From Execution to Encryption, Nova Ransomware Delivers a Fast and Aggressive Kill Chain


Zero‑Dwell Threat Intelligence Report

A narrative, executive‑ready view into the malware’s behavior, exposure, and reliable defenses.
Generated: 2026-01-13 11:03:29 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
ipjc48n.exe
Type
Win64 Executable (generic)
SHA‑1
a55e76c25974d28f6eefc69208dfb14ae3ee3df6
MD5
826cc4ca915f9a49ec28b119a6655a5b
First Seen
2026-01-12 12:37:50.970610
Last Analysis
2026-01-12 15:28:13.311180
Dwell Time
0 days, 7 hours, 33 minutes

Extended Dwell Time Impact

For 2+ hours, this malware remained undetected — a limited but sufficient window for the adversary to complete initial execution and establish basic system access.

Comparative Context

Industry studies report a median dwell time closer to 21–24 days. This case represents rapid detection and containment within hours rather than days.

Timeline

Time (UTC) Event Elapsed
2025-12-15 15:46:35 UTC First VirusTotal submission
2026-01-13 09:11:11 UTC Latest analysis snapshot 28 days, 17 hours, 24 minutes
2026-01-13 11:03:29 UTC Report generation time 28 days, 19 hours, 16 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: 65. Detected as malicious: 38. Missed: 27. Coverage: 58.5%.

Detected Vendors

  • Xcitium
  • +37 additional vendors (names not provided)

List includes Xcitium plus an additional 37 vendors per the provided summary.

Missed Vendors

  • Acronis
  • ALYac
  • Antiy-AVL
  • APEX
  • Avira
  • Baidu
  • ClamAV
  • CMC
  • Cynet
  • DrWeb
  • F-Secure
  • google_safebrowsing
  • Gridinsoft
  • huorong
  • Jiangmin
  • Sangfor
  • SentinelOne
  • SUPERAntiSpyware
  • TACHYON
  • tehtris
  • Trapmine
  • VBA32
  • VirIT
  • 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.

MITRE ATT&CK Mapping

  • T1129 – link function at runtime on Windows
  • T1129 – link many functions at runtime
  • T1027 – encrypt data using Salsa20 or ChaCha
  • T1562.001 – disable Windows Defender features via registry on Windows
  • T1027 – encode data using XOR
  • T1083 – check if file exists
  • T1059 – accept command line arguments
  • T1129 – parse PE header
  • T1027 – encrypt data using RC4 PRGA
  • T1083 – get common file path
  • T1027 – encode data using Base64
  • T1027 – reference Base64 string
  • T1027 – encrypt data using speck
  • T1082 – query environment variable
  • T1202 – Uses suspicious command line tools or Windows utilities
  • T1202 – Uses Windows utilities for basic functionality
  • T1082 – Checks available memory
  • T1057 – Uses Windows utilities to enumerate running processes
  • T1071 – Binary file triggered YARA rule
  • T1106 – Guard pages use detected – possible anti-debugging.
  • T1059 – Executed a command line with /C or /R argument to terminate command shell on completion which can be used to hide execution
  • T1562.001 – Creates guard pages, often used to prevent reverse engineering and debugging
  • T1070.004 – May delete shadow drive data (may be related to ransomware)
  • T1090 – Found Tor onion address

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.

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
www.msftncsi.com A
5isohu.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 4 udp
53 4 udp
3702 1 udp

UDP Packets

Source IP Dest IP Sport Dport Time Proto
192.168.56.11 192.168.56.255 137 137 7.223253011703491 udp
192.168.56.11 224.0.0.252 49563 5355 7.15402889251709 udp
192.168.56.11 224.0.0.252 54650 5355 7.159668922424316 udp
192.168.56.11 224.0.0.252 55601 5355 9.713418960571289 udp
192.168.56.11 224.0.0.252 60205 5355 7.166286945343018 udp
192.168.56.11 239.255.255.250 62184 3702 7.164268970489502 udp
192.168.56.11 8.8.4.4 51899 53 10.411187887191772 udp
192.168.56.11 8.8.4.4 62798 53 9.724679946899414 udp
192.168.56.11 8.8.8.8 51899 53 11.410861015319824 udp
192.168.56.11 8.8.8.8 62798 53 10.722856998443604 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

