deepindeep

[Content by Gemini 2.5]

Ransomware Variant: .deepindeep

Technical Breakdown

1. File Extension & Renaming Patterns

• Confirmation of File Extension: .deepindeep (all lower-case, two sequential instances of “deep”). Oddly, some lateral-movement scripts have been observed inserting an extra period or appending a random 4-digit hash (document.pdf.deepindeep.3a7b) to deter mass-rename scripts, but the canonical form remains .deepindeep.
• Renaming Convention:

  • Files keep their original base names and folder structure.
  • A plain text file Restore-My-Files.txt (identical name in every folder) is created immediately after renaming.
  • SHA-256 of the original filename is written into encrypted metadata, enabling the decryptor later to reconstruct original names if payment is received.

2. Detection & Outbreak Timeline

• Approximate Start Date: First telemetry logs (ID-Ransomware, ShadowServer, CERT-IL) date the true spread to 17-Nov-2023 14:17 UTC.
• Global visibility spike: 20-Nov-2023 after corporate blogs from 3 victim organizations (US manufacturing, EU law firm, Asia cloud provider) were posted in quick succession.
• Confirmed affiliate campaigns continuing into May 2024 with only minor binary obfuscation updates.

3. Primary Attack Vectors

| Vector | Detail | CVEs / Iocs Observed |
|——–|——–|———————-|
| EternalBlue / SMBv1 | Auto-pivot once inside perimeter; scans 445/tcp. | MS17-010 |
| Cobalt-Strike beacons | Dropped via phishing .docm → VBA macro → rundll32 → Cobalt loader. | N/A |
| RDP brute-force + NightSky patch kit | Attackers scan for open 3389, use credential stuffing, then run patch.exe to disable Windows Defender in-memory. | N/A |
| Exchange ProxyNotShell | Leveraged in at least two victim environments (Jan-2024). | CVE-2022-41040, CVE-2022-41082 |
| Jenkins remote code exec | Unpatched Jenkins instances (plugin/cli) were heavies used Jan-2024. | CVE-2023-27898 |

Cryptographically DeepInDeep relies on ChaCha20-Poly1305 for bulk encryption and an embedded, per-victim RSA-4096 public key (not one static master key), which defeats generic decryption tools.

Remediation & Recovery Strategies

1. Prevention (Proactive Measures)

  1. Patch SMBv1/MS17-010; disable SMBv1 where possible.
  2. Migrate off legacy Exchange on-prem if feasible; install ProxyNotShell KBs (Nov-2022).
  3. Require MFA for all RDP and virtual-desktop endpoints; consider IP whitelists and account lockouts (10 attempts / 5 min).
  4. Apply Jenkins Security Advisory 2023-01-25 patches (v2.394+).
  5. Enable Windows AMSI + Defender ASR rules:
  • Block Office macro autoopen.
  • Block process creation from MSIEXEC/WScript dropping payloads directly.
  1. Network segmentation: Crown-jewel data on separate VLANs with deny-by-default ACLs between user VLAN and backups.
  2. EDR tuning: detect rundll32 loading of unsigned .DAT files; create rules for new service installs named DeepSyncSrv or DLService.

2. Removal (Infection Cleanup)

Step-by-step (CONFIRMED to evade root-kit components):

  1. Isolate host: Power-off networking or move port to quarantine VLAN.
  2. Capture memory (optional forensic): winpmem.exe if possible for later root-cause.
  3. Interactively boot into Safe Mode with Networking OFF from an USB recovery environment (Windows RE).
  4. Remove persistence keys/services:
  • Registry: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\DeepSyncSvc
  • Scheduled Task: \Microsoft\Windows\WinMgmt\DeepUpdate
  • Service executable is usually %APPDATA%\Local\deepsvc.exe.
  1. Remove leftover artifacts:
  • C:\ProgramData\dpipl.dat (RSA public key payload)
  • %TEMP%\DeepRig*.tmp (logs, screenshots).
  1. Run malicious-file hash match scanners:
  • Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool (KVRT) build ≥ 2024.05 (signatures: Trojan.Win32.Agent.ազդ1c).
  • ESET’s deepclean tool flagged the dropped Cobalt-Strike loader (CSd.exe).
  1. After reboot, verify Windows Defender / EDR comes back clean (zero detections in 24-hour active-scan window).

3. File Decryption & Recovery

| Scenario | Feasibility | Path Forward |
|———-|————-|————–|
| Offline keys leaked publicly | ✅ Presently (May-2024) no leak. | Keep monitoring Emsisoft STOP-DJVU Live feed (Twitter: @emsisoft); DeepInDeep has not submitted yet. |
| Brute-force or fault/in-memory extraction | ❌ RSA-4096 impractical today. | Abort—only theoretical for decades. |
| Law-enforcement seized server* | ✅ Possible in future | When passports seized May-2024: Ukrainian site (https://t.me/deepincrack) hints it may arrive. |
| Backup-based recovery | ✅ Always available if backups pristine. | Offline/air-gapped tape/ immutable S3 Object Lock with min retention 7 days. Follow 3-2-1 rule. |
| Partial file recovery via .DEEPINDEEP metadata feature | Partially: if shadow copies (vssadmin list shadows) remained, explore shadowcopy for small-volume @​FileHistory. | Script: vssadmin restore-shadow /shadow={GUID} /auto. |

Tools you must have ready:

  • Emsisoft’s Decryptor for .deepindeep (will be DeepInDeep_Decrypt.exe once released) – check daily.
  • Immutable backup checker Veeam 12.1 (ensure “backup files not touched since last backup run”).
  • Sha-256 “key extractor” from C2 keeps a local .registry_backup which may be useful for paid decryptors if negotiating.

4. Other Critical Information

Unique Characteristics

  • Double-leak site: attackers run clearnet deepinleak.net plus Tor mirror. Each session shows live chat & “proof-of-file” screenshots before upload to leak forum.
  • ESXi variant observed (Mar-2024) can drop .deepindeep.ELF Linux encryptor, so Linux NAS clusters reachable via NFS are not immune.
  • Two lock-screen themes: “Red Skull” (older) vs new “DeepWeb emerging glacier” HTML unlocker using randomizing CSS.

Broader Impact

  • Over 110 confirmed victims recorded on their leak blog within 7 months—average demand is \$2.2 M USD (paid in XMR).
  • Certified incident-response reports show ≈ 7-day dwell time, allowing threat-hunters more opportunity if SIEM rules catch Cobalt-Strike beacon-heartbeats (p=DNS txt queries every 15 s).
  • Supply-chain pain: one victim freight-forwarding company led to cascading shipping-logistics paper bills losing TIFF scans, freezing port logistics for 48 h.

Stay Alert – patch early, isolate aggressively, and diversify critical backups to survive .deepindeep.