Duqu 2.0 the most sophisticated threat ever seen
Vulnerabilities mentionedAll →
| CVE | Vulnerability | CVSS | EPSS | Flags | Affected | Exposure | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2014-4148 | Kernel-Mode Remote Code Execution in Microsoft Windows via TrueType Font Handling CVE-2014-4148 is a remote code execution vulnerability in a Windows kernel-mode driver caused by improper handling of TrueType fonts. An attacker triggers it by getting a user to render a specially crafted document or web page containing a malicious embedded TrueType font, at which point the flaw is reached in kernel context. Successful exploitation allows the attacker to execute arbitrary code with elevated kernel privileges, effectively giving full control of the affected host. Any Microsoft Windows system that renders untrusted fonts is affected; the source data identifies Microsoft Windows broadly but does not specify exact affected version ranges. The flaw was exploited as a zero-day (headlines tie it to the Lamberts toolkit) and fixed in Microsoft's October 2014 security updates; CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-05-25, and EPSS puts the 30-day exploitation probability at about 60%, though no public proof-of-concept is known. Do: Apply Microsoft's kernel-mode driver (font handling) security updates from the October 2014 update cycle per the vendor's instructions, as CISA's KEV listing makes patching mandatory for federal agencies. Audit Windows hosts, especially ones that open untrusted documents or web content, for missing patches, since CISA KEV inclusion indicates known in-the-wild exploitation and ransomware relevance is unknown. As defense in depth, restrict rendering of untrusted embedded fonts where your tooling supports it, and prioritize patching internet-facing and shared systems. | — | 60% | KEV |
| masshundreds of millions of Windows systems (Windows desktop/server install base during the affected period) | |
| CVE-2014-6324 | Privilege Escalation in Microsoft Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC) CVE-2014-6324 is a privilege escalation flaw in the Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC) on Microsoft domain controllers: a remote, authenticated domain user sends specially crafted Kerberos ticket data that the KDC fails to validate correctly, allowing the attacker to obtain domain administrator privileges. An attacker who already holds any valid domain credentials can therefore escalate to full control of the Active Directory domain, which typically means compromise of every domain controller and every account in the forest. Any organization running Active Directory on Windows domain controllers is affected; the provided data does not enumerate specific Windows versions or the fixed release. The vulnerability is listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2022-03-25, ransomware use unknown), carries a 87.4% EPSS probability of exploitation within 30 days (100th percentile), and is publicly associated in security reporting with the Duqu 2.0 espionage platform. Do: Apply the Microsoft security update for this vulnerability (MS14-068, November 2014) per vendor instructions on every domain controller, and verify no unpatched DC remains, since one vulnerable domain controller is enough for any domain user to become domain administrator. Prioritize internet-exposed and domain-controller assets in CISA KEV-driven patch tracking, and monitor Kerberos ticket traffic for anomalous or forged ticket/PAC content while patching is pending. | — | 87% | KEV |
| massmillions of Active Directory domain controllers / millions of domain users in scope (order-of-magnitude estimate) | |
| CVE-2015-2360 | Win32k Local Privilege Escalation in Microsoft Windows Kernel Drivers CVE-2015-2360 is a memory-handling flaw (CWE-119) in Win32k.sys, the Windows kernel-mode driver, that allows a local user to elevate privileges or cause a denial-of-service crash. It is triggered by local code that drives Win32k into improperly handling objects in memory, letting the attacker run code with kernel/SYSTEM-level rights — typically chained with a separate remote code execution bug to go from network access to full system compromise. Any Microsoft Windows system that has not received the vendor fix is affected, and because the fix shipped in mid-2015, the remaining exposed population is largely legacy Windows deployments that missed regular patching. The vulnerability was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2022-05-25, indicating exploitation in the wild, and EPSS assigns a 15% probability of exploitation within 30 days (96th percentile); no public proof-of-concept is known. Do: Apply the Microsoft update from security Bulletin MS15-078 (July 2015) to any Windows system lacking it, prioritizing internet-facing hosts running legacy Windows/Server releases and POS, embedded or air-gapped systems that miss routine patch cycles. Verify via patch inventory that the affected Win32k.sys builds are current, and treat the CISA KEV listing as mandatory remediation per the required action (apply updates per vendor instructions). | — | 15% | KEV |
| massplausibly millions of legacy Windows systems remain unpatched, out of a multi-hundred-million to >1 billion Windows install base |
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Threat actors used a Duqu 2.0 worm in a series of attacks worldwide that also breached the systems at Kaspersky Lab. It is most complex malware ever seen.
