Zero‑Dwell Threat Intelligence Report
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.
Extended Dwell Time Impact
For 21+ hours, this malware remained undetected — a half-day window that permitted the adversary to complete initial execution, establish basic persistence, and perform initial system enumeration.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-08 09:32:39 UTC | First VirusTotal submission | — |
| 2026-02-16 06:58:45 UTC | Latest analysis snapshot | 38 days, 21 hours, 26 minutes |
| 2026-02-19 10:34:53 UTC | Report generation time | 42 days, 1 hours, 2 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: 49. Missed: 23. Coverage: 68.1%.
Detected Vendors
- Xcitium
- +48 additional vendors (names not provided)
List includes Xcitium plus an additional 48 vendors per the provided summary.
Missed Vendors
- Acronis
- APEX
- Avira
- Baidu
- CMC
- F-Secure
- google_safebrowsing
- Gridinsoft
- Jiangmin
- NANO-Antivirus
- Sangfor
- SentinelOne
- Skyhigh
- SUPERAntiSpyware
- TACHYON
- tehtris
- Trapmine
- ViRobot
- Webroot
- Xcitium
- 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
- T1027 – encrypt data using AES via x86 extensions
- T1027 – reference Base64 string
- T1129 – get kernel32 base address
- T1140 – decrypt data using AES via x86 extensions
- T1027 – encode data using XOR
- T1027 – encrypt data using Salsa20 or ChaCha
- T1027 – encrypt data using RC4 PRGA
- T1027 – reference AES constants
- T1027 – encrypt data using AES
- T1129 – access PEB ldr_data
- T1027 – encode data using Base64
- T1027 – The binary contains an unknown PE section name indicative of packing
- T1027.002 – The binary contains an unknown PE section name indicative of packing
- T1045 – Manalize Local SandBox Packer Harvesting
- T1082 – Queries the volume information (name, serial number etc) of a device
- T1560 – Public key (encryption) found
- T1090 – Found Tor onion address
- T1486 – Writes a notice file (html or txt) to demand a ransom
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.
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.
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Registry Opened (Top 25)
| Key |
|---|
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\GRE_Initialize\DisableMetaFiles |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\GRE_Initialize |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\GRE_Initialize\DisableUmpdBufferSizeCheck |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\OSDATA\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AppModel\Lookaside\user |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\MUI\Settings |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Policies\Microsoft\Cryptography\Configuration |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\SdbUpdates\ManifestedMergeStubSdbs |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AppModel\Lookaside\machine |
| HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\SdbUpdates |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\LanguageOverlay\OverlayPackages\en-US |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Safer\CodeIdentifiers |
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Segment Heap |
Show all (16 total)
Registry Set (Top 25)
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\bam\State\UserSettings\S-1-5-21-4226853953-3309226944-3078887307-1000\C:\voqowxoi\rvqm.exe | \xdd\x47\x23\x0b\xcb\x82\xdc\x01\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x00\x02\x00\x00\x00 |
Services Started (Top 15)
Services Opened (Top 15)
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.