Command-Line Utility Abused to Configure Persistence by Lynx Ransomware


Zero‑Dwell Threat Intelligence Report

A narrative, executive‑ready view into the malware’s behavior, exposure, and reliable defenses.
Generated: 2026-01-09 15:10:54 UTC

Executive Overview — What We’re Dealing With

This specimen has persisted long enough to matter. Human experts classified it as Malware, and the telemetry confirms a capable, evasive Trojan with real impact potential.

File
kkwmh8p50.exe
Type
Generic CIL Executable (.NET, Mono, etc.)
SHA‑1
56b8e45b3370e806c277721ef9da2920c490b122
MD5
611fb99f06dac469c41aede6a33e956b
First Seen
2026-01-08 13:00:03.656536
Last Analysis
2026-01-08 13:06:37.267201
Dwell Time
0 days, 7 hours, 33 minutes

Extended Dwell Time Impact

For 6+ minutes, this malware was rapidly detected — demonstrating excellent security controls that intercepted the threat during initial execution phases, severely limiting adversary capabilities.

Comparative Context

Industry studies report a median dwell time closer to 21–24 days. This case represents extremely rapid detection within minutes.

Timeline

Time (UTC) Event Elapsed
2025-12-05 04:57:22 UTC First VirusTotal submission
2026-01-09 14:19:20 UTC Latest analysis snapshot 35 days, 9 hours, 21 minutes
2026-01-09 15:10:54 UTC Report generation time 35 days, 10 hours, 13 minutes

Why It Matters

Every additional day of dwell time is not just an abstract number — it is attacker opportunity. Each day equates to more time for lateral movement, stealth persistence, and intelligence gathering.

Global Detection Posture — Who Caught It, Who Missed It

VirusTotal engines: 72. Detected as malicious: 54. Missed: 18. Coverage: 75.0%.

Detected Vendors

  • Xcitium
  • +53 additional vendors (names not provided)

List includes Xcitium plus an additional 53 vendors per the provided summary.

Missed Vendors

  • Acronis
  • Antiy-AVL
  • Baidu
  • CAT-QuickHeal
  • CMC
  • Cynet
  • Gridinsoft
  • Jiangmin
  • Panda
  • Sangfor
  • SUPERAntiSpyware
  • TACHYON
  • tehtris
  • VBA32
  • Webroot
  • Yandex
  • ZoneAlarm
  • Zoner

Why it matters: if any endpoint relies solely on a missed engine, this malware can operate with zero alerts. Prevention‑first controls close that gap regardless of signature lag.

Behavioral Storyline — How the Malware Operates

Heavy cryptographic operations (99.51% of behavior) indicate potential ransomware, data encryption for exfiltration, or secure C2 communications. The malware is actively encrypting or decrypting sensitive data.

Behavior Categories (weighted)

Weight values represent the frequency and intensity of malware interactions with specific system components. Higher weights indicate more aggressive targeting of that category. Each operation (registry access, file modification, network connection, etc.) contributes to the category’s total weight, providing a quantitative measure of the malware’s behavioral focus.

Category Weight Percentage
Crypto 602040 99.51%
System 1285 0.21%
Registry 673 0.11%
File System 504 0.08%
Process 276 0.05%
Misc 151 0.02%
Threading 31 0.01%
Synchronization 24 0.00%
Device 11 0.00%
Hooking 4 0.00%
Windows 3 0.00%

MITRE ATT&CK Mapping

  • T1027.002 – packed with Confuser
  • T1140 – decode data using Base64 in .NET
  • T1129 – link function at runtime on Windows
  • T1620 – load .NET assembly
  • T1547 – Installs itself for autorun at Windows startup
  • T1053 – Installs itself for autorun at Windows startup
  • T1547.001 – Installs itself for autorun at Windows startup
  • T1055 – Writes an executable to the memory of another process
  • T1055 – Writes to the memory another process
  • T1082 – Checks available memory
  • T1071 – Creates known Quasar mutexes
  • T1071 – Binary file triggered multiple YARA rules
  • T1071 – Yara detections observed in process dumps, payloads or dropped files
  • T1071 – Terminates another process
  • T1071 – Looks up the external IP address
  • T1106 – Guard pages use detected – possible anti-debugging.
  • T1202 – Uses Windows utilities for basic functionality
  • T1202 – Uses suspicious command line tools or Windows utilities
  • T1112 – Installs itself for autorun at Windows startup
  • T1112 – Installs itself for autorun at Windows startup
  • T1070 – Deletes executed files from disk
  • T1027 – The binary likely contains encrypted or compressed data
  • T1027.002 – The binary likely contains encrypted or compressed data

Following the Trail — Network & DNS Activity

Outbound activity leans on reputable infrastructure (e.g., CDNs, cloud endpoints) to blend in. TLS sessions and
HTTP calls show routine beaconing and IP‑lookup behavior that can masquerade as normal browsing.

Contacted Domains

Domain IP Country ASN/Org
www.msftncsi.com 23.44.129.37 United States Akamai Technologies, Inc.
www.aieov.com 76.223.54.146 United States Amazon.com, Inc.

