418. An Interesting Case of Registry Modification

Hello everyone!

As you know, attackers often change the attributes of malicious files to hide them from users, system administrators, and cybersecurity professionals. However, in some cases, system settings are configured to display even hidden system files. And, of course, malware can do something about that!

Today, let's take a look at a piece of malware with an interesting name: KGB RAT. Examining its behavioral indicators, we can identify an unusual one: a registry modification designed to hide protected operating system files, followed by refreshing Windows Explorer windows using PowerShell:

cmd.exe /c reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced" /v ShowSuperHidden /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f && powershell -command "&{ $null = New-Object -ComObject Shell.Application; (New-Object -ComObject Shell.Application).Windows() | ForEach-Object { $_.Refresh() }}"

Such a configuration change is certainly suspicious and can be used for threat hunting:

event_type: "registryvaluesetwin"

AND

reg_key_path: "showsuperhidden"

AND

reg_value_data: "0x00000000"

See you soon!

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