W32.Sobig.F@mm

Due to the number of submissions received from customers, Symantec Security Response has upgraded this threat to a Category 4 from a Category 3 threat as of August 21, 2003.

W32.Sobig.F@mm is a mass-mailing, network-aware worm that sends itself to all the email addresses it finds in the files that have the following extensions:
 

• .dbx
• .eml
• .hlp
• .htm
• .html
• .mht
• .wab
• .txt

The worm uses its own SMTP engine to propagate. It also attempts to create a copy of itself on accessible network shares, but fails due to bugs in the code.


Email routine details
The email message has the following characteristics:

From: Spoofed address (which means that the sender in the "From" field is most likely not the real sender). The worm may also use the address, admin@internet.com, as the sender.
 

NOTES:

• The spoofed addresses and the Send To addresses are both taken from the files found on the computer. Also, the worm may use the settings of the infected computer's settings to check for an SMTP server to contact.
• The choice of the internet.com domain appears to be arbitrary and does not have any connection to the actual domain or its parent company.

Subject:

• Re: Details
• Re: Approved
• Re: Re: My details
• Re: Thank you!
• Re: That movie
• Re: Wicked screensaver
• Re: Your application
• Thank you!
• Your details

Body:

• See the attached file for details
• Please see the attached file for details.

Attachment:

• your_document.pif
• document_all.pif
• thank_you.pif
• your_details.pif
• details.pif
• document_9446.pif
• application.pif
• wicked_scr.scr
• movie0045.pif

NOTES:

• The worm de-activates on September 10, 2003. The last day on which the worm will spread is September 9, 2003.
• The aforementioned de-activation date applies only to the mass-mailing, network propagation, and email address collection routines. This means that a W32.Sobig.F@mm-infected computer will still attempt to download the updates from the respective list of master servers during the associated trigger period, even after the infection de-activation date. Previous variants of Sobig exhibited similar behavior.
• Outbound udp traffic was observed on August 22nd, coming from systems infected with both Sobig.E and Sobig.F. However, the target IP addresses were either not responding, taken offline, or contained non-executable content; that is, a link to an adult site.
• W32.Sobig.F@mm uses a technique known as "email spoofing," by which the worm randomly selects an address it finds on an infected computer. For more information on email spoofing, see the "Technical Details" section below.

Symantec Security Response has developed a removal tool to clean the infections of W32.Sobig.F@mm.
 

Virus Definitions (Intelligent Updater) * August 19, 2003 Virus Definitions (LiveUpdate™) ** August 19, 2003 * Intelligent Updater definitions are released daily, but require manual download and installation. Click here to download manually. ** LiveUpdate virus definitions are usually released every Wednesday. Click here for instructions on using LiveUpdate.

Wild: Number of infections: More than 1000 Number of sites: More than 10 Geographical distribution: High Threat containment: Easy Removal: Moderate

Threat Metrics Wild: High Damage: Medium Distribution: High

Damage

• Payload:
  • Large scale e-mailing: Sends email to addresses collected from files with the following extensions: .wab, .dbx, .htm, .html, .eml, .txt.
  • Releases confidential info: May steal system information, including passwords.

Distribution

• Subject of email: Varies
• Name of attachment: Varies with .pif or .scr file extension
• Size of attachment: About 72,000 bytes
• Ports: UDP 123, 8998

When W32.Sobig.F@mm is executed, it performs the following actions:
 

Email spoofing
W32.Sobig.F@mm uses a technique known as "spoofing," by which the worm randomly selects an address it finds on an infected computer. The worm uses this address as the "From" address when it performs its mass-mailing routine. Numerous cases have been reported in which users of uninfected computers received complaints that they sent an infected message to another individual.

