Virus 1.taz (Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B)

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B

(?)

Encyclopedia entry
Updated: Apr 17, 2011  |  Published: Dec 21, 2007

Aliases

• 
  
Win32/Mabezat.worm.32768 (AhnLab)
• W32/AutoRun.APZ (Norman)
• W32/Mabezat-B (Sophos)
• W32.Mabezat-3 (Clam AV)
• Win32/Mabezat.A (ESET)
• Worm.Win32.Mabezat.b (other)
• Worm.Win32.Mabezat.b (Kaspersky)
• Win32.Worm.Mabezat.C (Sunbelt Software)
• W32/Mabezat.a (McAfee)

Alert Level (?)
Severe

Antimalware protection details
Microsoft recommends that you download the latest definitions to get protected.

Detection last updated: Definition: 1.71.240.0 Released: Nov 25, 2009

Detection initially created: Definition: 1.45.287.0 Released: Oct 07, 2008

---

On this page

Summary|Symptoms|Technical Information|Prevention|Recovery

---

 

Summary

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B is a polymorphic virus that infects Windows executable files. Apart from spreading via file infection, it also attempts to spread via e-mail attachments, network shares, removable drives and by CD-burning. It contains a date-based payload that encrypts files with particular extensions.

Top

---

 

Symptoms

System Changes

The following system changes may indicate the presence of Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B:

• File extensions of known file types are now hidden
• The presence of the following files:
  %SystemDrive%\Documents and Settings\hook.dl_
  %SystemDrive%\Documents and Settings\tazebama.dl_
  %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\zPharaoh.exe
  %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\autorun.inf
  %USERPROFILE%\Application Data\tazebama\zPharaoh.dat
• The presence of the following files in the root of drives:
  zPharaoh.exeautorun.inf

Top

---

 

Technical Information (Analysis)

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B is a polymorphic virus that infects Windows executable files. Apart from spreading via file infection, it also attempts to spread via e-mail attachments, network shares, removable drives and by CD-burning. It contains a date-based payload that encrypts files with particular file extensions.

Installation

Upon execution, Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B drops the file '%Root%\Documents and Settings\tazebama.dll'. It then loads an installation module from tazebama.dll, that drops the following copies of the virus:                                                         

 

• %SystemDrive%\Documents and Settings\hook.dl_
• %SystemDrive%\Documents and Settings\tazebama.dl_

 

It creates a process for tazebama.dl_, and then executes the original code of the host file.

Spreads Via…

E-mail

The virus checks for an Internet connection by attempting to connect to the following sites:

 

http://www.britishcouncil.com
http://www.yahoo.com
http://www.hotmail.com
http://www.microsoft.com

 

It avoids sending mail to e-mail addresses that contain the following strings:

 

MICROSOFT
KASPER
PANDA

 

E-mail sent by the virus are variable. The virus may send e-mail with the following characteristics:

 

Subject:
ABOUT PEOPLE WITH WHOM MATRIMONY IS PROHIBITED

Message Body:

1 : If a man commits adultery with a woman, then it is not permissible for him to marry her mother or her daughters.
2 : If a woman out of sexual passion and with evil intent commits sexual intercourse with a man, then it is not permissible for the mother or daughters of that woman to merry that man. In the same way, the man who committed sexual intercourse with a woman, because prohibited for her mother and daughters.
Download the attached article to read.

Attachment:

PROHIBITED_MATRIMONY.rar

 

Subject:
Windows secrets

Message Body:

The attached article is on
how to make a folder password
. If your are interested in this article download it, if you are not delete it.

Attachment:

FolderPW_CH(1).rar

 

Subject:

Canada immigration

Message Body:

The debate is no longer about whether Canada should remain open to immigration. That debate became moot when Canadians realized that low birth rates and an aging population would eventually lead to a shrinking populace. Baby bonuses and other such incentives couldn't convince Canadians to have more kids, and demographic experts have forecasted that a Canada without immigration would pretty much disintegrate as a nation by 2050.
Download the attached file to know about the required forms.
The sender of this email got this article from our side and forwarded it to you.

Attachment:

IMM_Forms_E01.rar

 

Subject:
Viruses history

Message Body:

Nowadays, the viruses have become one of the most dangerous systems to attack the computers. There are a lot of kinds of viruses. The common and popular kind is called
Trojan.Backdoor
 which runs as a backdoor of the victim machine. This enables the virus to have a full remote administration of the victim machine. To read the full story about the viruses history since 1970 download the attached  and decompress It by WinRAR.
The sender has red the story and forwarded it to you.

Attachment:

virushistory.rar

 

Subject:

Web designer vacancy

Message Body: 

Fortunately, we have recently received your CV/Resume from moister web site
and we found it matching the job requirements we offer.
If your are interested in this job Please send us an updated CV showing the required items with the attached file that we sent.
Thanks
 Regards,
Ajy Bokra
Computer department.
AjyBokra@webconsulting.com

Attachment:

JobDetails.rar

 

Subject:

MBA new vision

Message Body: 

MBA (Master of business administration ) one of the most required degree around the world. We offer a lot of books helping you to gain this degree. We attached one of our .doc word formatted books on
Marketing basics
 to download.
Our web site http://ww  w.tazeunv.edu.cr/mba/info.htm
Contacts:
Human resource
Ajy klaf
AjyKolav@tazeunv.com
The sender has added your name to be informed with our services.

