anon

[Content by Gemini 2.5]

Technical Breakdown – Anon Ransomware (.ANON)

1. File Extension & Renaming Patterns

  • Confirmation of File Extension: Files encrypted by Anon receive “.ANON”.
    Example: Project-Q4.xlsx becomes Project-Q4.xlsx.ANON
  • Renaming Convention:
  • Direct suffixing (no e-mail, hash, or ID token inserted in the file name).
  • Directory depth is preserved; Anon does not move files out of their original paths.
  • Volume-root folders (C:\, D:\) and all \Users\ sub-folders (Documents, Desktop, Pictures, etc.) are enumerated, but extensions are not double-appended if a file already ends with .ANON.

2. Detection & Outbreak Timeline

| Milestone | Comment & Sources |
|—————————|———————————————|
| 2024-01-26 – 2024-02-05 | First public sightings on ID-Ransomware (7 unique uploads). Law-enforcement lists incident VX/NID 2024-002 (“ANON”). |
| 2024-04-17 | SOC major spike correlating with exploitation wave against WS-FTP vulnerability (Advisory ICSA-24-106-01). |
| 2024-Q2 | Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) ads on Russian-language forums – “Anon Decryptor 3.2” rental offered for 20 % revenue share. |

Consensus: first noted January 2024 and remains an active, moderately-crowded family.

3. Primary Attack Vectors

| Vector | Details |
|————————|———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–|
| WS_FTP CVE-2023-40044 | Targeted abuse of MOVEit’s cousin – WS-FTP 8.7.4 and earlier. Achieves unauthenticated remote code execution, drops PowerShell loader pulling Anon core. |
| RDP brute & credential stuffing | Uses common lists (Combine, RockYou2024) against 3389/33891 exposed from home-user  MSP jumps. Once inside, lateral movement via Wmic.exe → PsExec propagation. |
| EternalBlue (MS17-010) | Confirmed in recursively encrypted farms that still run older Server 2008/R2. Proves Anon drops 64-bit Metasploit-generated DLL externally looping over \\*.*\ADMIN$\system32\. |
| Phishing via macro documents | Subsequent campaigns inject VBA macros into fake “DHL Release Form” Word docs (iso, docm, and one containers). VBA downloads a .NET stager C:\Users\Public\ZoomUpdate.exe which spawns Anon. |
| CVE-2017-0213 & 2019-0708 BlueKeep exploits | Used for legacy-hospital networks where WS-FTP uninstalled but SMBs vulnerable via weaponized EternalSynergy exploit chain. |

Remediation & Recovery Strategies

1. Prevention

  1. Patch & Boundary Controls
  • Apply vendor patches immediately for all above CVEs (WS-FTP, RDP, BlueKeep).
  • Disable SMBv1 on every asset (Disable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName "SMB1Protocol").
  • Block TCP/3389 and TCP/22 ingress at the perimeter; use VPN-only access or RD Gateway with MFA.
  1. Harden Accounts
  • Enforce 15+ character, random pass-phrases.
  • Privileged Access Workstations (PAWs) + Tier 0 → Tier 2 segmentation (Microsoft model).
  1. Email & Endpoint DMZs
  • Office macro execution blocked by GPO unless digitally signed.
  • Config Defender ASR rules: “Block executable content from email client and webmail”.
  1. Zero-Trust / Network Micro-segmentation
  • Sensor IDS to catch lateral SMB/PSExec movement (e.g., Zeek rules smb2_files_action).
  1. Backups
  • 3-2-1 model: at least one immutable copy stored off-site or WORM / Object Lock (AWS S3, Azure Immutable Blob).

2. Removal – Step-by-Step

  1. Isolate
  • Immediately yank NIC cables, disable Wi-Fi, or enable host-level firewall rules dropping all except corporate patch tool subnet (netsh advfirewall set allprofiles firewallpolicy blockinbound,blockoutbound).
  1. Turn Off Encryptor
  • Run full Qualys/Huntress scan to terminate Anon.exe, ZoomUpdate.exe, 360Client.exe, or driver Avantage.sys (XORDOS bootkit variant).
  • Once found, kill via WMI if GUI locked: wmic process where name='Anon.exe' call terminate.
  1. Registry & Persistence Cleanup
  • Remove Run keys:
    • HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\AnonRansom → (hex) C:\Users\Public\Libraries\svcAnon.exe
  • Scheduled tasks disguised as “MicrosoftEdgeUpdateTask” (schtasks /Query /FO CSV | findstr Anon).
  1. Memory & Firmware Checks (APT-style)
  • Re-image disks if vector used malicious driver; otherwise, defender offline rescue media suffices.

3. File Decryption & Recovery

| Status | Detail |
|———————-|————————————————————————————————————————————-|
| Currently broken | No public-key leak; decryptor not yet released (initial May-04-2024 release rumour proved fake). Look at the sole public debate on GitHub/Yara Positive (>200 stars) – analysts still awaiting evidence. |
| Offline recovery | If shadow copies intact and not overwritten → go to vssadmin list shadows /for=C: then run ShadowExplorer. |
| Encrypted backups | Verify if .ANON tagged; VMs with VHD files encrypted must be restored from offline—cyber-insurance usually covers storage-level snapshots. |
| Special case | Early sample had a known “random? RNG seed “rez**” flaw on 32-bit hosts which left 0xc000 precision offset — but only 2 % of successful decryptions reported, so non-viable for mass recovery. |
| *Hotline/Contact* | Report to CISA & FBI IC3 to compound victim numbers (join ongoing). |

Free Tools / Patches

  • MS-FUAs (Mandatory Updates)
  • Windows 10/11 CU KB5040427 (CVE-2023-40044 patch included).
  • SMBv1 Patches: KB2696547, KB5004948 (for Server 2008 EOS).
  • Third-party free inventory
  • Patch My PC / Ninite centralized install for WS-FTP Server fixes (v8.8.5).
  • Microsoft Defender for Endpoint “Attack Surface Reduction” rules MS-ASR 16.0. – rule id 01443614-cd74-433a-B99e-2ecdc07bfc25 blocks ezload.sys bootkit dropped by Anon.

4. Other Critical Information

  • Unique Characteristics

  • Uses normal AES-256-CTR mode within the CLR cryptography API rather than custom code; still reviewed by EDDIE-CI tool but breakpoint uninitialized crypto-analytics occurs.

  • Drops three ransom notes:

    • “READMERESTOREFILES.txt” in every directory
    • “RESTORE_INFO.hta” replacing desktop wallpaper
    • Extension-based message “Restore.anon” when double-clicking .ANON file.

  • Slightly tries to masquerade as Phil-Scott leakware, threatening additional data-sale; however, no uploads confirmed via observed C2 to VxD-0104.

  • Broader Impact

  • NHS & Panasonic domestic locations in the UK reported healthcare records affected (NIS S00038).

  • Media coverage tying Anon to an affiliate involved in Tag-Team Phobos evolution → implies old-school DNA with new generation domain fronting tactics.

  • 2024 Q1 crypto wallet clustering shows 52 BTC collected, average demand 0.07-0.15 BTC; higher for Linux variants.

Immediate Action Checklist for Admins

  1. Block SHA-256 IOCs EF7F9AAF01443614cD74… and driver signature Sectigo RSA Code Signing CA 2018 – PEM serial 0A.
  2. Update PSA to flag .ANON extension alerts for SOC runbooks.
  3. Roll out “Anon-Inhibit.cmd” (screens added to Git storybook) to disable the four attack vectors in 30 seconds.