Lynx Ransomware Loader Packed With Multiple .NET Obfuscators


Zero‑Dwell Threat Intelligence Report

A narrative, executive‑ready view into the malware’s behavior, exposure, and reliable defenses.
Generated: 2026-01-09 15:08:36 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
iwr82i.exe
Type
Generic CIL Executable (.NET, Mono, etc.)
SHA‑1
5c2ef241381c80474bb575ce7deb02429c5c8348
MD5
dda42846b7c7e4a74c62ac56c43fe13c
First Seen
2026-01-08 13:02:41.082932
Last Analysis
2026-01-08 13:06:37.457574
Dwell Time
0 days, 7 hours, 33 minutes

Extended Dwell Time Impact

For 3+ 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
2025-12-09 20:50:15 UTC First VirusTotal submission
2026-01-09 14:19:28 UTC Latest analysis snapshot 30 days, 17 hours, 29 minutes
2026-01-09 15:08:36 UTC Report generation time 30 days, 18 hours, 18 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: 52. Missed: 20. Coverage: 72.2%.

Detected Vendors

  • Xcitium
  • +51 additional vendors (names not provided)

List includes Xcitium plus an additional 51 vendors per the provided summary.

Missed Vendors

  • Acronis
  • Antiy-AVL
  • Baidu
  • CAT-QuickHeal
  • CMC
  • Cynet
  • DrWeb
  • google_safebrowsing
  • Gridinsoft
  • Jiangmin
  • Skyhigh
  • SUPERAntiSpyware
  • TACHYON
  • tehtris
  • TrendMicro
  • Varist
  • 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

  • T1083 – get common file path
  • T1057 – find process by name
  • T1620 – load .NET assembly
  • T1070.004 – self delete
  • T1083 – check if file exists
  • T1027 – obfuscated with Dotfuscator
  • T1027 – obfuscated with Yano
  • T1129 – link function at runtime on Windows
  • T1140 – decode data using Base64 in .NET
  • T1497.001 – reference anti-VM strings targeting Xen
  • T1027 – obfuscated with SmartAssembly
  • T1562 – Tries to unhook or modify Windows functions monitored by CAPE
  • T1562.001 – Tries to unhook or modify Windows functions monitored by CAPE
  • T1027 – The binary likely contains encrypted or compressed data
  • T1027.002 – The binary likely contains encrypted or compressed data
  • T1539 – Touches a file containing cookies, possibly for information gathering
  • T1082 – Checks available memory
  • T1071 – Terminates another process
  • T1071 – Binary file triggered multiple YARA rules

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.

Observed IPs

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

DNS Queries

Request Type
5isohu.com A

Contacted IPs

IP Country ASN/Org
224.0.0.252
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 2 udp

UDP Packets

Source IP Dest IP Sport Dport Time Proto
192.168.56.14 192.168.56.255 137 137 3.0840189456939697 udp
192.168.56.14 224.0.0.252 51209 5355 3.0318219661712646 udp
192.168.56.14 224.0.0.252 53401 5355 4.4876549243927 udp
192.168.56.14 224.0.0.252 55094 5355 5.594857931137085 udp
192.168.56.14 224.0.0.252 55848 5355 3.037815809249878 udp
192.168.56.14 8.8.4.4 52815 53 7.266480922698975 udp
192.168.56.14 8.8.8.8 52815 53 8.250113010406494 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

0

Services Started

3

Services Opened

2

Registry Opened (Top 25)

Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\ActivateOnHostFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\CallForAttributes
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoControlPanel
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\Attributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\InstallRoot
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders\StorageDelegate
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\Attributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\Fod
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\ErrorDialog
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\ValidateRegItems
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\InprocHandler32
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\CreateUriCacheSize
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\NonEnum
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoInternetIcon
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoPropertiesMyComputer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\InprocHandler
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services\LanmanWorkstation\Parameters\RpcCacheTimeout
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\SessionInfo\1\Desktop\NameSpace
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\TreatAs
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\Security_HKLM_only
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\EnablePunycode
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\LocalServer32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\OnlyUseLatestCLR
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoInternetIcon
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\EnablePunycode
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\LocalServer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\DelegateFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\Attributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\RestrictedAttributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders\
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\CallForAttributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoPropertiesRecycleBin
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoSetFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoPropertiesMyComputer
Show all (101 total)
Key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoControlPanel
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\NonEnum\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\NonEnum\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\SessionInfo\1\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\FolderValueFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\EnablePunycode
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\DelegateFolders\StorageDelegateSuppressionPolicy
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsSystemLauncherTestHooks
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Interface\{4278CCC0-8710-543A-9036-F37DA6245536}
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoPropertiesRecycleBin
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\CallForAttributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework\Advertised
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\CreateUriCacheSize
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\AppID
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\(Default)
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\EnablePunycode
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\MonitorRegistry
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\FolderValueFlags
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\Attributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\CreateUriCacheSize
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\RestrictedAttributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\RestrictedAttributes
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ShellCompatibility\Applications\executable.exe
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoCommonGroups
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\CreateUriCacheSize
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\NonEnum
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoCommonGroups
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder\FolderValueFlags
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}\ShellFolder
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\SessionInfo\1
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\NoSetFolders
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\NonEnum\{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\Interface\{4278CCC0-8710-543A-9036-F37DA6245536}\ProxyStubClsid32
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\CLSID\{95E15D0A-66E6-93D9-C53C-76E6219D3341}\Elevation
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\.NETFramework\UseLegacyV2RuntimeActivationPolicyDefaultValue
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\WOW6432Node\Interface\{4278CCC0-8710-543A-9036-F37DA6245536}\ProxyStubClsid32\(Default)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\.NETFramework

Registry Set (Top 25)

Services Started (Top 15)

Service
lfsvc
WSearch
BITS

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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