Vault 8: WikiLeaks Releases Source Code For Hive - CIA's Malware Control System

Swati Khandelwalem 09/11/2017 no site The Hacker News

Almost two months after releasing details of 23 different secret CIA hacking tool projects under Vault 7 series, Wikileaks today announced a new Vault 8 series that will reveal source codes and information about the backend infrastructure developed by the CIA hackers.

Not just announcement, but the whistleblower organisation has also published its first batch of Vault 8 leak, releasing source code and development logs of Project Hive—a significant backend component the agency used to remotely control its malware covertly.

In April this year, WikiLeaks disclosed a brief information about Project Hive, revealing that the project is an advanced command-and-control server (malware control system) that communicates with malware to send commands to execute specific tasks on the targets and receive exfiltrated information from the target machines.

Hive is a multi-user all-in-one system that can be used by multiple CIA operators to remotely control multiple malware implants used in different operations.

Hive’s infrastructure has been specially designed to prevent attribution, which includes a public facing fake website following multi-stage communication over a Virtual Private Network (VPN).

"Using Hive even if an implant is discovered on a target computer, attributing it to the CIA is difficult by just looking at the communication of the malware with other servers on the internet," WikiLeaks says.

As shown in the diagram, the malware implants directly communicate with a fake website, running over commercial VPS (Virtual Private Server), which looks innocent when opened directly into the web browser.

However, in the background, after authentication, the malware implant can communicate with the web server (hosting fake website), which then forwards malware-related traffic to a "hidden" CIA server called 'Blot' over a secure VPN connection.

The Blot server then forwards the traffic to an implant operator management gateway called 'Honeycomb.'

In order to evade detection by the network administrators, the malware implants use fake digital certificates for Kaspersky Lab.

"Digital certificates for the authentication of implants are generated by the CIA impersonating existing entities," WikiLeaks says. 

"The three examples included in the source code build a fake certificate for the anti-virus company Kaspersky Laboratory, Moscow pretending to be signed by Thawte Premium Server CA, Cape Town."

The whistleblowing organisation has released the source code for Project Hive which is now available for anyone, including investigative journalists and forensic experts, to download and dig into its functionalities.

The source code published in the Vault 8 series only contains software designed to run on servers controlled by the CIA, while WikiLeaks assures that the organisation will not release any zero-day or similar security vulnerabilities which could be abused by others.

CouchPotato: CIA Hacking Tool to Remotely Spy On Video Streams in Real-Time

Swati Khandelwal
Em 10/08/2017 no site The Hacker News

After disclosing CIA's strategies to hijack and manipulate webcams and microphones to corrupt or delete recordings, WikiLeaks has now published another Vault 7 leak, revealing CIA's ability to spy on video streams remotely in real-time.

Dubbed 'CouchPotato,' document leaked from the CIA details how the CIA agents use a remote tool to stealthy collect RTSP/H.264 video streams.

Real Time Streaming Protocol, or RTSP, is a network control protocol designed for use in entertainment and communication systems for controlling streaming media servers.

CouchPotato gives CIA hackers ability to "collect either the stream as a video file (AVI) or capture still images (JPG) of frames from the stream that are of significant change from a previously captured frame," a leaked CIA manual reads.

The tool utilises FFmpeg for video and image encoding and decoding and Real Time Streaming Protocol connectivity.

The CouchPotato tool works stealthily without leaving any evidence on the targeted systems because it has been designed to support ICE v3 "Fire and Collect" loader, which is an in-memory code execution (ICE) technique that runs malicious code without the module code being written to the disk.

However, neither Wikileaks nor the leaked user guide details how the agency penetrates into the targeted systems at the first place, but since the publication has previously leaked many CIA malware, exploits and hacking tools to get into a network, the agency might have been using CouchPotato in combining with other tools.