Attachment:

Marketing.rar

Subject:

problemo

Message Body: 

When I had opened your last email I received some errors have been saved in the attached file.
Please inform me with those errors as soon as possible.

Attachment:

utlooklog.rar

 

Subject:
hi

Message Body:

notes.rar
Unfortunately, I received unformatted email with an attached file from you. I couldn't understand what is behind the words.
I wish you next time send me a readable file!.I forwarded the attached file again to evaluate your self.

Attachment:

doc2.rar

 

It attempts to use the archiving application Winrar to archive itself when creating attachments. It looks for Winrar by querying the following registry entry:

 

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\WinRAR.exe

 

To use Winrar it initially creates a folder containing a copy of the virus. For example, to create MyDocuments.rar it copies itself to the following folder:

 

• %SystemRoot%\Documents and Settings\MyDocuments\Readme.doc .exe

 

It then archives this folder, to create 'MyDocuments.rar'.

 

Aside from the predefined attachments described above, it may use one of the following as a filename for its attachment:

 

GoogleToolbarNotifier.exe        
PanasonicDVD_DigitalCam.exe      
Antenna2Net.exe                  
RadioTV.exe                      
Microsoft MSN.exe                
Sony Erikson DigitalCam.exe      
IDE Conector P2P.exe             
Windows Keys Secrets.exe         
FaxSend.exe                      
RecycleBinProtect.exe            
Disk Defragmenter.exe            
CD Burner.exe                    
ShowDesktop.exe                  
BrowseAllUsers.exe               
LockWindowsPartition.exe         
Win98compatibleXP.exe            
MakeUrOwnFamilyTree.exe          
WindowsXp StartMenu Settings.exe 
Recycle Bin.exe                  
Adjust Time.exe                  
Microsoft Windows Network.exe    
HP_LaserJetAllInOneConfig.exe    
FloppyDiskPartion.exe            
msjavx86.exe                     
AmericanOnLine.exe               
Crack_GoogleEarthPro.exe         
Lock Folder.exe                  
InstallMSN11En.exe               
InstallMSN11Ar.exe               
JetAudio dump.exe                
KasperSky6.0 Key.doc.exe         
Office2007 Serial.txt.exe        
Office2003 CD-Key.doc.exe        
Make Windows Original.exe        
NokiaN73Tools.exe                
WinrRarSerialInstall.exe         
My Documents                                                                                     .exe
Readme.doc .exe
My documents .exe

 

Archived files may use one of the following filenames:

 

windows.rar
office_crack.rar   
serials.rar
passwords.rar  
windows_secrets.rar
source.rar 
imp_data.rar
documents_backup.rar   
backup.rar 
MyDocuments.rar

 

File infection

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B is a polymorphic virus that infects Windows executable files with the following file extensions:

 

.lnk
.exe
.scr

 

It searches for files to infect by enumerating the following registry entries:

 

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

 

It also searches for files to infect in the following folders:

 

• %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\
• \\<machine name>\c$\Documents and Settings\
• \\<machine name>\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\

 

Network shares

This virus tries to copy itself to the following locations:

 

• \\<machine name>\c$\Documents and Settings\
• \\<machine name>\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\

 

using the following usernames:

 

Administrator
Anonymous

 

and constructing passwords by combining the following characters, including spaces:

 

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
0123456789

 

For example:

 

123
1111
11111111
2222
22222222
3333
33333333
123456789
abcd
abcdefghi

 

Removable drives

Mabezat attempts to spread to all removable drives from Z: to C: by copying itself as 'zPharaoh.exe'. It then writes an autorun configuration file named 'autorun.inf' pointing to 'zPharaoh.exe'. When the removable or networked drive is accessed from another machine supporting the Autorun feature, the malware is launched automatically.Autorun.inf is created initially as '1.taz' before being renamed to 'autorun.inf'.

 

CD-Burning

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B drops the following files so that it can spread via CD when CD burning is initiated:

 

• %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\zPharaoh.exe
• %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\1.taz

 

It then renames 1.taz to:

• %Root%:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\CD Burning\autorun.inf

 

Every time the infected CD is inserted into a system that allows auto play of CDs, the malware will execute.

 

Payload

Encrypts data

If the following conditions hold the virus encrypts certain files:

 

• If the year is greater than or equal to 2012;
• If the month is equal to or greater than 10;
• and the day is equal to or greater than 16.

 

Files with the following extensions are encrypted:

                                                             
.hlp
.pdf
.html  
.txt   
.aspx
.cs   
.aspx  
.psd   
.mdf   
.rtf   
.htm   
.ppt   
.php   
.asp   
.pas   
.h 
.cpp
.xls
.doc
.rar
.zip
.mdb

 

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B also appends the string TAZEBAMA at the end of the encrypted file.

Additional Information

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B sets the following registry entry to hide extension and files.

