• Trend Micro
  • About TrendLabs Security Intelligence Blog
Search:
  • Home
  • Categories
    • Ransomware
    • Vulnerabilities
    • Exploits
    • Targeted Attacks
    • Deep Web
    • Mobile
    • Internet of Things
    • Malware
    • Bad Sites
    • Spam
    • Botnets
    • Social
    • Open source
Home   »   Malware   »   Old Adobe Vulnerability Used in Dyreza Attack, Targets Bitcoin Sites

Old Adobe Vulnerability Used in Dyreza Attack, Targets Bitcoin Sites

  • Posted on:October 16, 2014 at 3:10 pm
  • Posted in:Malware, Vulnerabilities
  • Author:
    Rika Joi Gregorio (Threat Response Engineer)
0

Cybercriminals and threat actors often use tried-and-tested vulnerabilities in order to infect user systems and consequently, penetrate an enterprise network. This highlights the importance of patching systems and keeping software and applications up-to-date.

We recently spotted DYREZA malware leveraging an old vulnerability found existing in Adobe Reader and Acrobat and covered under CVE-2013-2729. Accordingly, once this vulnerability is successfully exploited it could lead to the execution of arbitrary code on the affected system.

spam_dyrebitcoin1

spam_dyrebitcoin2

Figures 1-2. Screenshots of spam emails

DYREZA malware uses spammed message that purports to be an invoice notification as its infection vector. It has a malicious .PDF file attachment, detected by Trend Micro as TROJ_PIDIEF.YYJU. When executed, it exploits the CVE-2013-2729 vulnerability, which leads to the download of TSPY_DYRE.EKW, a variant of DYREZA (also known as DYRE and DYRANGES).

DYREZA is a malware known for stealing banking credentials and associated with parcel mule scams. We recently wrote a blog post detailing the role that this malware plays in the threat landscape ecosystem and some of its notable behavior, including its capability to perform man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks via browser injections, monitoring online banking sessions of targeted banks, and stealing other information such as browser versions, snapshots, and personal certificates.

Users and enterprises are at risk since DYREZA can get other types of data such as personal identifiable information (PII) and credentials via browser snapshots. Aside from this, we also reported that the CUTWAIL botnet leads to the download of both UPATRE and DYRE malware.

What makes TSPY_DYRE.EKW notable is its ability to steal crucial information via injecting malicious codes onto certain banking and bitcoin login webpages.  Some of the bitcoin pages it monitors are:

  • bitbargain.co.uk/*
  • bitbargain.co.uk/login*
  • bitpay.com/*
  • bitpay.com/merchant-login*
  • localbitcoins.com/*
  • localbitcoins.com/accounts/login*
  • www.bitstamp.net/*
  • www.bitstamp.net/account/login*

Apart from its information stealing routines, TSPY_DYRE.EKW has the capability to connect to certain malicious websites to send and receive information. Moreover, it can connect to specific STUN (Session Traversal Utilities for NAT) servers to determine the public IP address of the compromised computer. As such, cybercriminals can find out the location of the malware or possibly determine the affected users’ and organizations’ locations. The top country victims are Ireland, United States, Canada, Great Britain, and Netherlands.

Bitcoin is a digital currency that has real world value. Cybercriminals often go after bitcoins since it presents a new venue for them to generate profit. While this is not the first instance that scammers and cybercriminals target bitcoins, this new attack highlights how traditional threats like exploits and banking malware remain to be a relevant means for cybercriminals to steal both user credentials and hit a relatively new platform – bitcoins.  It also teaches us an important lesson about keeping systems and software applications updated to its latest version.

Trend Micro protects users from this threat via its Smart Protection Network that detects the spammed message and all related malware.

With additional analysis from Rhena Inocencio, Karla Agregada, and Michael Casayuran

Learn how to protect Enterprises, Small Businesses, and Home Users from ransomware:
ENTERPRISE »
SMALL BUSINESS»
HOME»
Tags: Adobe reader and acrobat vulnerabilitybitcoinsDYREDyreza

Security Predictions for 2020

  • Cybersecurity in 2020 will be viewed through many lenses — from differing attacker motivations and cybercriminal arsenal to technological developments and global threat intelligence — only so defenders can keep up with the broad range of threats.
    Read our security predictions for 2020.

Business Process Compromise

  • Attackers are starting to invest in long-term operations that target specific processes enterprises rely on. They scout for vulnerable practices, susceptible systems and operational loopholes that they can leverage or abuse. To learn more, read our Security 101: Business Process Compromise.

Recent Posts

  • Our New Blog
  • How Unsecure gRPC Implementations Can Compromise APIs, Applications
  • XCSSET Mac Malware: Infects Xcode Projects, Performs UXSS Attack on Safari, Other Browsers, Leverages Zero-day Exploits
  • August Patch Tuesday Fixes Critical IE, Important Windows Vulnerabilities Exploited in the Wild
  • Water Nue Phishing Campaign Targets C-Suite’s Office 365 Accounts

Popular Posts

Sorry. No data so far.

Stay Updated

  • Home and Home Office
  • |
  • For Business
  • |
  • Security Intelligence
  • |
  • About Trend Micro
  • Asia Pacific Region (APAC): Australia / New Zealand, 中国, 日本, 대한민국, 台灣
  • Latin America Region (LAR): Brasil, México
  • North America Region (NABU): United States, Canada
  • Europe, Middle East, & Africa Region (EMEA): France, Deutschland / Österreich / Schweiz, Italia, Россия, España, United Kingdom / Ireland
  • Privacy Statement
  • Legal Policies
  • Copyright © Trend Micro Incorporated. All rights reserved.