APT

DoubleFeature, post-exploitation dashboard used by Equation Group APT

Researchers analyzed the DoubleFeature logging tool of DanderSpritz Framework that was used by the Equation Group APT group.

Check Point researchers have published a detailed analysis of the DoubleFeature tool used to log post-exploitation activities in attacks conducted by the Equation Group and involving the DanderSpritz malware framework.

DanderSpritz made the headlines on April 14, 2017, when it was leaked by the Shadow Broker hacking group along with other tools and exploits belonging to NSA’s arsenal. The leak was by the experts as “Lost in Translation” leak. 

DanderSpritz has a modular structure and includes a wide variety of tools for persistence, reconnaissance, lateral movement. The tool also includes features to bypass Antivirus engines and perform other malicious activities. 

The core functionality of DanderSpritz is included in the file DszLpCore.exe in the windows/bit path, DoubleFeature is one of the plugins used by the attack framework.

The analysis of this core components could allow the incident response team to analyze the compromise of their infrastructure.

“According to its own internal documentation, this plugin “Generates a log & report about the types of tools that could be deployed on the target”; a lot of the framework tools, in their own internal documentation, make the chilling claim that DoubleFeature is the only way to confirm their existence on a compromised system. After some pause, we figured that at least this means DoubleFeature could be used as a sort of Rosetta Stone for better understanding DanderSpritz modules, and systems compromised by them.” reads the analysis published by Check Point. “DoubleFeature effectively, well, doubles as a diagnostic tool for victim machines carrying DanderSpritz”

DoubleFeature is a dashboard written in Python that also works a reporting utility to exfiltrate the logging information from the infected systems. The cyber spies can view the log file using a specialized software dubbed DoubleFeatureReader.exe, which can be available in the plugin’s tools directory.

DoubleFeature monitors differed plugins such as remote access tool UnitedRake (tracked by Kaspersky as EquationDrug) and PeddleCheap, a the StraitBizarre backdoor. The logging tool also monitor an espionage platform called KillSuit (aka GrayFish), and other tools known as FlewAvenue and DiveBar.

StraitBizarre (SBZ) is a backdoor used for stealthy data exfiltration which is performed over the a custom protocol dubbed FriezeRamp. KillSuit is a plugin used to run other plugins on the infected system, providing a framework for persistence and evasion.

The tools also allow to monitor a validator implant named MistyVeal that allows to verify that the targeted system is indeed an authentic victim and not a research environment

“Sometimes, the world of high-tier APT tools and the world of ordinary malware can seem like two parallel universes,” concludes Check Point experts. “Nation-state actors tend to [maintain] clandestine, gigantic codebases, sporting a huge gamut of features that have been cultivated over decades due to practical need. It turns out we too are still slowly chewing on the 4-year-old leak that revealed DanderSpritz to us, and gaining new insights.”

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, IKEA)

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Pierluigi Paganini

Pierluigi Paganini is member of the ENISA (European Union Agency for Network and Information Security) Threat Landscape Stakeholder Group and Cyber G7 Group, he is also a Security Evangelist, Security Analyst and Freelance Writer. Editor-in-Chief at "Cyber Defense Magazine", Pierluigi is a cyber security expert with over 20 years experience in the field, he is Certified Ethical Hacker at EC Council in London. The passion for writing and a strong belief that security is founded on sharing and awareness led Pierluigi to find the security blog "Security Affairs" recently named a Top National Security Resource for US. Pierluigi is a member of the "The Hacker News" team and he is a writer for some major publications in the field such as Cyber War Zone, ICTTF, Infosec Island, Infosec Institute, The Hacker News Magazine and for many other Security magazines. Author of the Books "The Deep Dark Web" and “Digital Virtual Currency and Bitcoin”.

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