Analysis, Detection, and Prevention of Cryptographic Ransomware

Doctoral thesis (2020)

Cryptographic ransomware encrypts files on a computer system, thereby blocks access to victim’s data, until a ransom is paid. The quick return in revenue together with the practical difficulties in ... [more ▼]

Cryptographic ransomware encrypts files on a computer system, thereby blocks access to victim’s data, until a ransom is paid. The quick return in revenue together with the practical difficulties in accurately tracking cryptocurrencies used by victims to perform the ransom payment, have made ransomware a preferred tool for cybercriminals. In addition, exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities found in Windows Operating Systems (OSs), the most widely used OS on desktop computers, has enabled ransomware to extend its threat and have detrimental effects at world-wide level. For instance, WannaCry and NotPetya have affected almost all countries, impacted organizations, and the latter alone caused damage which costs more than $10 billion. In this thesis, we conduct a theoretical and experimental study on cryptographic ransomware. In the first part, we explore the anatomy of a ransomware, and in particular, analyze the key management strategies employed by notable families. We verify that for a long-term success, ransomware authors must acquire good random numbers to seed Key Derivation Functions (KDFs). The second part of this thesis analyzes the security of the current anti-ransomware approaches, both in academic literature and real-world systems, with the aim to anticipate how such future generations of ransomware will work, and in order to start planning on how to stop them. We argue that among them, there will be some which will try to defeat current anti-ransomware; thus, we can speculate over their working principles by studying the weak points in the strategies that six of the most advanced anti-ransomware currently implements. We support our speculations with experiments, proving at the same time that those weak points are in fact vulnerabilities and that the future ransomware that we have imagined can be effective. Next, we analyze existing decoy strategies and discuss how they are effective in countering current ransomware by defining a set of metrics to measure their robustness. To demonstrate how ransomware can identify existing deception-based detection strategies, we implement a proof-of-concept decoy-aware ransomware that successfully bypasses decoys by using a decision engine with few rules. We also discuss existing issues in decoy-based strategies and propose practical solutions to mitigate them. Finally, we look for vulnerabilities in antivirus (AV) programs which are the de facto security tool installed at computers against cryptographic ransomware. In our experiments with 29 consumer-level AVs, we discovered two critilcal vulnerabilities. The first one consists in simulating mouse events to control AVs, namely to send them mouse “clicks” to deactivate their protection. We prove that 14 out of 29 AVs can be disabled in this way, and we call this class of attacks Ghost Control. The second one consists in controlling whitelisted applications, such as Notepad, by sending them keyboard events (such as “copy-and-paste”) to perform malicious operations on behalf of the malware. We prove that the anti-ransomware protection feature of AVs can be bypassed if we use Notepad as a “puppet” to rewrite the content of protected files as a ransomware would do. Playing with the words, and recalling the cat-and-mouse game, we call this class of attacks Cut-and-Mouse. In the third part of the thesis, we propose a strategy to mitigate cryptographic ransomware attacks. Based on our insights from the first part of the thesis, we present UShallNotPass which works by controlling access to secure randomness sources, i.e., Cryptographically Secure Pseudo-Random Number Generator (CSPRNG) Appliction Programming Interfaces (APIs). We tested UShallNotPass against 524 real-world ransomware samples, and observe that UShallNotPass stops 94% of them, including WannaCry, Locky, CryptoLocker and CryptoWall. Remarkably, it also nullifies NotPetya, the offspring of the family which so far has eluded all defenses. Next, we present NoCry, which shares the same defense strategy but implements an improved architecture. We show that NoCry is more secure (with components that are not vulnerable to known attacks), more effective (with less false negatives in the class of ransomware addressed) and more efficient (with minimal false positive rate and negligible overhead). To confirm that the new architecture works as expected, we tested NoCry against a new set of 747 ransomware samples, of which, NoCry could stop 97.1%, bringing its security and technological readiness to a higher level. Finally, in the fourth part, we present the potential future of the cryptographic ransomware. We identify new possible ransomware targets inspired by the cybersecurity incidents occurred in real-world scenarios. In this respect, we described possible threats that ransomware may pose by targeting critical domains, such as the Internet of Things and the Socio-Technical systems, which will worrisomely amplify the effectiveness of ransomware attacks. Next, we looked into whether ransomware authors re-use the work of others, available at public platforms and repositories, and produce insecure code (which might enable to build decryptors). By methodically reverse-engineering malware executables, we have found that, out of 21 ransomware samples, 9 contain copy-paste code from public resources. From this fact, we recall critical cases of code disclosure in the recent history of ransomware and, reflect on the dual-use nature of this research by arguing that ransomware are components in cyber-weapons. We conclude by discussing the benefits and limits of using cyber-intelligence and counter-intelligence strategies that could be used against this threat. [less ▲]

