Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A

Posted: October 30, 2015

Threat Metric

The Threat Meter is a malware assessment that SpywareRemove.com's research team is able to give every identifiable malware threat. Our Threat Meter includes several criteria based off of specific malware threats to value their severity, reach and volume. The Threat Meter is able to give you a numerical breakdown of each threat's initial Threat Level, Detection Count, Volume Count, Trend Path and Percentage Impact. The overall ranking of each threat in the Threat Meter is a basic breakdown of how all threats are ranked within our own extensive malware database. The scoring for each specific malware threat can be easily compared to other emerging threats to draw a contrast in its particular severity. The Threat Meter is a useful tool in the endeavor of seeking a solution to remove a threat or pursue additional analytical research for all types of computer users.

The following fields listed on the Threat Meter containing a specific value, are explained in detail below:

Threat Level: The threat level scale goes from 1 to 10 where 10 is the highest level of severity and 1 is the lowest level of severity. Each specific level is relative to the threat's consistent assessed behaviors collected from SpyHunter's risk assessment model.

Detection Count: The collective number of confirmed and suspected cases of a particular malware threat. The detection count is calculated from infected PCs retrieved from diagnostic and scan log reports generated by SpyHunter.

Volume Count: Similar to the detection count, the Volume Count is specifically based on the number of confirmed and suspected threats infecting systems on a daily basis. High volume counts usually represent a popular threat but may or may not have infected a large number of systems. High detection count threats could lay dormant and have a low volume count. Criteria for Volume Count is relative to a daily detection count.

Trend Path: The Trend Path, utilizing an up arrow, down arrow or equal symbol, represents the level of recent movement of a particular threat. Up arrows represent an increase, down arrows represent a decline and the equal symbol represent no change to a threat's recent movement.

% Impact (Last 7 Days): This demonstrates a 7-day period change in the frequency of a malware threat infecting PCs. The percentage impact correlates directly to the current Trend Path to determine a rise or decline in the percentage.

Threat Level:	8/10
Infected PCs:	35

First Seen:	October 30, 2015
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A is a backdoor Trojan designed for compromising PCs through associated Web servers. Although its method of entry is slightly different from more localized threats, Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A continues to display all the standard capabilities of a backdoor-capable threat, including letting hackers take remote control of your computer, access information and modify data. All server administrators should take care to update their software for reducing vulnerabilities, and use dedicated anti-malware programs for removing Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A after its installation.

A Trojan for Evidence of the Importance of Patching Software

Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A is a Trojan built from PHP script, and targets systems through their server vulnerabilities. Although Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may install itself to a sub-directory of WAMP (a software bundle for Web development), malware experts can link its attempted ingress most strongly to outdated versions of Joomla and vBulletin. Patching these products can prevent third parties from installing Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A successfully, although Joomla's dev team has failed to release any patch notes related to the currently exploited vulnerability.

Other than alerts from your local anti-virus or anti-malware programs, there are no symptoms of Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A's installation. Its components may disguise themselves as harmless files, such as GIF images. Servers already compromised by Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may launch this threat automatically after the request of a specific Web address. Once implemented, Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A also contacts a Command & Control server for other instructions. Attacks that malware experts can verify as being within Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A's capabilities may include:

Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may download and install other files on your PC, including threatening software besides itself.
Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may modify your system settings and restrict which applications you can use, including terminating specific programs forcibly.
Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may delete other, arbitrary files on your computer, potentially including secondary threats that were used to enable its personal installation.
Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A also may include features supportive of spyware-related attacks, such as keylogging (recording your keyboard input) and other means of collecting information.

Patching over a Backdoor Attack

Although dedicated anti-malware products may be able to identify Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A's installation and block Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A, they will not resolve the security vulnerabilities that allowed the attack to take place. Web server administrators always should stay alert to the exploits surrounding outdated development platforms and packages, including Joomla. In most cases, updating your server software will resolve the vulnerability and prevent any further attacks that could place Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A on your PC.

PCs not running active anti-malware solutions are unlikely to show any symptoms related to the presence of this threat. As a result, Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A may introduce new threats to your PC, collect passwords or allow third parties to have access to your machine or server. Installing anti-malware tools, disinfecting your PC and changing any potentially leaked passwords are the solutions malware experts would recommend taking in all such situations.

Backdoor:PHP/SimpleShell.A

Threat Metric

A Trojan for Evidence of the Importance of Patching Software

Patching over a Backdoor Attack

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