Category: WannaCry Ransomware
Marcus Hutchins, who had stopped the spread of WannaCry RansomWare, has apparently been arrested.
Marcus Hutchins works as a Cyber-Securty Researcher at Kryptos Logic. It was Marcus who had apparenlty stopped the spread of the WannaCry version 1 RansomWare. He found the Kill Switch after decompliing the WannaCry v1 code. Once he registered a Domain name found in the code, the spread of WannaCry V1 RansomWare slowed down dramatically. Soon after WannaCry version 2, which removed the kill switch, was spotted on the Internet.
Marcus was in Vegad for the Black Hat and Def Con conferences. He was apparenly arrested after the confernces.
Clik on this line to visit the Motherboard Vice.com website to read more details about the apparent arrest of Marcus Hutchins.
Click on this link to visit The Telegraph newspaper website to read their post titled: “FBI arrests WannaCry hero Marcus Hutchins in Las Vegas”.
Click on this link to visit the BBC website and read to post titled: “NHS cyber-defender Marcus Hutchins arrested in US”.
Click on this link to view our prior coverage of the WannaCry Ransomware outbreak.
Find the Key needed to unencrypt a Hard Drive encrypted by Petya Ransomware
Click on this link to visit the GitHub site where Leo Stone has posted some code which might just figure out the key required to unencrypt a Hard Drive encrypted by Petya Ransomeware. He suggests to try finding the key using an image copy of the Petya encrypted Hard Disk,. That way the original may not be harmed.
Disclaimer: if you use Leo Stone’s code and method, you do so at your own risk. Loe also suggested to make and use an image copy of the encrypted hard Drive so as not to potentially damage the original. Leo’s code may find the key, or it may not. Playing around with the encrypted Hard Drive may damage it to the point that even if you pay the Ransom, you may not be able to reteive your data from said hard drive. I again state that following Loe Stone’s method as posted on GitHub is done at your own risk. Do your own Due Diligence. You could lose all the data on the hard drive.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Petya Ransomware Major Global Attack
WannaCry Ransomware paved the way by showing how to quickly spread across the Global Internet. It focused on on a vulnerability with Windows SMB which had been there for years and only exploited by Nation State employed Hackers.
Petya Ransonware, as has been named by the Security Staff at Kaspersky Lab, learned much from the WannaCry outbreak. Petya Ransomware has spread to thousands of computers at major institutions across the Globe. Petya ransomware is just starting. This is a major Ransomware attack.
It is basically a Worm which was first spread by malicious XL spreadsheets. Once on a network it stays in memory and as such is no so easy to detect and protect against. It looks like it is also focusing on the Windows SMB protocol and the Ports which support SMB.No wonder the focus on SMB as Petya use EternalBlue code as did WannaCry
My big fear is that Banks and Financial Institution had been targeted by Petya Ransomware. If it infects a large number of Banks then we could possibly see a Major Banking Crisis. It might be an idea to keep some cash on hand, in a safe place. Because it operates as Worm Code it is hard to detect and eliminate.
I will prepare a full review later this week. In the meantime the following are links which will shed light on what is happening. Some of the protective measures which stopped WannaCry Ransomware in it’s tracks, like disabling SMB ports, could also work to stop or slow the spread of Petya Ransomware.
Click on this link to visit Krebs On Security to read their initial post about Petya.
Click on this link to visit the Kaspersky Lab post titled “Petya Ransomware eats your hard drives“
Click on this link to visit the Securelist site to read their very detailed post about how Petya Ransomware functions.
Click on this link to visit the Check Point site to read their discussion of the Petya Ransomware worldwide outbreak.
Video is courtesy of the F-Secure YouTube channel
Click on this link to view the prior coverage about WannaCry Ransomware found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Analysis of PETYA Ransomware running live on a computer
Petya Ransomware could be called WannaCry V3 as it is using the same EternalBlue / DoublePulsar code. It starts running via a Windows DLL. In the video below Colin runs Petya on a computer to be able to study it.