 

Adds value with data: Hidden = 1
Adds value with data: ShowSuperHidden = 0
Adds value with data: HideFileExt = 1
To subkey: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

 

The virus logs its activities to the file '%USERPROFILE%\Application Data\tazebama\zPharaoh.dat'. This file contains the following string as a header:

 

tazebama trojan log file

 

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B deletes the following registry entry to avoid easy modification of autorun settings:

 

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
NoDriveTypeAutoRun

 

Analysis by Francis Allan Tan Seng

Top

---

 

Prevention

Take the following steps to help prevent infection on your computer:

• Enable a firewall on your computer.
• Get the latest computer updates for all your installed software.
• Use up-to-date antivirus software.
• Limit user privileges on the computer.
• Use caution when opening attachments and accepting file transfers.
• Use caution when clicking on links to Web pages.
• Avoid downloading pirated software.
• Protect yourself against social engineering attacks.
• Use strong passwords.

Enable a firewall on your computer

Use a third-party firewall product or turn on the Microsoft Windows Internet Connection Firewall.

• How to turn on the Windows Firewall in Windows 7
• How to turn on the Windows Firewall in Windows Vista
• How to turn on the Windows firewall in Windows XP

Get the latest computer updates

Updates help protect your computer from viruses, worms, and other threats as they are discovered. It is important to install updates for all the software that is installed in your computer. These are usually available from vendor Web sites.

 

You can use the Automatic Updates feature in Windows to automatically download future Microsoft security updates while your computer is on and connected to the Internet.

• How to turn on Automatic Updates in Windows 7
• How to turn on Automatic Updates in Windows Vista
• How to turn on Automatic Updates in Windows XP

Use up-to-date antivirus software

Most antivirus software can detect and prevent infection by known malicious software. To help protect you from infection, you should always run antivirus software, such as Microsoft Security Essentials, that is updated with the latest signature files. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/security/antivirus/av.aspx.

Limit user privileges on the computer

Starting with Windows Vista and Windows 7, Microsoft introduced User Account Control (UAC), which, when enabled, allowed users to run with least user privileges. This scenario limits the possibility of attacks by malware and other threats that require administrative privileges to run.

 

You can configure UAC in your computer to meet your preferences:

• User Account Control in Windows 7
• User Account Control in Windows Vista
• Applying the Principle of Least Privilege in Windows XP
• More on User Account Control

Use caution when opening attachments and accepting file transfers

Exercise caution with e-mail and attachments received from unknown sources, or received unexpectedly from known sources.  Use extreme caution when accepting file transfers from known or unknown sources.

Use caution when clicking on links to Web pages

Exercise caution with links to Web pages that you receive from unknown sources, especially if the links are to a Web page that you are not familiar with, unsure of the destination of, or suspicious of. Malicious software may be installed in your computer simply by visiting a Web page with harmful content.

Avoid downloading pirated software

Threats may also be bundled with software and files that are available for download on various torrent sites. Downloading "cracked" or "pirated" software from these sites carries not only the risk of being infected with malware, but is also illegal. For more information, see 'The risks of obtaining and using pirated software'.

Protect yourself from social engineering attacks

While attackers may attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in hardware or software to compromise a computer, they also attempt to exploit vulnerabilities in human behavior to do the same. When an attacker attempts to take advantage of human behavior to persuade the affected user to perform an action of the attacker's choice, it is known as 'social engineering'. Essentially, social engineering is an attack against the human interface of the targeted computer. For more information, see 'What is social engineering?'.

Use strong passwords

Attackers may try to gain access to your Windows account by guessing your password. It is therefore important that you use a strong password – one that cannot be easily guessed by an attacker. A strong password is one that has at least 8 characters, and combines letters, numbers, and symbols. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/protect/yourself/password/create.mspx.

Top

---

 

Recovery

Manual removal is not recommended for this threat. To detect and remove this threat and other malicious software that may have been installed, run a full-system scan with an up-to-date antivirus product such as Microsoft Security Essentials, or the Microsoft Safety Scanner. For more information about using antivirus software, see http://www.microsoft.com/security/antivirus/av.aspx.

Recovering from recurring infections on a network

The following additional steps may need to be taken to completely remove this threat from an infected network, and to stop infections from recurring from this and other similar types of network-spreading malware:

 

1. Ensure that an antivirus product is installed on ALL machines connected to the network that can access or host shares  (see above for further detail).
2. Ensure that all available network shares are scanned with an up-to-date antivirus product.
3. Restrict permissions as appropriate for network shares on your network. For more information on simple access control, please see: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb456977.aspx.
4. Remove any unnecessary network shares or mapped drives.

 

Note: Additionally it may be necessary to temporarily change the permission on network shares to read-only until the disinfection process is complete.

Disable Autorun functionality

Virus:Win32/Mabezat.B attempts to spread via removable drives on computers that support Autorun functionality. This is a particularly common method of spreading for many current malware families. For information on disabling Autorun functionality, please see the following article:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/967715/ 

Source: http://www.microsoft.com/security/portal/Threat/Encyclopedia/Entry.aspx?name=Virus%3AWin32%2FMabezat.B