Shamoon

Posted: August 17, 2012

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:	2/10
Infected PCs:	25

First Seen:	August 17, 2012
OS(es) Affected:	Windows

Shamoon, also known as Disttrack, is an unusually-destructive worm that overwrites the Master Boot Record (or MBR) to cause permanent damage to your operating system – making it essentially impossibles to boot your PC without repairing the OS. Shamoon's attacks also transmit basic information about your PC and appear to be targeting specific companies in China's energy industry. Because Shamoon, as a worm, includes features to distribute itself through removable and network-shared drives, containing a Shamoon infection to stop Shamoon from spreading to associated computers should be your foremost priority. SpywareRemove.com malware experts also recommend that you regain access to your PC by booting it from a removable device – afterward, anti-malware software should be able to delete Shamoon before Shamoon can cause any additional damage.

The Three Paths That Shamoon Takes to Hurt Your Computer

Shamoon is a multi-component worm that can be found organized into three distinct parts: a 'dropper' component that installs Shamoon, a 'reporter' component that sends information about the attack back to the criminal, and a 'wiper' that overwrites crucial system files. Because reports of Shamoon attacks have, so far, been limited to industrial targets, SpywareRemove.com malware researchers and others in the PC security industry surmise that Shamoon is likely the work of a criminal copycat group that was inspired by the Middle Eastern 'Flame' virus.

Additional details on Shamoon's components are noted as follows:

Shamoon's dropper component is compatible with various versions of Windows, including 64-bit versions of Windows 7. It conceals its files in a system folder (as well as network-shared locations that could allow Shamoon to infect other PCs) and creates a scheduled task that launches Shamoon along with Windows.
Shamoon's reporter sends information about its attack back to the original criminal group. Unusually for malicious software, Shamoon only attempts to send basic information – such as your IP address and which files were attacked – instead of gathering potentially-profitable data (such as bank account logins).
Lastly, SpywareRemove.com malware research team notes the functions of Shamoon's much-dreaded 'wiper' component. Initially, Shamoon's wiper replaces a system driver with its own driver as a means of bypassing file-reading and writing security measures. The replacement driver (which includes a digital signature) is exploited to attack your PC but isn't, by itself, malicious.

Second, Shamoon overwrites various files in your 'Users,' 'Documents and Settings,' 'Windows\System32\Drivers' and 'Windows\System32\Config' folders with an image file.

Shamoon's third and final attack overwrites your Master Boot Record, an attack that makes the PC inoperable.

Keeping Your Hard Drive Out of Shamoon's Data-Overwriting Clutches

Unless you use PCs in China's energy industry on a regular basis, your chances of being infected by Shamoon worms are low, since current Shamoon attacks appear to be distinctly-targeted at such companies. However, Shamoon's emergence does place emphasis on network security, since Shamoon can spread through local networks to other PCs without requiring manual installation. SpywareRemove.com malware experts also suggest that security precautions be taken for removable hard drive devices, which are often used by PC threats like Shamoon for secondary distribution vehicles.

Beyond small-scale mayhem, the motivations behind Shamoon's attacks remain murky, since Shamoon doesn't include functions that would result in profit for associated criminals. Some PC security experts speculate that Shamoon could be used in a multipart attack that uses separate malware for profitable attacks, with Shamoon's sole purpose being to delete all of the evidence and disable the PC afterward.

Use SpyHunter to Detect and Remove PC Threats

If you are concerned that malware or PC threats similar to Shamoon may have infected your computer, we recommend you start an in-depth system scan with SpyHunter. SpyHunter is an advanced malware protection and remediation application that offers subscribers a comprehensive method for protecting PCs from malware, in addition to providing one-on-one technical support service.

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Why can't I open any program including SpyHunter? You may have a malware file running in memory that kills any programs that you try to launch on your PC. Tip: Download SpyHunter from a clean computer, copy it to a USB thumb drive, DVD or CD, then install it on the infected PC and run SpyHunter's malware scanner.

Technical Details

File System Modifications

Tutorials: If you wish to learn how to remove malware components manually, you can read the tutorials on how to find malware, kill unwanted processes, remove malicious DLLs and delete other harmful files. Always be sure to back up your PC before making any changes.

The following files were created in the system:

%System%\trksvr.exe

File name: %System%\trksvr.exe
File type: Executable File
Mime Type: unknown/exe
Group: Malware file

f1.inf

File name: f1.inf
Mime Type: unknown/inf
Group: Malware file

f2.inf

File name: f2.inf
Mime Type: unknown/inf
Group: Malware file