September 2021’s Most Wanted Malware: Trickbot Once Again Tops the List

Check Point Research reports that Trickbot is the most prevalent malware while remote access trojan, njRAT, has entered the index for the first time.

Our latest Global Threat Index for September 2021 has revealed that Trickbot has returned to the top of the most prevalent malware list having fallen into second place in August following a three-month long reign.

The remote access trojan, njRAT, has entered the top ten for the first time, taking the place of Phorpiex which is no longer active. Trickbot is a banking trojan that can steal financial details, account credentials, and personally identifiable information, as well as spread within a network and drop ransomware. Since the Emotet takedown in January, the Trickbot trojan has gained popularity. It is constantly being updated with new capabilities, features and distribution vectors which enables it to be a flexible and customizable malware that can be distributed as part of multi-purpose campaigns.

In the same month that Trickbot once again became the most prevalent malware, it was reported that one of Trickbot’s gang members was actually arrested as a result of a US investigation. In addition to other charges that have been filed this year in the fight against the trojan, we are hopeful that the gang’s dominance will soon be undermined. But, as always, there is still a long way to go. This week our researchers reported there are 40% more attacks weekly on organizations in 2021 compared to 2020 globally yet most of these, if not all, could have been prevented. Organizations mustn’t delay in adopting a prevention-first approach to cybersecurity.

CPR also revealed this month that “Web Server Exposed Git Repository Information Disclosure” is the most commonly exploited vulnerability, impacting 44% of organizations globally, followed by “Command Injection Over HTTP” which affects 43% of organizations worldwide. “HTTP Headers Remote Code Execution” takes third place in the top exploited vulnerabilities list, with a global impact of 43% as well.

Top malware families

*The arrows relate to the change in rank compared to the previous month.

This month, Trickbot is the most popular malware impacting 4% of organizations globally, followed by Formbook and XMRig, each impacting 3% of organizations worldwide.

1. ↑ Trickbot – Trickbot is a modular Botnet and Banking Trojan constantly being updated with new capabilities, features and distribution vectors. This enables Trickbot to be a flexible and customizable malware that can be distributed as part of multi-purpose campaigns.
2. ↓ Formbook – Formbook is an infostealer that harvests credentials from various web browsers, collects screenshots, monitors and logs keystrokes, and can download and execute files according to its C&C orders.
3. ↑ XMRig – XMRig is an open-source CPU mining software used for the mining process of the Monero cryptocurrency, and was first seen in-the-wild in May 2017.
4. ↓ Agent Tesla – Agent Tesla is an advanced RAT functioning as a keylogger and information stealer, which is capable of monitoring and collecting the victim’s keyboard input, system keyboard, taking screenshots, and exfiltrating credentials to a variety of software installed on a victim’s machine (including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and the Microsoft Outlook email client).
5. ↔ Glupteba – Glupteba is a backdoor which gradually matured into a botnet. By 2019 it included a C&C address update mechanism through public BitCoin lists, an integral browser stealer capability and a router exploiter.
6. ↔ Remcos – Remcos is a RAT that first appeared in-the-wild in 2016. Remcos distributes itself through malicious Microsoft Office documents which are attached to SPAM emails, and is designed to bypass Microsoft Windows UAC security and execute malware with high-level privileges.
7. ↑ Tofsee – Tofsee is a backdoor Trojan, operating since at least 2013. Tofsee serves as a multipurpose tool that can conduct DDoS attacks, send spam emails, mine cryptocurrencies, and more.
8. ↓ Ramnit – Ramnit is a banking Trojan that steals banking credentials, FTP passwords, session cookies and personal data.
9. ↑ Floxif – Floxif is an info stealer and backdoor, designed for Windows OS. It was used in 2017 as part of a large-scale campaign in which attackers inserted Floxif (and Nyetya) into the free version of CCleaner (a cleanup utility) thus infecting more than 2 million users, amongst them large tech companies such as Google, Microsoft, Cisco, and Intel.
10. ↑ njRAT – njRAT is a remote access trojan, targeting mainly government agencies and organizations in the Middle East. The Trojan first emerged in 2012 and has multiple capabilities: capturing keystrokes, accessing the victim’s camera, stealing credentials stored in browsers, uploading and downloading files, performing process and file manipulations, and viewing the victim’s desktop. njRAT infects victims via phishing attacks and drive-by downloads, and propagates through infected USB keys or networked drives, with the support of Command & Control server software.