Dual-Use Research In Ransomware Attacks: A Discussion on Ransomware Defence Intelligence

in Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Information Systems Security and Privacy (2020)

Previous research has shown that developers rely on public platforms and repositories to produce functional but insecure code. We looked into the matter for ransomware, enquiring whether also ransomware ... [more ▼]

Previous research has shown that developers rely on public platforms and repositories to produce functional but insecure code. We looked into the matter for ransomware, enquiring whether also ransomware engineers re-use the work of others and produce insecure code. By methodically reverse-engineering 128 malware executables, we have found that, out of 21 ransomware samples, 9 contain copy-paste code from public resources. Thanks to this finding, we managed to retrieve the decryption keys with which to nullify the ransomware attacks. From this fact, we recall critical cases of code disclosure in the recent history of ransomware and, arguing that ransomware are components in cyber-weapons, reflect on the dual-use nature of this research. We further discuss benefits and limits of using cyber-intelligence and counter-intelligence strategies that could be used against this threat. [less ▲]

NoCry: No More Secure Encryption Keys for Cryptographic Ransomware

in Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Emerging Technologies for Authorization and Authentication (2019)

Since the appearance of ransomware in the cyber crime scene, researchers and anti-malware companies have been offering solutions to mitigate the threat. Anti-malware solutions differ on the specific ... [more ▼]

Since the appearance of ransomware in the cyber crime scene, researchers and anti-malware companies have been offering solutions to mitigate the threat. Anti-malware solutions differ on the specific strategy they implement, and all have pros and cons. However, three requirements concern them all: their implementation must be secure, be effective, and be efficient. Recently, Genç et al. proposed to stop a specific class of ransomware, the cryptographically strong one, by blocking unauthorized calls to cryptographically secure pseudo-random number generators, which are required to build strong encryption keys. Here, in adherence to the requirements, we discuss an implementation of that solution that is more secure (with components that are not vulnerable to known attacks), more effective (with less false negatives in the class of ransomware addressed) and more efficient (with minimal false positive rate and negligible overhead) than the original, bringing its security and technological readiness to a higher level. [less ▲]

On Deception-Based Protection Against Cryptographic Ransomware

in Proceedings of the 16th Conference on Detection of Intrusions and Malware & Vulnerability Assessment (2019)

In order to detect malicious file system activity, some commercial and academic anti-ransomware solutions implement deception-based techniques, specifically by placing decoy files among user files. While ... [more ▼]

In order to detect malicious file system activity, some commercial and academic anti-ransomware solutions implement deception-based techniques, specifically by placing decoy files among user files. While this approach raises the bar against current ransomware, as any access to a decoy file is a sign of malicious activity, the robustness of decoy strategies has not been formally analyzed and fully tested. In this paper, we analyze existing decoy strategies and discuss how they are effective in countering current ransomware by defining a set of metrics to measure their robustness. To demonstrate how ransomware can identify existing deception-based detection strategies, we have implemented a proof-of-concept anti-decoy ransomware that successfully bypasses decoys by using a decision engine with few rules. Finally, we discuss existing issues in decoy-based strategies and propose practical solutions to mitigate them. [less ▲]

Crypren Decryptor

Software (2018)

Crypren Decryptor is software which recovers the files encrypted by Crypren ransomware. The decryptor targets the sample with SHA256 digest ... [more ▼]

Crypren Decryptor is software which recovers the files encrypted by Crypren ransomware. The decryptor targets the sample with SHA256 digest: ce53233a435923a68a9ca6987f0d6333bb97d5a435b942d20944356ac29df598. Further details about the design of this software can be found at the paper: http://orbilu.uni.lu/handle/10993/36627. [less ▲]

Next Generation Cryptographic Ransomware

in Proceedings of the Secure IT Systems (2018)