For example, Linda Anderson is using a computer infected with W32.Sobig.F@mm. Linda is neither using an antivirus program nor has the current virus definitions. When W32.Sobig.F@mm performs its email routine, it finds the email address of Harold Logan. The worm inserts Harold's email address into the "From" portion of an infected message, which it then sends to Janet Bishop. Then, Janet contacts Harold and complains that he sent her an infected message; however, when Harold scans his computer, Norton AntiVirus does not find anything, because his computer is not infected.

Norton Internet Security/Norton Internet Security Professional
On August 23, 2003, Symantec released updated IDS signatures via LiveUpdate.

Symantec Host IDS
On August 21, 2003, Symantec released an update for Symantec Host IDS 4.1.

Intruder Alert
On August 21, 2003, Symantec released Intruder Alert 3.6 W32_SobigF_Worm Policy.

Symantec ManHunt
Security Update 8 has been released to provide signatures specific to W32.Sobig.F.Worm.

Symantec Client Security
On August 22, 2003, Symantec released IDS signatures via LiveUpdate to detect W32.Sobig.F@mm activity.

Symantec Gateway Security
On August 22, 2003, Symantec released an update for Symantec Gateway Security 1.0.

• Turn off and remove unneeded services. By default, many operating systems install auxiliary services that are not critical, such as an FTP server, telnet, and a Web server. These services are avenues of attack. If they are removed, blended threats have less avenues of attack and you have fewer services to maintain through patch updates.
• If a blended threat exploits one or more network services, disable, or block access to, those services until a patch is applied.
• Always keep your patch levels up-to-date, especially on computers that host public services and are accessible through the firewall, such as HTTP, FTP, mail, and DNS services.
• Enforce a password policy. Complex passwords make it difficult to crack password files on compromised computers. This helps to prevent or limit damage when a computer is compromised.
• Configure your email server to block or remove email that contains file attachments that are commonly used to spread viruses, such as .vbs, .bat, .exe, .pif and .scr files.
• Isolate infected computers quickly to prevent further compromising your organization. Perform a forensic analysis and restore the computers using trusted media.
• Train employees not to open attachments unless they are expecting them. Also, do not execute software that is downloaded from the Internet unless it has been scanned for viruses. Simply visiting a compromised Web site can cause infection if certain browser vulnerabilities are not patched.

Removal using the W32.Sobig.F@mm Removal Tool
Symantec Security Response has developed a removal tool to clean the infections of W32.Sobig.F@mm. This is the easiest way to remove this threat and should be tried first.

Manual Removal
As an alternative to using the removal tool, you can manually remove this threat.

The following instructions pertain to all current and recent Symantec antivirus products, including the Symantec AntiVirus and Norton AntiVirus product lines.

NOTE: If you are on a network or have a full-time connection to the Internet, disconnect the computer from the network and the Internet. Remove this threat from all the computers on the network before reconnecting to it. Disable or password-protect file sharing before reconnecting the computers to the network or to the Internet. For instructions, see your Windows documentation, or the document, "How to configure shared Windows folders for maximum network protection."

IMPORTANT: Do not skip this step. Disconnect the computer from the network before attempting to remove this worm.
 

1. Disable System Restore (Windows Me/XP).
2. Update the virus definitions.
3. Do one of the following:
   • Windows 95/98/Me: Restart the computer in Safe mode.
   • Windows NT/2000/XP: End the Trojan process.
4. Run a full system scan and delete all the files detected as W32.Sobig.F@mm.
5. Delete the value that was added to the registry.
    

For specific details on each of these steps, read the following instructions.

1. Disabling System Restore (Windows Me/XP)
If you are running Windows Me or Windows XP, we recommend that you temporarily turn off System Restore. Windows Me/XP uses this feature, which is enabled by default, to restore the files on your computer in case they become damaged. If a virus, worm, or Trojan infects a computer, System Restore may back up the virus, worm, or Trojan on the computer.

Windows prevents outside programs, including antivirus programs, from modifying System Restore. Therefore, antivirus programs or tools cannot remove threats in the System Restore folder. As a result, System Restore has the potential of restoring an infected file on your computer, even after you have cleaned the infected files from all the other locations.