Previous Vault 7 CIA Leaks

Since March, WikiLeaks has published 20 batches of "Vault 7" series, which includes the latest and last week leaks, along with the following batches:

• Imperial — Details of at least 3 CIA-developed hacking tools and implants designed to target PCs running Apple Mac OS X and different flavours of Linux operating systems.
• UCL/Raytheon — An alleged CIA contractor, which analysed in-the-wild malware and hacking tools and submitted at least five reports to the agency for help the CIA developed its own malware.
• Highrise — An alleged CIA project that let the spying agency stealthy collects and forwards stolen data from compromised smartphones to its server via SMSes.
• BothanSpy and Gyrfalcon — 2 alleged CIA implants that let the CIA intercept and exfiltrate SSH credentials from targeted Windows and Linux PCs using different attack vectors.
• OutlawCountry – An alleged CIA project that allowed the spying agency to hack and remotely spy on systems running Linux OS.
• ELSA – Alleged CIA malware that tracks geo-location of targeted computers and laptops running the Microsoft Windows OS.
• Brutal Kangaroo – A tool suite for Microsoft Windows OS used by the CIA agents to target closed networks or air-gap computers within an organisation or enterprise without requiring any direct access.
• Cherry Blossom – A framework employed by the agency to monitor the Internet activity of the targeted systems by exploiting flaws in Wi-Fi devices.
• Pandemic – A CIA's project that allowed the spying agency to turn Windows file servers into covert attack machines that can silently infect other PCs of interest inside the same network.
• Athena – A spyware framework that the agency designed to take full control over the infected Windows systems remotely and works against every version of Windows OS–from Windows XP to Windows 10.
• AfterMidnight and Assassin – 2 alleged CIA malware frameworks for the Microsoft Windows platform that's meant to monitor and report back actions on the infected remote host PC and execute malicious actions.
• Archimedes – Man-in-the-middle attack tool reportedly developed by the CIA to target computers and laptops inside a Local Area Network (LAN).
• Scribbles – Software supposedly designed to embed 'web beacons' into confidential files and documents, allowing the CIA to track insiders and whistleblowers.
• Grasshopper – A framework that allowed the spying agency to quickly create custom malware for breaking into Microsoft Windows OS and bypassing antivirus protection.
• Marble – Source code of a secret anti-forensic framework used by the CIA agents to hide the actual source of its malware.
• Dark Matter – Hacking tools the spying agency used to target iPhones and Macs.
• Weeping Angel – Spying tool used by the CIA to infiltrate smart TVs, and transforming them into covert microphones.
• Year Zero – CIA hacking tools and exploits for popular hardware and software.

This is How CIA Disables Security Cameras During Hollywood-Style Operations

Swati Khandelwal
Em 02/08/2017 no site The Hacker News

In last 20 years, we have seen hundreds of caper/heist movies where spies or bank robbers hijack surveillance cameras of secure premises to either stop recording or set up an endless loop for covert operations without leaving any evidence.

Whenever I see such scenes in a movie, I wonder and ask myself: Does this happen in real-life?

Yes, it does, trust me—at least CIA agents are doing this.

WikiLeaks has just unveiled another classified CIA project, dubbed 'Dumbo,' which details how CIA agents hijack and manipulate webcams and microphones in Hollywood style "to gain and exploit physical access to target computers in CIA field operations."

The Dumbo CIA project involves a USB thumb drive equipped with a Windows hacking tool that can identify installed webcams and microphones, either connected locally, wired or wirelessly via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi.

Once identified, the Dumbo program allows the CIA agents to:

• Mute all microphones
• Disables all network adapters
• Suspends any processes using a camera recording device
• Selectively corrupted or delete recordings

However, there are two dependencies for a successful operation:

• Dumbo program requires SYSTEM level privilege to run.
• The USB drive must remain plugged into the system throughout the operation to maintain control over connected surveillance devices.

This project is being used by the CIA's Physical Access Group (PAG)—a special branch within the Center for Cyber Intelligence (CCI) which is tasked to gain and exploit physical access to target computers in CIA field operations.

Previous Vault 7 CIA Leaks

Last week, WikiLeaks published another CIA project, dubbed 'Imperial,' which revealed details of at least 3 CIA-developed hacking tools and implants designed to target computers running Apple Mac OS X and different flavours of Linux operating systems.