A new powerful strain of Duqu malware, dubbed Duqu 2.0, appeared in the wild after going dark in 2012. Duqu 2.0 is a very sophisticated agent that exploited a number of zero-days vulnerabilities and malware researchers noticed that among its targets there were entities linked to the negotiations about Iran’s nuclear deal and IT security firms. Duqu 2.0 also targeted other entities in Western countries, in Asia and in the Middle East. Experts at Symantec also detected the new strain of malware and observed infection almost in every continent.
Researchers at Kaspersky Lab speculate that Duqu 2.0 may have leveraged the following zero-days:
- CVE-2015-2360;
- CVE-2014-4148;
- CVE-2014-6324;
“Most notably, some of the new 2014-2015 infections are linked to the P5+1 events and venues related to the negotiations with Iran about a nuclear deal. The threat actor behind Duqu appears to have launched attacks at the venues for some of these high level talks. In addition to the P5+1 events, the Duqu 2.0 group has launched a similar attack in relation to the 3 70th anniversary event of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau.” states a report published by Kaspersky Lab.
The experts at Kaspersky Lab confirmed that threat actors behind Duqu 2.0 was detected in an attempt of intrusion against its internal network. The discovery of the intrusion was casual, Kaspersky discovered Duqu 2.0 while testing a new technology designed to detect advanced persistent threats.
The attack against Kaspersky likely began with a spear phishing attack against an employee in a smaller offices in the Asia-Pacific region.
“In the case of Kaspersky Lab, the attack took advantage of a zero-day (CVE-2015-2360) in the WindowsKernel, patched by Microsoft on June 9 2015 and possibly up to two other, currently patched vulnerabilities, which were zero-day at that time” states Kaspersky confirming the intrusion.
Once detected the intrusion the researchers started an internal audit that is still ongoing, anyway the company confirmed the high level of sophistication of the malware which is the most advanced ever seen. The experts confirmed that the sophistication of the attack is greater than the one observed for the Equation Group.
Duqu 2.0 resides in memory making hard its detection and use a complex system to communicate with the control infrastructure.
“It also doesn’t directly connect to a command-and-control server to receive instructions,” explained Kurt Baumgartner, principal security researcher at Kaspersky Lab. “Instead, the attackers infect network gateways and firewalls by installing malicious drivers that proxy all traffic from internal network to the attackers’ [command and control servers]. Combined, this made discovery very difficult.”
The new strain of Duqu has many similarities with the original variant spotted in 2011, bad actors behind Duqu 2.0 didn’t appear to work at all on Saturdays and compilation timestamps provided useful information to profile the attackers.
“During our analysis in 2011, we noticed that the logs collected from some of the proxies indicated the attackers appear to work less on Fridays and didn’t appear to work at all on Saturdays, with their regular work week starting on Sunday,” explained Baumgartner. “They also compiled binaries on January 1st, indicating it was probably a normal workday for them. The compilation timestamps in the binaries seemed to suggest a time zone of GMT+2 or GMT+3. Finally, their attacks would normally occur on Wednesdays, which was the reason we originally referred to them as the “Wednesday Gang”.”
Eugene Kaspersky, CEO of Kaspersky Lab is worried by the boldness of the authors of Duqu 2.0
“Spying on cybersecurity companies is a very dangerous tendency,” said Kaspersky. “Security software is the last frontier of protection for businesses and customers in the modern world”
Why attack the Kaspersky firm?
There are a number of good reasons to hit the popular company, first of all, to steal the secrets about its technologies, information that could be used to arrange new cyber espionage campaigns avoiding detection. Another good reasons could be the interest in investigations conducted by the company. Kaspersky provided Indicators of Compromise (IOCs) including MD5s and IPs from the command and control servers, which can be found
Kaspersky published the following reports that also include Indicators of compromise
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(Security Affairs – Duqu 2.0, state-sponsored hackers)
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