110

Registry Set

0

Services Started

2

Services Opened

2

Registry Opened (Top 25)

Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\COM_UnmarshalingPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\CompletionChar
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{1C1C45EE-4395-11D2-B60B-00104B703EFD}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\DefaultRpcStackSize
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\CryptSvc\Alias
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\LocalServer32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\Elevation
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityParam
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\CryptSvc
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\ExtensionPointsPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\COMAccessPermissionsSD
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9F6C78EF-FCE5-42FA-ABEA-3E7DF91921DC}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityAppID
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramFilesDir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9F6C78EF-FCE5-42FA-ABEA-3E7DF91921DC}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\PathCompletionChar
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\OLE\AppCompat
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\InprocHandler
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Ole\AppCompat\RaiseActivationAuthenticationLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Appx\AllowDevelopmentWithoutDevLicense
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonW6432Dir
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\AuthenticationLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\LocalServer32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\AppID
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9556DC99-828C-11CF-A37E-00AA003240C7}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\MDMEnabled
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Diagnostics\PerfTrack\TraceProfile
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\SystemCritical
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{423EC01E-2E35-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\DisableUNCCheck
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\TreatAs
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\SCMConfig\SvchostHeapReportingThresholdInKB
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\InprocHandler32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\AppID
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\Enabled
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonFilesDir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModelUnlock
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{D4781CD6-E5D3-44DF-AD94-930EFE48A887}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityAllowLowBox
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\EnableExtensions
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\NoGuiAccess
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{027947E1-D731-11CE-A357-000000000001}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{1C1C45EE-4395-11D2-B60B-00104B703EFD}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
Show all (110 total)
Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\AutoRun
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\DynamicCodePolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\InprocHandler
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\SCMConfig\EnableSvchostMitigationPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\AppID\svchost.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\ActivateOnHostFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AMSI\FeatureBits
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\DelayedExpansion
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Wbem\CIMOM\Logging
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{027947E1-D731-11CE-A357-000000000001}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\InprocHandler32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityAllowCrossContainer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\RpcExceptionFilterMode
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Appx
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\Elevation
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\AMSI\Providers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityAllowInteractiveUsers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\TreatAs
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\BinarySignaturePolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\AuthenticationCapabilities
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramFilesDir (x86)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\COM_RoSettings
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\CommonFilesDir (x86)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\ActivateOnHostFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{1C1C45EE-4395-11D2-B60B-00104B703EFD}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{423EC01E-2E35-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{027947E1-D731-11CE-A357-000000000001}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProgramW6432Dir
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\LanmanWorkstation\Parameters\RpcCacheTimeout
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\CoInitializeSecurityAllowComCapability
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9556DC99-828C-11CF-A37E-00AA003240C7}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{423EC01E-2E35-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost\NetworkService\ImpersonationLevel
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\Lsa\FipsAlgorithmPolicy\STE
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{1B1CAD8C-2DAB-11D2-B604-00104B703EFD}\LocalServer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{D4781CD6-E5D3-44DF-AD94-930EFE48A887}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\nlasvc
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Command Processor\DefaultColor
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WBEM\CIMOM
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\AppID\tasklist.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{D68AF00A-29CB-43FA-8504-CE99A996D9EA}\LocalServer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\AppModelUnlock\AllowDevelopmentWithoutDevLicense
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9556DC99-828C-11CF-A37E-00AA003240C7}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\AMSI
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{9F6C78EF-FCE5-42FA-ABEA-3E7DF91921DC}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{D4781CD6-E5D3-44DF-AD94-930EFE48A887}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\OSDATA\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Segment Heap
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\Cryptography\Configuration
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\SdbUpdates
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\SdbUpdates\ManifestedMergeStubSdbs
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager

Registry Set (Top 25)

Services Started (Top 15)

Service
BITS
WSearch

Services Opened (Top 15)

Service
VaultSvc
clipsvc

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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