Since March, WikiLeaks has published 19 batches of "Vault 7" series, which includes the latest and last week leaks, along with the following batches:

• UCL/Raytheon — An alleged CIA contractor, which analysed in-the-wild advanced malware and hacking tools and submitted at least 5 reports to the agency for help it develop its own malware.
• Highrise — An alleged CIA project that allowed the spying agency to stealthy collect and forward stolen data from compromised smartphones to its server via SMS messages.
• BothanSpy and Gyrfalcon — 2 alleged CIA implants that allowed the agency to intercept and exfiltrate SSH credentials from targeted Windows and Linux computers using different attack vectors.
• OutlawCountry – An alleged CIA project that allowed the agency to hack and remotely spy on computers running Linux operating systems.
• ELSA – Alleged CIA malware that tracks geo-location of targeted laptops and computers running the Microsoft Windows OS.
• Brutal Kangaroo – A tool suite for Microsoft Windows OS used by the CIA agents to target closed networks or air-gap computers within an organisation or enterprise without requiring any direct access.
• Cherry Blossom – A framework employed by the agency to monitor the Internet activity of the targeted systems by exploiting flaws in Wi-Fi devices.
• Pandemic – A CIA's project that allowed the spying agency to turn Windows file servers into covert attack machines that can silently infect other PCs of interest inside the same network.
• Athena – A spyware framework that the agency designed to take full control over the infected Windows systems remotely and works against every version of Windows OS–from Windows XP to Windows 10.
• AfterMidnight and Assassin – 2 alleged CIA malware frameworks for the Microsoft Windows platform that's meant to monitor and report back actions on the infected remote host PC and execute malicious actions.
• Archimedes – Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack tool allegedly developed by the agency to target computers inside a Local Area Network (LAN).
• Scribbles – Software allegedly designed to embed 'web beacons' into confidential documents, allowing the CIA agents to track insiders and whistleblowers.
• Grasshopper – A framework which allowed the spying agency to easily create custom malware for breaking into Microsoft's Windows OS and bypassing antivirus protection.
• Marble – Source code of a secret anti-forensic framework used by the agency to hide the actual source of its malware.
• Dark Matter – Hacking exploits the spying agency designed to target iPhones and Macs.
• Weeping Angel – Spying tool used by the CIA agents to infiltrate smart TV's, transforming them into covert microphones.
• Year Zero – CIA hacking exploits for popular hardware and software.

3 New CIA-developed Hacking Tools For MacOS & Linux Exposed

Swati Khandelwal
Em 27/07/2017 no site The Hacker News

WikiLeaks has just published a new set of classified documents linked to another CIA project, dubbed 'Imperial,' which reveals details of at least three CIA-developed hacking tools and implants designed to target computers running Apple Mac OS X and different flavours of Linux operating systems.

If you are a regular reader of THN, you must be aware that this latest revelation by the whistleblower organisation is the part of an ongoing CIA-Vault 7 leaks, marking it as the 18th batch in the series.

If you are unaware of the Vault 7 leaks, you can head on to the second of this article for having a brief look on all the leaks at once.

Achilles — Tool to Backdoor Mac OS X Disk Images

Dubbed Achilles, the hacking tool allows CIA operators to combine malicious Trojan applications with a legitimate Mac OS app into a disk image installer (.DMG) file.

The binding tool, the shell script is written in Bash, gives the CIA operators "one or more desired operator specified executables" for a one-time execution.

As soon as an unsuspecting user downloads an infected disk image on his/her Apple computer, opens and installs the software, the malicious executables would also run in the background.

Afterwards, all the traces of the Achilles tool would be "removed securely" from the downloaded application so that the file would "exactly resemble" the original legitimate app, un-trojaned application, making it hard for the investigators and antivirus software to detect the initial infection vector.

Achilles v1.0, developed in 2011, was only tested on Mac OS X 10.6, which is Apple's Snow Leopard operating system that the company launched in 2009.

