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Satan Ransomware

A new ransomware tool, known as Satan, discovered by security researchers is being offered as-a-service.

Threat ID:
CC-1116
Category:
Ransomware
Threat Severity:
Medium
Threat Vector:
Macro
Published:
26 January 2017 12:00 AM
Report a cyber attack: call 0300 303 5222 or email [email protected]

This content has been archived

This article no longer conforms to NHS Digital's standards for cyber alerts, and may contain outdated or inaccurate information. Use of this information contained in this page is at your own risk

Summary

A new ransomware tool, known as Satan, discovered by security researchers is being offered as-a-service.

Affected platforms

The following platforms are known to be affected:

Microsoft Windows

  • Microsoft Windows - All versions

Threat details

The developers of the ransomware receive 30% of the specified ransom as payment for their service, which is tiered depending on the number of infections. The Satan platform offers multiple services, including a dropper builder that can obscure malicious code to avoid detection by virus scanners.

A number of similar offerings have been identified in the past and present ransomware creators with the opportunity to sell their product without the need for infrastructure to distribute it themselves.

Only a small number of anti-virus vendors can detect this type of activity.

There is a section of the ransomware generators website which produces code for Microsoft Word macros and Compiled HTML Help (CHM) file. Once the encryption has completed, it creates an HTML file on the desktop which contains the ransomware notes and instructions for the payment.

There are a large number of file types which this malware targets, including Microsoft Office files, images and videos. This is identifiable by the file extension of .stn for example myfile.txt is changed to myfile.txt.stn.

The payment site resides on the dark web, although there are a number of services on the clear web which offer access.

Threat updates

Date Update
23 Apr 2018 Threat updates

Satan is now using the EternalBlue SMB exploit to propagate.

Remediation steps

Type Step

If a device on your network becomes infected with ransomware it will begin encrypting local machine files and files on any network the logged-in user has permission to access. For system administration accounts this may include backup storage locations.

To avoid becoming infected with ransomware, 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.
  • All day to day computer activities such as email and internet are performed using non-administrative accounts and that permissions are always assigned based on the principle of least privilege.
  • Your organisation adopts a holistic all-round approach to Cyber Security as advocated by the 10 Steps to Cyber Security.

Identifying the source of infection:
Identifying the affected device and disconnecting or quarantining it from the network is essential to damage limitation.

  • Users should immediately report infections to their IT support provider, disconnect their network cable and power the computer down.
  • File auditing should be enabled, and file server logs should be monitored to detect signs of unauthorised encryption and allow the source of encryption to be identified (i.e. the infected device).

To limit the damage of ransomware and enable recovery:
All critical data must be backed up, and these backups must be sufficiently protected/kept out of reach of ransomware.

  • Multiple backups should be created including at least one off-network backup (e.g. to tape).
    The only guaranteed way to recover from a ransomware infection is to restore all affected files from their most recent backup.

Last edited: 11 January 2022 9:47 am