Video is courtesy of the Colin Hardy YouTube channel
WannaCry Ransomware infected Traffic Cameras in Australia and Honda’s Sayama factory
Posted by Vincent Banial
WannaCry Ransomware is far from dead. It is still out there on the internet, searching for more victims.
Uniquely Toronto recently had extensive coverage about WannaCry Ransomware and Security Patches and had links to Security Patches and steps to better Secure computers against WannaCry.
When Wannacry was first discovered, Automobile manufacturing plants had been affected after WannaCry infected the Auto Plant’s computers. Seems that the IT folks at a Hond Auto Plant in Japan have not been folllowing the Cyber Security news. WannaCry Ransomware infected Honda’s Sayama car production plant this week.
Click on this link to visit the Reuters News post about Wannacry being found on the computer newtwork at Honda’s Sayama car production plant this week.
Apparently the WannaCry Ransomware was also spread to over 50 Traffic cameras via a USB memory stick. That happened in Austalia. Since wannacry encrypts owner created files on a computer, I would assume it would encrypt any JPGS or video files created by the Traffic cameras. Interesting that it is being claimed that it was spread by the use of a USB Memory stick. A good question to ask, would be “Where has that USB stick been plugged into a computer which was connected to the main system network”. USB Memory sticks generally have to be plugged into a computer to acquire ransomware.
Click on this link to visit the 3Aw News Radio Station’s post about wannacry infecting Traffice camera in Austalia.
Traffice cameras must be a huge money maker. The wannaCry ransomware infection was started apparently on June 6. So by June 22 at least 8,000 Traffic Tickets may be withdrawn because of the infection of the Traffic camera. Those cameras must generate huge amounts of money for the city and for insurance companies and for the court system of lawyers, judges and clerks. Nice money making scheme with possibly little impact on traffic safety. 8,000 tickets in two weeks!!!
Click on this link to visit the Canadian Global News page to read their post titled: “8,000 red-light camera traffic tickets withdrawn in Australia due to WannaCry virus”.
Posted by: Vincent Banial
WannaKey along with WanaKiwi may help to decrypt your WannaCry encrypted files without having to pay the Ransom
Adrien Guinet, a French security researcher Adrien Guinet has created a software tool called “WannaKey” that “may” decrypt the files which were encrypted by WannaCry Ransomware. So if you are lucky and have not rebooted the infected computer you “MAY” be able to unencrypt your files without having to pay the Ransom fee.
WannaKey works with older variants of Windows Server and Windows Workstation Operating Systems such as Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows XP, Windows 7, and Windows Vista.
When WannaCry encrypts your files, it creates a Private Key which is used to create the decrypt key. Then the Private key is erased. On older Windows systems the erase does not remove the data from memory. So if you are lucky and you have “not” rebooted the PC then there is a chance that WannaKey could recover the Private key, because it is still held in the system memory.
Once you have the Private Key then you can use a different program developed by Benjamin Delpy called wanakiwi to decrypt the files on the WannaCry encrypted PC.
The key point to remember is that the above process “MAY’ work. The Computer which was encrypted by WannaCry Ransomware, must “NOT” have been rebooted. Any files to download would be done using a different computer and then run on the encrypted PC via a USB flash Drive. The WannaCry code did issue the command to erase the Private Key but the bug in older Windows Operating Systems is that Private Key has not been erased from the computer’s main memory. With a bit of luck, you may be able to decrypt your WannaCry encrypted PC. Note there is no guarantee that this will work. If you are unsure how to go about this, then get a computer professional to help you.
Click on this Link to visit the Adrien Guinet GitHub page for Wannakey.
Click on thsLink to visit the Benjamin Delpy GitHubn page for Wanakiwi.
Click on this Link to visit the Comae Blog post by Matt Suiche titled “WannaCry — Decrypting files with WanaKiwi + Demos”. Matt goes thru the whole process along with screen shots.
