DarthMiner Mining Malware

DarthMiner is a newly observed cryptocurrency mining malware created using the open-source EmPyre post-exploitation tool and the XMRig mining application.

Threat ID:: CC-2837
Category:: Trojan
Threat Severity:: Low
Threat Vector:
Published:: 11 December 2018 12:00 AM

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Summary

DarthMiner is a newly observed cryptocurrency mining malware created using the open-source EmPyre post-exploitation tool and the XMRig mining application.

Affected platforms

The following platforms are known to be affected:

macOS

Apple macOS - All versions

Threat details

At the time of publication, it is unclear how DarthMiner is distributed, although it appears to disguised as the Adobe Zii anti-piracy application. When opened, a shell script is executed to download and run a separate Python script. The Python script will then check for the presence of the Little Snitch application firewall, terminating itself if this is the case, before initiating a connection to it's EmPyre-enabled command and control (C2) infrastructure. A launch agent is then downloaded from a C2 server to maintain persistence.

Once it has gained access to an affected device, DarthMiner will download and install XMRig. It is also has the ability to install root certificates for the mitmproxy traffic interception software, although it does not appear to be used at this time.

Remediation steps

Type	Step
	To prevent and detect an infection, ensure that: A robust program of education and awareness training is delivered to users to ensure they don’t open attachments or follow links within unsolicited emails. All operating systems, anti-virus and other security products are kept up-to-date. Regular anti-virus and security scans are performed on your organisation’s estate. All day-to-day computer activities such as email and internet are performed using non-administrative accounts. Strong password policies are in place. Network, proxy and firewall logs should be monitored for suspicious activity. User accounts accessed from affected devices should be reset on a clean computer. Your organisation adopts a holistic all-round approach to Cyber Security as advocated by the 10 Steps to Cyber Security.

Type

Step

To prevent and detect an infection, ensure that:

A robust program of education and awareness training is delivered to users to ensure they don’t open attachments or follow links within unsolicited emails.
All operating systems, anti-virus and other security products are kept up-to-date.
Regular anti-virus and security scans are performed on your organisation’s estate.
All day-to-day computer activities such as email and internet are performed using non-administrative accounts.
Strong password policies are in place.
Network, proxy and firewall logs should be monitored for suspicious activity.
User accounts accessed from affected devices should be reset on a clean computer.
Your organisation adopts a holistic all-round approach to Cyber Security as advocated by the 10 Steps to Cyber Security.

Last edited: 17 February 2020 1:00 pm