Also, a virus scan may detect a threat in the System Restore folder even though you have removed the threat.

For instructions on how to turn off System Restore, read your Windows documentation, or one of the following articles:

• "How to disable or enable Windows Me System Restore"
• "How to turn off or turn on Windows XP System Restore"

2. Updating the virus definitions
Symantec Security Response fully tests all the virus definitions for quality assurance before they are posted to our servers. There are two ways to obtain the most recent virus definitions:

• Running LiveUpdate, which is the easiest way to obtain virus definitions: These virus definitions are posted to the LiveUpdate servers once each week (usually on Wednesdays), unless there is a major virus outbreak. To determine whether definitions for this threat are available by LiveUpdate, refer to the Virus Definitions (LiveUpdate).
• Downloading the definitions using the Intelligent Updater: The Intelligent Updater virus definitions are posted on U.S. business days (Monday through Friday). You should download the definitions from the Symantec Security Response Web site and manually install them. To determine whether definitions for this threat are available by the Intelligent Updater, refer to the Virus Definitions (Intelligent Updater).
  
  The Intelligent Updater virus definitions are available: Read "How to update virus definition files using the Intelligent Updater" for detailed instructions.

3. Restarting the computer in Safe mode or ending the Trojan process

Windows 95/98/Me
Restart the computer in Safe mode. All the Windows 32-bit operating systems, except for Windows NT, can be restarted in Safe mode. For instructions, read the document, "How to start the computer in Safe Mode."

Windows NT/2000/XP
To end the Trojan process:

1. Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete once.
2. Click Task Manager.
3. Click the Processes tab.
4. Double-click the Image Name column header to alphabetically sort the processes.
5. Scroll through the list and look for Winppr32.exe.
6. If you find the file, click it, and then click End Process.
7. Exit the Task Manager.

4. Scanning for and deleting the infected files

1. Start your Symantec antivirus program and make sure that it is configured to scan all the files.
   • For Norton AntiVirus consumer products: Read the document, "How to configure Norton AntiVirus to scan all files."
   • For Symantec AntiVirus Enterprise products: Read the document, "How to verify that a Symantec Corporate antivirus product is set to scan all files."
2. Run a full system scan.
3. If any files are detected as infected with W32.Sobig.F@mm, click Delete.

5. Deleting the value from the registry

CAUTION: Symantec strongly recommends that you back up the registry before making any changes to it. Incorrect changes to the registry can result in permanent data loss or corrupted files. Modify the specified keys only. Read the document, "How to make a backup of the Windows registry," for instructions.
 

1. Click Start, and then click Run. (The Run dialog box appears.)
2. Type regedit
   
   Then click OK. (The Registry Editor opens.)
   
    
3. Navigate to the key:
   
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
   
    
4. In the right pane, delete the value:
   
   "TrayX"="%Windir%\winppr32.exe /sinc"
   
    
5. Navigate to the key:
   
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
   
    
6. In the right pane, delete the value:
   
   "TrayX"="%Windir%\winppr32.exe /sinc"
   
    
7. Exit the Registry Editor.

Additional information:

Due to the nature of the email spoofing, a substantial amount of extraneous traffic is generated as a result of virus notifications being sent to invalid email addresses. One solution to alleviate this problem would be to disable the Virus Notification messages that gateway and server-based mail products send.

Revision History:

August 25, 2003:

• Corrected information regarding 99x ports.

August 22, 2003:

• Updated information regarding the worm functionality impacted by the de-activation date.
• Added reference to the SGS update.

August 21, 2003:

• Upgraded to Category 4 from Category 3, based on increased rate of submissions.
• Corrected trigger day of W32.Sobig.F@mm from Saturday to Sunday.
• Added additional information about email spoofing.

August 20, 2003: Updated alias information.

 

Write-up by: Benjamin Nahorney and Atli Gudmundsson