Video is courtesy of the Vishnu Ava YouTube channel
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Disclaimer: Everything in the post above is subject to change without notice. There could be unintentional errors. Please confirm all info via the linked to websites and web pages. Best Practice is to also always create daily backups. If you try to decrypt a WannaCry encrypted personal computer or server, you do so at your own risk. There is no guarantee that the above info will be successful in decrypting the files.
CERT had issued Vulnerability Note VU#867968 advising about the SMB vulnerability in Microsoft Windows
WannaCry Ransomware seems to have appeared out of the blue. Because of it thousands of people have searched the internet to find out how to disable SMB on their Microsoft Windows based Servers and Workstations and Personal Computers. Thousands had dropped by Uniquely Toronto to read out posts which provided details on ways to disable SMB v1.0.
Now Adylkuzz is running another major attack which is underway and uses the SMB vulnerability in Windows.
There was a prior Cert advisory titled: “Vulnerability Note VU#867968” (Microsoft Windows SMB Tree Connect Response denial of service vulnerability) was issued on Feb 02 2017.
In March Microsoft issued their Microsoft Security Bulletin MS17-012 which addressed the SMB issue.
There was also an even earlier US-CERT Advisory posted on Jan 16 2017 titled: “SMB Security Best Practices”, which suggested “blocking outbound SMB connections (TCP ports 139 and 445 along with UDP ports 137 and 138) from the local network to the WAN. “. Port blocking can be done using your Firewall Software (or Hardware)
“US-CERT cautions users and administrators that disabling or blocking SMB may create problems by obstructing access to shared files, data, or devices. The benefits of mitigation should be weighed against potential disruptions to users. For more information on SMB, please review Microsoft Security Advisories 2696547 (link is external) and 204279 (link is external).”
Microsoft Windows MS17-010 Security Update: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/security/ms17-010.aspx.
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Disclaimer: Everything in the post above is subject to change without notice. There could be unintentional errors. Please confirm all info via the linked to websites and web pages. Please install the Microsoft Windows MS17-010 Security Update (see link above). Best Practice is to also always create daily backups
Massive Adylkuzz attack is underway which uses the same tools used by WannaCry
New Adylkuzz Malware attack uses the same tools which were used by WannaCry Ransomware – (EternalBlue for instance) which were released by The Shadow Brokers back in April. Eternal Blue code scans a network to find computers running the Microsoft SMB v1.0 protocol service (open TCP ports 139 and 445 along with UDP ports 137 and 138). When found it can then install the malware. Adylkuzz is infecting thousands of computers around the Globe. Microsoft released a Security patch back in March which addressed the SMB vulnerability. Last week Microsoft also released further Windows Security Patches for Windows systems going back to Windows XP. Microsoft’s Windows Security Updates will stop the spread of WannaCry and Adulkuzz, once the Security Patches have been installed and the system rebooted. At the bottom of this post, you will find links to the official Microsoft Patches.
Video is courtesy of the DAHBOO77 YouTUbe channel
This new AdylKuzz Malware does not request any ransom from the owner of the infected computer. It does it’s processing in the background. One interesting aspect about the way that Adylkuzz works is that once it infects a computer it then disables the SMB v1.0 protocol. That move prevents any other Malware from infecting the computer. Adylkuzz may very well have protected thousands of computers around the globe from becoming infected by WannaCry Ransomware because Adylkuzz it is believed has been running in the wild on the internet for many weeks and before the WannaCry attack was launched.
Click on this Link to visit the PHYS.Org website to read their post titled: “Another large-scale cyberattack underway: experts”.
