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Mariposa

Posted: August 17, 2012

Threat Metric

Ranking: 2,804
Threat Level: 1/10
Infected PCs: 4,497
First Seen: August 17, 2012
Last Seen: October 17, 2023
OS(es) Affected: Windows

Mariposa (Spanish for 'butterfly'), also known as Rimecud, is a group of multi-component worms that include backdoor Trojan functions (such as enabling DDoS-causing botnets), as well as optional spyware components. Although Mariposa's servers were dismantled by legal authorities, Mariposa managed to achieve a name for itself by infecting anywhere from eight to twelve million PCs before Mariposa was shut down. Mariposa is once again in the eyes of the news media due to the ongoing trial of its apparent creator, Matjaz Skorjanc, although Mariposa, itself, remains detached from its C&C servers and, therefore, effectively impotent. SpywareRemove.com malware researchers recommend deleting any remaining Mariposa infections with anti-malware programs as a basic matter of PC security, along with noting that Mariposa does retain its worm-based ability to infect other computers via networks and removable drives.

Reasons Not to Add Mariposa to Your Butterfly Collection

Rather than being designed for a highly-controlled series of specific attacks, Mariposa was built as a rentable piece of malware that included several options for increasingly advanced (and increasingly expensive) attacks. Criminals who wanted basic versions of Mariposa were required to pay hundreds of dollars, while those that wanted access to Mariposa's advanced bank account-attacking functions were asked to shell out well over a $1,000 dollars. Despite its high price, Mariposa was thoroughly-used for a range of different attacks, most of which were concerned with stealing passwords and other forms of confidential info.

Mariposa, like any self-respecting worm, also includes basic self-propagation functions. SpywareRemove.com malware experts have noted:

  • USB drive-based propagation, wherein Mariposa infects any PC that accesses an infected USB device.
  • Network-based propagation that allows Mariposa to spread through local networks as soon as your PC accesses a network-shared location on a Mariposa-infected computer.
  • Distribution via general download sources, such as peer-to-peer torrenting networks.

Confirmed Mariposa attacks have also spanned many other forms of damage, including e-mail spamming, DDoS attacks and browser hijacks to display advertisements. Symptoms and attacks from a single Mariposa varied significantly due to its nature as a rentable 'product' that passed through many hands.

The End to Mariposa's PC Parasitism

Mariposa's C&C servers were taken down in 2009, although some of the criminals involved in those servers managed to bring down Internet connectivity temporarily for several notable targets, including various government agencies and universities. Even though Mariposa's criminals are incapable of issuing new commands for any given Mariposa infection, SpywareRemove.com malware researchers still recommend deleting Mariposa via anti-malware scans, since even a detached Mariposa may cause a limited amount of damage to your PC.

Hopefully, with the likely imprisonment of Mariposa's creator in the near future, the complete extinction of Mariposa is well underway. However, it's unlikely that similar PC threats with modular, rentable structures will do anything but grow more popular in the future.

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