Observed IPs

IP Country ASN/Org
224.0.0.252
239.255.255.250
8.8.4.4 United States Google LLC
8.8.8.8 United States Google LLC

DNS Queries

Request Type
5isohu.com A
www.msftncsi.com A
www.aieov.com A

Contacted IPs

IP Country ASN/Org
224.0.0.252
239.255.255.250
8.8.4.4 United States Google LLC
8.8.8.8 United States Google LLC

Port Distribution

Port Count Protocols
137 1 udp
5355 5 udp
53 8 udp
3702 1 udp

UDP Packets

Source IP Dest IP Sport Dport Time Proto
192.168.56.13 192.168.56.255 137 137 3.2420098781585693 udp
192.168.56.13 224.0.0.252 49311 5355 5.72658896446228 udp
192.168.56.13 224.0.0.252 55150 5355 3.1710097789764404 udp
192.168.56.13 224.0.0.252 60010 5355 5.352791786193848 udp
192.168.56.13 224.0.0.252 62406 5355 3.1760189533233643 udp
192.168.56.13 224.0.0.252 63527 5355 4.217087984085083 udp
192.168.56.13 239.255.255.250 52252 3702 3.1799778938293457 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.4.4 54879 53 8.22632884979248 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.4.4 54881 53 6.814547777175903 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.4.4 58697 53 22.226009845733643 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.4.4 62849 53 36.63242292404175 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.8.8 54879 53 9.226404905319214 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.8.8 54881 53 7.804740905761719 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.8.8 58697 53 21.229106903076172 udp
192.168.56.13 8.8.8.8 62849 53 35.632996797561646 udp

Hunting tip: alert on unknown binaries initiating TLS to IP‑lookup services or unusual CDN endpoints — especially early in execution.

Persistence & Policy — Registry and Services

Registry and service telemetry points to policy awareness and environment reconnaissance rather than noisy persistence. Below is a compact view of the most relevant keys and handles; expand to see the full lists where available.

Registry Opened

101

Registry Set

1

Services Started

1

Services Opened

1

Registry Opened (Top 25)

Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\Interface\{00000134-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\InstallRoot
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Cryptography\Defaults\Provider Types\Type 024\Name
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonFilesDir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers\65536\UrlZones
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\PassiveMode
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers\65536\Hashes
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Installer\Assemblies\Global
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramFilesDir (x86)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v4.0.30319\SKUs\default
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\DisableConfigCache
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Ole\DefaultAccessPermission
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\ProductAppDataPath
Policy\Standards
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\OLE\AppCompat
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\STE
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Installer\Managed\S-1-5-21-4005801669-2598574594-602355426-1001\Installer\Assemblies\Global
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\LevelObjects
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Diagnostics
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\DisableLocalAdminMerge
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full\Release
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\FeatureSIMD
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Microsoft Antimalware\MpEngine
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\ManagedDefenderProductType
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\ManagedDefenderProductType
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{00000134-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\BetaPlatform
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\safer\codeidentifiers\Levels
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\file.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Appx
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Policy Manager\EnableRemoteManagedDefaults
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\UseLegacyV2RuntimeActivationPolicyDefaultValue
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\AMSI\FeatureBits
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework\v4.0.30319\SKUs\
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Installer\Assemblies\C:|Users|<USER>|Desktop|file.exe
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Themes\Personalize\AppsUseLightTheme
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\DisableAntiVirus
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Installer\Managed\S-1-5-21-4005801669-2598574594-602355426-1001\Installer\Assemblies\C:|Users|<USER>|Desktop|file.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Ole\AppCompat\RaiseDefaultAuthnLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows Defender\MpEngine
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options
Show all (101 total)
Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\PassiveMode
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection\DisableRealtimeMonitoring
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\AMSI\Providers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonW6432Dir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\RemovalTools\MRT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\StrongName
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModelUnlock
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Policy Manager
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection\LocalSettingOverrideDisableRealtimeMonitoring
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\BetaPlatform
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\OLE
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\EnableRemoteManagedDefaults
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\DisableAntiVirus
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers\4096\Paths
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Appx\AllowDevelopmentWithoutDevLicense
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\Enabled
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework\NGen\Policy\v4.0
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\AMSI
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Real-Time Protection
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\DevOverrideEnable
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonFilesDir (x86)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework\AppContext
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\MDMEnabled
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\UserenvDebugLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\DisableAntiSpyware
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Setup\SystemSetupInProgress
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\NGen\Policy\v4.0\OptimizeUsedBinaries
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\RemovalTools\MRT\GUID
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\EnableRemoteManagedDefaults
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Features
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\OnlyUseLatestCLR
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Cryptography\Defaults\Provider Types\Type 024
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\Setup
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System\GpSvcDebugLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramW6432Dir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\InstallLocation
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\AppID\file.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Ole\AppCompat\RaiseActivationAuthenticationLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full\Release
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Themes\Personalize
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers\0\Paths
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModelUnlock\AllowDevelopmentWithoutDevLicense
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Policy Manager\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramFilesDir

Registry Set (Top 25)

Key Value
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\Roaming “C:\Users\Bruno\Desktop\file.exe”

Services Started (Top 15)

Service
WSearch

Services Opened (Top 15)

Service
SSTPSVC

What To Do Now — Practical Defense Playbook

  • Contain unknowns: block first‑run binaries by default — signatures catch up, containment works now.
  • EDR controls: alert on keyboard hooks, screen capture APIs, VM/sandbox checks, and command‑shell launches.
  • Registry watch: flag queries/sets under policy paths (e.g., …\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\*).
  • Network rules: inspect outbound TLS to IP‑lookup services and unexpected CDN endpoints.
  • Hunt broadly: sweep endpoints for the indicators above and quarantine positives immediately.

Dwell time equals attacker opportunity. Reducing execution privileges and egress shrinks that window even when vendors disagree.

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