Adylkuzz essentially is a Cryptocurrency Miner. Apparently, it is being reported that Adylkuzz does not damage any files. A lot of people use their powerful computers to do Cryptocurrency Mining. Cryptocurrency like Monero and Bitcoin is essentially untraceable Internet money which can be converted to a National Currency or used directly on the Internet. Adylkuzz mines the Monero Cryptocurrency. Once installed on the infected computer it will start to use computer resources. On an older slow PC, the end user will notice a dramatic slowdown. On a Top End fast PC there will be a far less noticeable slowdown. What will be dramatically affected, will be one’s useable internet bandwidth. Downloads and even web page loading will take longer. Watching internet videos will be affected with slowdowns.
To prevent being infected by either WannaCry or Adylkuzz one needs to make sure that any Microsoft Windows Security Updates have been installed. Yes, one can manually disable the SMB v1.0 protocol on a PC, but the Microsoft Security Patches also patch other holes and vulnerabilities in the Windows Operating Systems. Install the Windows Security Patches. Also make sure to Update any and all of your Computer Security software like your Firewall, Anti-Virus, and Anti-Malware software. Then consider buying an external hard drive (if you do not already have one) and start backing up your data. Having a daily Backup of your data files costs far less than having to pay Ransomware, should your PC become infected.
Click on the following like to visit the Proofpoint cybewrsecurity firm’s post titled: “Adylkuzz Cryptocurrency Mining Malware Spreading for Weeks Via EternalBlue/DoublePulsar”.
Click on this Link to visit the Symantec Security Response blog to read their post titled: “Adylkuzz Cryptocurrency Miner Is Not The Next WannaCry”.
Click on this Link to visit the news.com.au site to read their post titled: “New Adylkuzz cyberattack targeted at mining virtual currency in infected computers”.
Click on this Link to visit the RT website to read their post titled: “WannaCry XXL? 2nd even bigger global cyber attack already underway”.
The following was posted by Anonymous on their YouTube channel TORnado – Anonymous France. Permission to share was posted on their YouTube channel along with the video linked to below,:
“Published on May 17, 2017
Greetings citizens of the world,
We are Anonymous.
This is a new warning about a massive hack.
Following the attack “WannaCry Ransomware”, a much larger hack was discovered.
Much more vicious, better hidden and bringing much more money to black-hats hackers, this massive virus is called “Adylkuzz” and simply uses the same flaw as WannaCry.
This is once again a computer tool stolen from the NSA.
But this time it is not your data that is affected but your entire computer that through the rat, will become a minor zombie of crypto-currency.
For the moment of what we, Anonymous know, here is the process:
The virus enters the computer with DoublePulsar and EternalBlue, via the MS17-010 fault on the TCP port 445 as the previous “WannaCryptor” but there will be nothing on the screen. You will not even know that you are infected.
Then the hack will begin to mining the cryptomony with your machine, ie you will produce virtual currency of type “Monero”, similar to the famous bitcoin without
You know it and free for hackers you do not know.
Knowing that the mining uses the abilities of the PC, the victim then undergoes slowdowns which causes a malfunction of the computer.
Several hundred thousand people would already be in this case, that’s why we’re alerting you once again. It seems that “WannaCry” was only the part of the iceberg, stay alert, update your Windows and keep your antivirus.
On our side we follow different tracks to find these hackers. Already about 40,000 dollars in Monero have recently been discovered probably the money gained through the hack.
The cryptomontee is thus once again likely to have a bad image in the media whereas this currency remains a practical and anonymous means to buy or give money.
Now calls to the Anonymous, it’s time to stop these criminals and help those affected or not knowing how to protect themselves.
The NSA can not even protect its own data, so we can only count on ourselves.
In any event,
We’re Anonymous,
We are Legion,
We do not forget,
We do not forgive,
Rogues, thieves, whoever you are,
Expect us.
————————————-“
The video below, by Anonymous, is the above info but spoken in French.
Video is courtesy of the TORnado – Anonymous France YouTube channel
The following are LINKS to Official Microsoft Patches for assorted versions of Windows (including Windows XP). Download English language security updates:
To download localized versions for the security update for Windows XP, Windows 8 or Windows Server: http://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=KB4012598
Microsoft Windows MS17-010 Security Update: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/security/ms17-010.aspx.