We are assisting at an evolution in the ecosystem of cryptoware - the malware that encrypts files and makes them unavailable unless the victim pays up. New variants are taking the place once dominated by ... [more ▼]

We are assisting at an evolution in the ecosystem of cryptoware - the malware that encrypts files and makes them unavailable unless the victim pays up. New variants are taking the place once dominated by older versions; incident reports suggest that forthcoming ransomware will be more sophisticated, disruptive, and targeted. Can we anticipate how such future generations of ransomware will work in order to start planning on how to stop them? We argue that among them there will be some which will try to defeat current anti-ransomware; thus, we can speculate over their working principle by studying the weak points in the strategies that seven of the most advanced anti-ransomware are currently implementing. We support our speculations with experiments, proving at the same time that those weak points are in fact vulnerabilities and that the future ransomware that we have imagined can be effective. [less ▲]

Security Analysis of Key Acquiring Strategies Used by Cryptographic Ransomware

in Advances in Cybersecurity 2018 (2018)

To achieve its goals, ransomware needs to employ strong encryption, which in turn requires access to high-grade encryption keys. Over the evolution of ransomware, various techniques have been observed to ... [more ▼]

To achieve its goals, ransomware needs to employ strong encryption, which in turn requires access to high-grade encryption keys. Over the evolution of ransomware, various techniques have been observed to accomplish the latter. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of each method is essential to develop robust defense strategies. In this paper we explain the techniques used by ransomware to derive encryption keys and analyze the security of each approach. We argue that recovery of data might be possible if the ransomware cannot access high entropy randomness sources. As an evidence to support our theoretical results, we provide a decryptor program for a previously undefeated ransomware. [less ▲]

Examination of a New Defense Mechanism: Honeywords

in Proceedings of the 11th WISTP International Conference on Information Security Theory and Practice (2017)

Past experiences show us that password breach is still one of the main methods of attackers to obtain personal or sensitive user data. Basically, assuming they have access to list of hashed passwords ... [more ▼]

Past experiences show us that password breach is still one of the main methods of attackers to obtain personal or sensitive user data. Basically, assuming they have access to list of hashed passwords, they apply guessing attacks, i.e., attempt to guess a password by trying a large number of possibilities. We certainly need to change our way of thinking and use a novel and creative approach in order to protect our passwords. In fact, there are already novel attempts to provide password protection. The Honeywords system of Juels and Rivest is one of them which provides a detection mechanism for password breaches. Roughly speaking, they propose a method for password-based authentication systems where fake passwords, i.e., "honeywords" are added into a password file, in order to detect impersonation. Their solution includes an auxiliary secure server called "honeychecker" which can distinguish a user's real password among her honeywords and immediately sets off an alarm whenever a honeyword is used. However, they also pointed out that their system needs to be improved in various ways by highlighting some open problems. In this paper, after revisiting the security of their proposal, we specifically focus on and aim to solve a highlighted open problem, i.e., active attacks where the adversary modifies the code running on either the login server or the honeychecker. [less ▲]

Security and Efficiency Analysis of the Hamming Distance Computation Protocol Based on Oblivious Transfer

in Security and Communication Networks (2015), 8(18), 4123-4135

Bringer et al. proposed two cryptographic protocols for the computation of Hamming distance. Their first scheme uses Oblivious Transfer and provides security in the semi-honest model. The other scheme ... [more ▼]

Bringer et al. proposed two cryptographic protocols for the computation of Hamming distance. Their first scheme uses Oblivious Transfer and provides security in the semi-honest model. The other scheme uses Committed Oblivious Transfer and is claimed to provide full security in the malicious case. The proposed protocols have direct implications to biometric authentication schemes between a prover and a verifier where the verifier has biometric data of the users in plain form. In this paper, we show that their protocol is not actually fully secure against malicious adversaries. More precisely, our attack breaks the soundness property of their protocol where a malicious user can compute a Hamming distance which is different from the actual value. For biometric authentication systems, this attack allows a malicious adversary to pass the authentication without knowledge of the honest user’s input with at most O(n) complexity instead of O(2n), where n is the input length. We propose an enhanced version of their protocol where this attack is eliminated. The security of our modified protocol is proven using the simulation-based paradigm. Furthermore, as for efficiency concerns, the modified protocol utilizes Verifiable Oblivious Transfer which does not require the commitments to outputs which improves its efficiency significantly. [less ▲]