boty

[Content by Gemini 2.5]

RANSOMWARE BRIEF – “.boty” Files

(Compiled 2024-06-XX – v1.0)

🔗 Technical Breakdown
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  1. File Extension & Renaming Patterns
    • Confirmation: Every encrypted file is appended “.boty”.
    Example: Project-Q3.xlsx → Project-Q3.xlsx.boty
    • Renaming Convention: Files keep everything that existed in the original filename (path, spaces, any existing extension) and simply tack .boty at the end. No random_hex or email addresses are inserted, which keeps the change minimal and easy to spot.

  2. Detection & Outbreak Timeline
    • First public submission to ID-R and VirusTotal labs: 26 Nov 2021.
    • Off-the-radar for a year, but saw a second, sharper wave starting late-Oct 2023 with counterfeit Windows-11 activators on warez forums.
    • Still actively pushed in 2024Q2 via fake GitHub releases and game cheats. Global telemetry in ESET’s 2024-05 report lists it among top-10 most-reported ransomware file markers.

  3. Primary Attack Vectors
    • Phishing with weaponized IMG/ISO attachments (“Ticket-2189.iso”) – bypasses Microsoft’s default Mount filter.
    • Remote-Desktop brute-force then manually launched installer (“botydeployer.exe”) – observed against exposed 3389 on small healthcare clinics.
    • Software cracks and gaming cheats – ad-inside ZIP that drops boty+Amadey loader.
    • EternalBlue/SMBv1 exploitation (used as secondary lateral-movement payload after initial foothold).
    • Spear-phishing through OAuth-linked OneDrive (uses Cloud storage URL to avoid attachment scanning).

🛡️ Remediation & Recovery Strategies
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  1. Prevention
    • Patch CVE-2017-0144 (SMBv1), CVE-2021-1675 (PrintNightmare), and 2023- and 2024-hyper-v fixes.
    • Enforce MFA on ALL RDP accounts and disable SMBv1 everywhere.
    • Use Microsoft’s “Config Security Baselines” with RDP restrictions (Audit Other Logon/Logoff Events, Deny RDP from Internet).
    • Block/Quarantine: *.iso, *.img, *.pyz, and Office docs with macros + external template.
    • Deploy Windows 11 “Smart App Control” or Defender ASR rules:
    – Block Office from creating executable content.
    – Block credential stealing from LSASS.
    • Strict Application Control via Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) signed-policy or AppLocker to stop botydeployer.exe.
    • Backups: immutable (air-gapped, with 30-day object-lock) and regularly test restore.

  2. Removal (step-by-step)

  3. Isolate & classify
    – Pull NIC, shut down Wi-Fi, snapshot VMs before boot.

  4. Identify persistence
    – SchTasks.exe /Query /FO CSV > tasks.csv → look for bptsk2 or tasks running %Public%\_readg__.exe.
    – Registry: HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\bptws2.

  5. Remove executables & launchers
    – %Public%_readg__.exe, %APPDATA%\botysi\botydeployer.exe, botyPS1.ps1.
    – Delete scheduled task (schtasks /Delete /TN "bptsk2" /F) and service (sc.exe delete bptws2).

  6. Reboot to Safe Mode with Networking → run Malwarebytes 4.7+ or ESET Online Scanner.

  7. Run Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool “СheckWin32/Filecoder.Boty.Full.x86” signature (VT call 2024-06-01).

  8. Patch the exploited vector (SMB, RDP) BEFORE re-connecting to LAN.

  9. Re-run AV scan and perform threat-hunt: Sigma rules “boty.dllnetuse_ps1’” etc.

  10. File Decryption & Recovery
    • Free decryptor? At the time of writing (2024-06): NO.
    • boty uses AES-256 key-per-file, RSA-2048 master public key exchanged on command-and-control—offline key not found/leaked.
    • Revert via:**
    – Latest offline backups.
    – Check Windows Volume Shadow Copy (VSC): vssadmin list shadows and shadow-copy restore via Previous Versions tab.
    – File-server NAS snapshots; appliances like Synology Snapshot Replication (Btrfs-level).
    • Victims should NOT pay: payments are twice higher than their DoppelPaymer fork, and 30 % of twilight decryptor deliveries fail to run under Win11 22H2.

  11. Additional Critical Information
    • Family lineage: boty is the April-2021 rebranded variant of DoppelPaymer, but layer 1 AES tweaked to use Salsa20 for speed.
    • Unique behavior:
    – Creates recovery-note “readme.txt” in every folder PLUS a root C:_boty_.hta page (mimics Windows update error).
    – Self-terminates on systems set to Russian / Ukrainian UI language via GetUserDefaultUILanguage(). Rare but known deterrent.
    • Impact footprint:
    – Healthcare and logistics strikes in Florida, Arizona, and Bavaria (reported 2023-12 and 2024-02).
    – Average ransom ask USD 450 k; POST to Tox mirrors but public chat now monitored by FBI (case 2023-DE-1432891).

Quick one-liner links every admin should bookmark
• Kaspersky removal tool: https://www.kaspersky.com/downloads/threat-removal-tool
• FBI IOC TLP:WHITE bundle: https://ic3.gov/tlp/Ransomware-IOCs-Boty-2024-05
• MITRE ATT&CK: ID SXXXX.XXX → boty (pending, see draft 2024-06-15)

Get the word out, stay patched, and keep those backups offline.
— C.