SeaPea — Stealthy Rootkit For Mac OS X Systems

The second hacking tool, called SeaPea, is a Mac OS X Rootkit that gives CIA operators stealth and tool launching capabilities by hiding important files, processes and socket connections from the users, allowing them to access Macs without victims knowledge.

Developed in 2011, the Mac OS X Rootkit works on computers running then-latest Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) Operating System (32- or 64-bit Kernel Compatible) and Mac OS X 10.7 (Lion) Operating System.

The rootkit requires root access to be installed on a target Mac computer and cannot be removed unless the startup disk is reformatted or the infected Mac is upgraded to the next version of the operating system.

Aeris — An Automated Implant For Linux Systems

The third CIA hacking tool, dubbed Aeris, is an automated implant written in C programming language that is specifically designed to backdoor portable Linux-based Operating Systems, including Debian, CentOS, Red Hat — along with FreeBSD and Solaris.

Aeris is a builder that CIA operators can use to generate customised impacts, depending upon their covert operation.

"It supports automated file exfiltration, configurable beacon interval and jitter, stand-alone and Collide-based HTTPS LP support and SMTP protocol support — all with TLS encrypted communications with mutual authentication," 

"It's compatible with the NOD Cryptographic Specification and provides structured command and control that's similar to that used by several Windows implants."

Previous Vault 7 CIA Leaks

Last week, WikiLeaks revealed about CIA contractor Raytheon Blackbird Technologies, which analysed in-the-wild advanced malware and hacking techniques and submitted at least five reports to the agency for help develop their own malware.

Since March, the whistle-blowing group has published 18 batches of "Vault 7" series, which includes the latest and last week leaks, along with the following batches:

• Highrise Project — the alleged CIA project that allowed the spying agency to stealthy collect and forwarded stolen data from compromised smartphones to its server through SMS messages.
• BothanSpy and Gyrfalcon — two alleged CIA implants that allowed the spying agency to intercept and exfiltrate SSH credentials from targeted Windows and Linux operating systems using different attack vectors.
• OutlawCountry – An alleged CIA project that allowed it to hack and remotely spy on computers running the Linux operating systems.
• ELSA – the alleged CIA malware that tracks geo-location of targeted PCs and laptops running the Microsoft Windows operating system.
• Brutal Kangaroo – A tool suite for Microsoft Windows used by the agency to targets closed networks or air-gapped computers within an organization or enterprise without requiring any direct access.
• Cherry Blossom – An agency's framework, basically a remotely controllable firmware-based implant, used for monitoring the Internet activity of the targeted systems by exploiting vulnerabilities in Wi-Fi devices.
• Pandemic – A CIA's project that allowed the agency to turn Windows file servers into covert attack machines that can silently infect other computers of interest inside a targeted network.
• Athena – A CIA's spyware framework that has been designed to take full control over the infected Windows PCs remotely, and works against every version of Microsoft's Windows operating systems, from Windows XP to Windows 10.
• AfterMidnight and Assassin – Two alleged CIA malware frameworks for the Microsoft Windows platform that has been designed to monitor and report back actions on the infected remote host computer and execute malicious actions.
• Archimedes – Man-in-the-middle (MitM) attack tool allegedly created by the CIA to target computers inside a Local Area Network (LAN).
• Scribbles – A piece of software reportedly designed to embed 'web beacons' into confidential documents, allowing the agency to track insiders and whistleblowers.
• Grasshopper – Framework which allowed the spying agency to easily create custom malware for breaking into Microsoft's Windows and bypassing antivirus protection.
• Marble – Source code of a secret anti-forensic framework, basically an obfuscator or a packer used by the CIA to hide the actual source of its malware.
• Dark Matter – Hacking exploits the agency designed to target iPhones and Macs.
• Weeping Angel – Spying tool used by the agency to infiltrate smart TV's, transforming them into covert microphones.
• Year Zero – Alleged CIA hacking exploits for popular hardware and software.