New Variant of Dharma Ransomware spotted in the wild.

The SonicWall Threats Research team observed reports of a new variant family of Dharma Ransomware [GAV: Dharma.RSM and Dharma.RSM_2] actively spreading in the wild.

Dharma encrypts the victims files with a strong encryption algorithm until the victim pays a fee to get them back.

Infection Cycle:

The Malware adds the following files to the system:

• Malware.exe

  • %SystemRoot%Malware.exe

  • %Userprofile%Start MenuProgramsStartupInfo.hta

The Trojan adds the following files to the Windows to ensure persistence upon reboot:

• % Userprofile%Start MenuProgramsStartupMalware.exe”

The Trojan adds the following keys to the Windows registry startup:

Once the computer is compromised, the malware copies its own executable file to %SystemRoot% folder and deletes the primary executable file and rename all your personal files to .wallet extension.

The Malware encrypts all personal documents and files, it shows the following webpage:

It demands that victims pay using Bitcoin in order to receive the decryption key that allows them to recover their files.

We have been monitoring varying hits over the past few days for the signature that blocks this threat:

SonicWALL Gateway AntiVirus provides protection against this threat via the following signatures:

• GAV: Dharma.RSM (Trojan)

• GAV: Dharma.RSM_2 (Trojan)

Security News

The SonicWall Capture Labs Threat Research Team gathers, analyzes and vets cross-vector threat information from the SonicWall Capture Threat network, consisting of global devices and resources, including more than 1 million security sensors in nearly 200 countries and territories. The research team identifies, analyzes, and mitigates critical vulnerabilities and malware daily through in-depth research, which drives protection for all SonicWall customers. In addition to safeguarding networks globally, the research team supports the larger threat intelligence community by releasing weekly deep technical analyses of the most critical threats to small businesses, providing critical knowledge that defenders need to protect their networks.