CommandLine Ransomware

The CommandLine Ransomware is a Trojan that may encrypt, delete or overwrite files matching its targeted formats, as well as cause other forms of damage to your hard drive. While malware researchers have yet to see the CommandLine Ransomware in deployment against live targets, it includes the essential functions necessary to block data and hold it for ransom, like similar threats. They recommend protecting your data with backups and using anti-malware tools for removing the CommandLine Ransomware before its encryption scan completes itself.

Trojans Hearkening Back to Operating Systems of Yore

Once an essential part of any PC owner's toolkit, familiarity with the Windows command prompt, cmd.exe, has languished as a Windows's visual UI evolved. However, the command line remains a potentially powerful and flexible tool, and even threat authors remember this fact, as evidenced with the latest samples of the CommandLine Ransomware. This threat, first spotted by a member of the GData's malware analysis team, delivers most of the features of file encrypting Trojans, all through command line arguments.

The CommandLine Ransomware, like other CMD-based utilities, uses a text interface, allowing a remote attacker to type commands that the CommandLine Ransomware then uses for determining how it attacks the infected PC's file system. Besides encrypting data, the CommandLine Ransomware also may delete it, overwrite it with an encrypted equivalent or rename it (either before or after the encoding takes place). Like most threats of its kind, the CommandLine Ransomware also can delete local backups kept by Windows and stop a victim from restoring the content without decrypting it. Effectively, the Trojan barricades the encoded data until the remote attacker sends a decryption argument.

Perhaps due to its unusual interface choice, malware analysts only can confirm the CommandLine Ransomware targeting three data types: Word documents, JPG images and Hanword documents. The latter, as a format associated with the Korean character set, offers potential insight into the origins of the CommandLine Ransomware's developer or the intended geographical scope of its campaign. The Trojan also may force system crashes or damage the Master Boot Record, which can stop Windows from restarting potentially.

Taking Command of Your PC Before a Korean Trojan does It for You

In comparison to other file encryptor Trojans of the year, the CommandLine Ransomware is something of an oddity. Its command-line interface, while still potent, makes it less attractive for rental to third party threat actors. While it may only be a proof of concept program, its features do include threatening functions that could cause permanent damage to the hard drive or operating system. However, current versions of the CommandLine Ransomware lack any built-in means of delivering extortion messages or ransom notes, such as hijacking the desktop's background image.

Until malware researchers excavate more evidence about the CommandLine Ransomware and any potential attack campaigns deploying it, PC owners can continue to keep their saved information protected via the usual methods. Use backups not stored on the local hard drive where the CommandLine Ransomware or similar Trojans could delete them. Avoid known infection vectors, such as e-mail attachments disguising themselves as financial documents. Maintain active anti-malware solutions that can detect or remove the CommandLine Ransomware before its threat actor can issue any encryption commands.

As far as innovation in threats is concerned, even going backward, sometimes, is going forwards. If nothing else, it provides new Trojans like the CommandLine Ransomware with a degree of unpredictability.

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