Top exploited vulnerabilities

This month “Web Server Exposed Git Repository Information Disclosure” is the most commonly exploited vulnerability, impacting 44% of organizations globally, followed by “Command Injection Over HTTP” which affects 43% of organizations worldwide. “HTTP Headers Remote Code Execution” takes third place in the top exploited vulnerabilities list, with a global impact of 43% as well.

1. ↔ Web Server Exposed Git Repository Information Disclosure – An information disclosure vulnerability has been reported in Git Repository. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an unintentional disclosure of account information.
2. ↑ Command Injection Over HTTP – A command injection over HTTP vulnerability has been reported. A remote attacker can exploit this issue by sending a specially crafted request to the victim. Successful exploitation would allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the target machine.
3. ↓ HTTP Headers Remote Code Execution (CVE-2020-10826,CVE-2020-10827,CVE-2020-10828,CVE-2020-13756) – HTTP headers let the client and the server pass additional information with an HTTP request. A remote attacker may use a vulnerable HTTP Header to run arbitrary code on the victim machine.
4. ↑ Web Servers Malicious URL Directory Traversal (CVE-2010-4598,CVE-2011-2474,CVE-2014-0130,CVE-2014-0780,CVE-2015-0666,CVE-2015-4068, CVE-2015-7254, CVE-2016-4523, CVE-2016-8530, CVE-2017-11512, CVE-2018-3948, CVE-2018-3949, CVE-2019-18952, CVE-2020-5410, CVE-2020-8260) – There exists a directory traversal vulnerability on different web servers. The vulnerability is due to an input validation error in a web server that does not properly sanitize the URL for the directory traversal patterns. Successful exploitation allows unauthenticated remote attackers to disclose or access arbitrary files on the vulnerable server.
5. ↓ MVPower DVR Remote Code Execution – A remote code execution vulnerability exists in MVPower DVR devices. A remote attacker can exploit this weakness to execute arbitrary code in the affected router via a crafted request.
6. ↓ Dasan GPON Router Authentication Bypass (CVE-2018-10561) – An authentication bypass vulnerability exists in Dasan GPON routers. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability would allow remote attackers to obtain sensitive information and gain unauthorized access into the affected system.
7. 7. ↑ Apache Struts2 Content-Type Remote Code Execution (CVE-2017-5638,CVE-2017-5638,CVE-2019-0230) – A remote code execution vulnerability exists in the Apache Struts2 using Jakarta multipart parser. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending an invalid content-type as part of a file upload request. Successful exploitation could result in execution of arbitrary code on the affected system.
8. 8. ↓ OpenSSL TLS DTLS Heartbeat Information Disclosure (CVE-2014-0160,CVE-2014-0346) – An information disclosure vulnerability exists in OpenSSL. The vulnerability, aka Heartbleed, is due to an error when handling TLS/DTLS heartbeat packets. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to disclose memory contents of a connected client or server.
9. ↑ NoneCMS ThinkPHP Remote Code Execution (CVE-2018-20062) – A remote code execution vulnerability exists in NoneCMS ThinkPHP framework. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code on the affected system.
10. ↔Netgear DGN Unauthenticated Command Execution – There exists an unauthenticated command execution vulnerability within Netgear DGN devices. This vulnerability is due to the way Netgear DGN handles authentication checks. A successful attack could lead to an unauthenticated command execution.

Top Mobile Malwares

This month xHelper remains in first place in the most prevalent Mobile malwares, followed by AlienBot and FluBot.

1. xHelper – A malicious application seen in the wild since March 2019, used for downloading other malicious apps and display advertisements. The application is capable of hiding itself from the user and can even reinstall itself in the event that it was uninstalled.
2. AlienBot – AlienBot malware family is a Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) for Android devices that allows a remote attacker, as a first step, to inject malicious code into legitimate financial applications. The attacker obtains access to victims’ accounts, and eventually completely controls their device.
3. FluBot – FluBot is an Android botnet malware distributed via phishing SMS messages, most often impersonating logistics delivery brands. Once the user clicks the link inside the message, FluBot is installed and gets access to all sensitive information on the phone.