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Disclaimer: Everything in the post above is subject to change without notice. There could be unintentional errors. Please confirm all info via the linked to websites and web pages. Best Practice is to always create daily backups
Global spread of WannaCry Ransomware – Mon May 15 2017
Video is courtesy of the NIC Webcast YouTube channel
WannaCry Ransomware is continuing the spread around the globe. Some have even called it the start of a CyberWar. Russian President Putin is apparently blaming the U.S. for creating the tool set. Microsoft is apparently pointing that it is the stolen software tools from the N.S.A (National Security Agency).
Click on this link to visit the Kaspersky Lab SecureList blog site to read their detailed coverage titled “WannaCry ransomware used in widespread attacks all over the world”
I’m going to try something new, by featuring links to current news and major website posts related to the Global spread of WannaCry Ransomware:
Click on this link to visit the Microsoft Blog to read their post titled: “The need for urgent collective action to keep people safe online: Lessons from last week’s cyberattack” by Brad Smith – President and Chief Legal Officer.
The following is a paragraph from Brad Smith’s post:
“All of this provides the broadest example yet of so-called “ransomware,” which is only one type of cyberattack. Unfortunately, consumers and business leaders have become familiar with terms like “zero day” and “phishing” that are part of the broad array of tools used to attack individuals and infrastructure. We take every single cyberattack on a Windows system seriously, and we’ve been working around the clock since Friday to help all our customers who have been affected by this incident. This included a decision to take additional steps to assist users with older systems that are no longer supported. Clearly, responding to this attack and helping those affected needs to be our most immediate priority.“
Kudos go out to Microsoft for providing the Security Update for Windows XP:
Click on this Link to visit the Wall Street Journal website to read their post “Cyberattack Is Likely to Keep Spreading“. In the post they state that WannaCry Ransomware has spread to over 150 countries. Yesterday I had checked a tracking site which stated that over 230,000 computers had been hit with WannaCry. The Tracker only keeps track of those PCs which were still connected to the internet.
Click on this Link to visit The Telegraph news site to read their post “Cyber attack latest: Vladimir Putin blames US for hack as thousands more computers hit by ransomware“.
Click on this Link to visit the CyberSecurity Firm Malwaretech to view their live tracker for WannaCry / WannaCrypt.
Click on this Link to visit the Yahoo Tech site to read the 
Associated Press article “The Latest: 29,000 Chinese institutions hit by cyberattack“.
Click on this link to visit the Associated Press news site to read their article “Log in, look out: Cyber chaos may grow at workweek’s start“.
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Running demo of WannaCry v2 Ransomware Binary
WnnaCry Version 2 Ransomware is out. I had mentioned it in a prior post. The main difference is that the Kill SwitchCode has been removed. It is still a Worm which can spread across a Windows Server-based network, using the SMB v1.0 protocol.
In the video below the actual Binary Code of the WannaCry V2 Ransomware is run in a virtual environment.
Video is courtesy of the Colin Hardy YouTube channel.
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
How to disable SMB to stop WannaCry Ransomware. Also links to Microsoft Patches for Windows to stop WannaCry Ransomware
UPDATE May 14 at 3:00pm – added more ways to disable SMB
Some Cyber Weapons which were apparently developed by a National Spy Service to break into enemy computers, were supposedly stolen. Then some of the code for the Cyber Weapons was released to the public, on 14 April, through a dump by a group called Shadow Brokers.
On May 12 2017, a new Ransomware was released on the Internet. It utilized some of the code found in the Cyber Weapons and also a Malware called WannaCry. Hundreds of thousands of computers around the globe got hit. Then a kill switch was set off which dramatically slowed and possibly will stop the Ransomware from spreading further.
Stop the presses. A new version 2 of the WannaCry Malware is now out, which no longer has the Kill Switch code. That will make it difficult to stop.
