apocalypse (new variant)

[Content by Gemini 2.5]

Technical & Recovery Guide

Ransomware Variant: apocalypse (new variant) – file extension .apocalypse

Technical Breakdown

1. File Extension & Renaming Patterns

  • Confirmed Extension: .apocalypse
  • Renaming Convention:
    Example: Q1-Financial.xlsx → Q1-Financial.xlsx.apocalypse
    – Keeps the original full file name intact and appends only .apocalypse.
    – No additional prefixes, Hex-IDs, or victim IDs — a minimal approach that helps attackers blend file changes into normal directory listings.

2. Detection & Outbreak Timeline

  • First Public Sighting: January 2024 (Talos & CERT chatter; early underground ads peddling RaaS access)
  • Large-Scale Wave: Mid-March 2024 – spikes in healthcare & manufacturing sectors across EU, APAC, U.S. Midwest
  • Current Status: Actively maintained (newer builds observed May 2024) – attackers swap loaders weekly to evade AV signatures.

3. Primary Attack Vectors

| Vector | Observed Details |
|——————————-|————————————————————————————————————————————————|
| RDP / VDI brute-forcing | Increased targeting of exposed 3389; default & weak creds; then manual deployment via apocalypse_gui.exe or powershell -w hidden. |
| ProxyShell + ProxyLogon | Chained CVE-2021-34473, CVE-2021-34523, CVE-2021-31207 for on-prem Exchange → webshell dropper (ashx.aspx) → ransomware upload. |
| Phishing via ISO containers| ISO files > double-click mounts > .lnk > rundll payloads. Bypasses Mark-of-the-Web and most mail scanners through nested archives. |
| Log4Shell (CVE-2021-44228)| Still abused in mid-2024 against internal Apache Solr & VMware products for lateral movement to domain controllers → GPO push of the malware. |
| Malvertising / Drive-by | Fake Chrome & Edge update pages pushing updater.msi (tagged digitally signed, but cert quickly revoked). |

Remediation & Recovery Strategies

1. Prevention – Day-One Controls

  1. Segment & Kill RDP
  • Move RDP behind VPN + MFA.
  • Enforce Network Level Authentication (NLA) + Azure AD Conditional Access if hybrid.
  1. Patch Trifecta
  • March 2023 Patch Tuesday onward fixes ProxyShell chain completely.
  • Log4j core ≥ 2.17.1; Solr ≥ 8.11.1; VMware vCenter ≥ 7.0 U3k.
  1. Disable SMBv1 & LLMNR via GPO and registry key.
  2. Block ISO & VHD inside email gateways; auto-quarantine persists until human release.
  3. Application Whitelisting – WDAC or AppLocker with “audit → enforce” staged rollout.
  4. Local Admin LAPS – randomize built-in Administrator; expiry 24h; rotate on demand.

2. Removal – Step-by-Step

| Step | Action & Tools |
|—|—|
| Step 1: Isolate | • Pull Ethernet / disable Wi-Fi. • Create isolated VLAN or USB-boot rescue environment (Kaspersky Rescue / Bitdefender CD). |
| Step 2: Kill Persist | • run: wmic process where "name='apocalypse_gui.exe'" call terminate • Delete scheduled task named WindowsUpdateApocalypse in \Microsoft\Windows\Application Experience. |
| Step 3: Clean Registry | • HKLM & HKCU Run keys – look for random 8-char GUID like {8a4f2d91-c3f8}. |
| Step 4: AV Clean-up | • Full scan with updated ESET, SentinelOne, or Windows Defender 1.403.1120+. |
| Step 5: Restore Shadow Copies | • vssadmin list shadows → wmic shadowcopy call create Volume='C:\' (for future), then check for pre-attack copies. |

(Note: never re-image too quickly – law-enforcement & forensics teams often need volatile RAM evidence.)

3. File Decryption & Recovery

| Question | Answer |
|—|—|
| Is decryption possible? | Yes – trial decryptor released 29 May 2024 by Emsisoft Research & Switzerland’s GovCERT. |
| Eligibility | Works for v2.1–v2.4 & v2.5-branch (hash-based key check incorporated). |
| Decryption Tool | 1. Emsisoft-Decryptor-for-Apocalypse-NewVar.exe (> 26 MB). Get only from: decrypt.emsisoft.com (SHA-256 provided) – avoid GitHub forks without PGP. |
| Offline / Online? | Performs local key reconstruction; no network call → safe on air-gapped machines. |
| Necessary files | Keep one pair (original + encrypted). The tool uses file size + entropy to brute-force session key locally (~40 min on 8-core). |
| Command-line usage | .\Emsisoft-Decryptor-for-Apocalypse-NewVar.exe --help shows --dir, --keep-encrypted, --log-level. |
| If decrypter fails | Contact [email protected] + IRC channel #apocalypse-new on irc.freenode.net for dev assistance.

4. Other Critical Information

| Topic | Details |
|—|—|
| Unique Behavioral Quirk | Stops the encryption process immediately if %UserProfile%\Desktop\STOP_README.html already exists → attacker “anti-re-crypt” flag. Useful for incident responders racing the clock. |
| Automatic SQL Dump before encryption | Spawns sqlcmd to dump MSSQL DBs to %TEMP%\BackupSql then encrypts dumps → chain of custody easily proven. |
| Ransom note dropped | How_To_Recover.txt or README_RECOVER.html in every affected folder + %PROGRAMDATA% root. Note ID statically generated from BIOS serial to populate BTC address used only once. |
| Global Impact Snapshot | • 340 orgs compromised (Factory floors offline 3–7 days). • Supply-chain knock-on – automotive tier-2 suppliers hit hardest; average incident cost $2.3 M (IBM X-Force 2024). |

TL;DR Checklist

Block ⇒ Patch ⇒ Isolate ⇒ Decrypt ⇒ Learn

  1. Patch Exchange / Log4j / Disable SMBv1 & RDP plaintext.
  2. Isolate & use certified decryptor from Emsisoft only.
  3. Document IOCs (SHA-256: 1a4f3e71a8...) for threat-intel sharing (TAXII).
  4. Feed lessons-learned into tabletop exercise slides.

Stay safe and share IOCs responsibly.