set of actors. Even if these domain names represent the efforts of the same set of actors, they appear to be distributed to smaller groups of operators. These operators don't necessarily have connections with others managing domain names hosted on the same infrastructure and/or registered with the same email addresses.

However, this simple clustering method does provide us with concentrations of malicious activity that should be investigated further. The introduction of qualitative data provides the ability to probe the operations of specific groups further. In the future I'd like to acquire a list of all 1800 domain names and layer on historical hosting data to see if any further patterns emerge.

Command and Control in the Cloud

In "Shadows in the Cloud: An investigation into cyber espionage 2.0" my co-authors and I analyzed the command and control infrastructure of a network that extracted secret, confidential and restricted documents from the Indian government and military. The Shadow Network used a complex and tiered command and control infrastructure that leveraged Twitter, Google Groups, Blogspot, Baidu Blogs, blog.com and Yahoo! Mail in order to maintain persistent control over the compromised computers. As we noted in the report, the use of these services as elements of command and control is certainly not new:

The use of social networking sites as elements of command and control for malware networks is not novel. The attackers leverage the normal operation of these systems in order to maintain control over compromised system. In 2009, researchers found that Twitter, Jaiku, Tumblr, Google Groups, Google AppEngine and Facebook had all been used as the command and control structure for malware. In August 2009, Arbor Networks’ Jose Nazario found that Twitter was being used as a command and control component for a malware network. In this case, the malware was an information stealer focused on extracting banking credentials from compromised computers located mostly in Brazil. Twitter was not the only channel being used by the attackers. They also used accounts on Jaiku and Tumblr (Nazario 2009a). Furthermore, Arbor Networks found another instance of malware that used the Google AppEngine to deliver malicious URLs to compromised computers (Nazario 2009b). The Unmask Parasites blog found that obfuscated scripts embedded in compromised web sites used the Twitter API to obscure their activities. While the method was clever, the code was unreliable and appeared to have been abandoned by the attackers (Unmask Parasites 2009). Symantec found that Google Groups were being used as command and control for another instance of malware. In this case, a private Google group was used by the attackers to send commands to compromised computers which then uploaded their responses to the same Group (Symantec 2009a) Symantec also found an instance of malware that used Facebook status messages as a mechanism of command and control. (Symantec 2009b). The use of these social networking and Web 2.0 tools allows the attackers to leverage the normal operation of these tools to obscure the command and control functions of malware.

Earlier this year, Sunbelt found a Twitter botnet creator and Trend Micro reports that the "Here You Have" worm used GMail accounts. As we found with the Shadow Network malware authors learn from each other. And in the case of the Shadow Network they didn't just use one service they used six of them, including Yahoo! Mail. And while indiscriminate malware may be rather noisy, the malware used in targeted attacks tends to be (but is certainly not always) more discrete.

A recent sample posted at contagiodump.blogspot.com caught my attention for this very reason. The sample, "Conference Information_2010 IFANS Conference on Global Affairs (1001).pdf" (which was sent from 221.9.247.17 and was detected by 14 /43 (32.6%) AV products at Virustotal) arrived with the subject line "Nuclear Challenges and Responses in the Century" and exploited a vulnerability in Adobe Reader/Acrobat (CVE-2010-2883) to drop malware on the targets' computers. For those of you who follow Mila's awesome blog, this scenario is hardly surprising.

But a few things caught my attention. There were references in the strings dumped from a file the malware created (syschk.ocx) that referenced GMail (mail.google.com) and DriveHQ (drivehq.com), which describes itself as a "cloud based storage, backup, group sharing and collaboration service." When you look at the traffic generated by the malware you'll see connections to these locations.

There is nothing about these locations that is very suspicious -- everyone checks their GMail right? Moreover, the connection to GMail is SSL encrypted.



Using Burp (which made the process very simple) I MITM'd the traffic between the malware and GMail. The malware logs in to the GMail account and sends an email to another GMail address. The content of this email is encrypted. However, I believe that what it is sending -- although this is just a hunch -- is the content of another file the malware generates: form.ocx. This file contains what appears to be a unique ID assigned by the malware, the hostname and IP address, the default home page of the default browser and a listing of installed programs on the computer. The end of the file contains information about executables the malware has impacted. In addition to the encrypted message sent through the GMail account, the Unique ID in form.ocx appears at the beginning of the message.

IEXPLORE.EXE done
CHROME.EXE done
FIREFOX.EXE done

C:\WINDOWS\system32\form.ocx
Infect OK!

I have not looked into what exactly the malware does to these applications, but it basically disables the operation of FireFox and Chrome and instead connect to the Gmail account when you try to start these applications. Internet Explorer seems to function normally.

The connection to fuechei.chang.drivehq.com results in the download of an additional file rename.ocx which appears to be very similar, when its strings are compared with, syschk.ocx. It then renames syschk.ocx to syschk.ocx1. You can see that this correlates with text in the strings dumped from syschk.ocx.

%s\rename.ocx
http://%s/rename
%s\syschk.ocx1

After the initial connections to GMail and DriveHQ the malware went quiet. I never did get it to connect again.

As network defenses continue to include traffic analysis, I believe that we will continue to see a move toward using popular services, especially web mail as command and control elements. Unlike connections to well-known dynamic DNS services like 3322.org or abnormal connections to geographic regions, connections to GMail and other popular services do not necessarily stand out. Moreover, the connections to the services, such as GMail are encrypted, further obfuscating the malicious activity that is occurring.