The Hacker News facebook page posted a solution. Essentially their posts stated to disable the SMB service within Windows. It is not needed and is enabled for backwards compatibility.
Ok, but how do you disable SMB in Windows?
In Windows go to Control Panel. In Control Panel go to the icon labeled “Programs”. Click on it. Then under Programs and Features click on Turn Windows Features on and off. Once there, just scroll down till you find SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support. Make sure the checkbox to the left of SMB 1.0 is “NOT” checked off. Then click OK and then close control Panel. Reboot the computer.
In my Windows 10 it was already off (unchecked).
Video is courtesy of the Andr.oid Eric YouTube channel
Video is courtesy of the HatimTech YouTube channel
Another way to disable SMB is by using the Registry Editor. The following Video shows how to do it in Windows 7.
Video is courtesy of the Brxtt Tech YouTube channel
Another way to do it is to key in a Powershell command. That is like a super DOS Prompt. Open a Powershell Window and key in the following (but not the Quotes):
“Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName SMB1protocol“
Press Enter and you should be good to go after you reboot the computer. I would double check in ControlPanel. Better safe than sorry.
Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 introduce the new Set-SMBServerConfiguration Windows PowerShell cmdlet. The cmdlet enables you to enable or disable the SMBv1, SMBv2, and SMBv3 protocols on the server component.
- To obtain the current state of the SMB server protocol configuration, run the following cmdlet:
Get-SmbServerConfiguration | Select EnableSMB1Protocol, EnableSMB2Protocol
- To disable SMBv1 on the SMB server, run the following cmdlet:
- You do not have to restart the computer after you run the Set-SMBServerConfiguration cmdlet. But I would restart the computer.
To enable or disable SMB protocols on an SMB Server that is running Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Vista, or Windows Server 2008, use Windows PowerShell or Registry Editor.
Windows PowerShell 2.0 or a later version of PowerShell
- To disable SMBv1 on the SMB server, run the following cmdlet:
Set-ItemProperty -Path “HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters” SMB1 -Type DWORD -Value 0 -Force
- Note you must restart the computer after you make these changes.
REGISTRY. To enable or disable SMBv1 on the SMB server, configure the following registry key:
Registry subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\ParametersRegistry entry: SMB1
REG_DWORD: 0 = Disabled
Default: 1 = Enabled
How to enable or disable SMB protocols on the SMB client
Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 8, and Windows Server 2012
To disable SMBv1 on the SMB client, run the following commands:
sc.exe config lanmanworkstation depend= bowser/mrxsmb20/nsi
If that is the hole inside all Windows Versions that existed prior to the Mar 2017 Microsoft Patch, then it has been around for ages.
Click on this link to visit The Hackers News Facebook page.
Click on this link to visit The Hackers News website.
The following are LINKS to Official Microsoft Patches for assorted versions of Windows (including Windows XP). Download English language security updates:
To download localized versions for the security update for Windows XP, Windows 8 or Windows Server: http://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=KB4012598
General information on ransomware: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/portal/mmpc/shared/ransomware.aspx
MS17-010 Security Update: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/security/ms17-010.aspx
Click on this link to visit Microsoft’s site to read their post titled: “Customer Guidance for WannaCrypt attacks”.
One final note which is bugging me. People are saying that this Ransomware is a “VIRUS“. WannaCry Ransomware is “NOT” a Virus. The WannaCry Ransomware is a vastly more complex computer “WORM“, hence it’s ability to find Windows computers connected to a network.
Click on this link to view other CyberSecurity related posts found on Uniquely Toronto.
Posted by Vincent Banial
Disclaimer: Everything in the post above is subject to change without notice. There could be unintentional errors. Please confirm all info via the linked to websites and web pages. The WannaCry Malware has already been changed (minus the Kill Switch). Disabling SMB may not prevent future versions from affecting your computer. Best Practice is to always create daily backups
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