Kronos (malware)
Kronos was a type of banking malware first reported in 2014. It was sold for $7,000.[1]
It was developed as a followup to the UPAS Kit which has been released in 2012.[2]
Similar to Zeus[3], it was focused on stealing banking login credentials from browser sessions via a combination of keylogging and web injection.[4] In 2015, its attacks were focused on British banks.[1][2]
In August 2017, British security researcher Marcus Hutchins (aka 'MalwareTech'), previously notable for his involvement stopping the May 2017 WannaCry ransomware attack,[5] was arrested by the FBI whilst visiting the United States.[6] He was alleged to have created the software in 2014, and to have sold it in 2015 via the AlphaBay forums.[7][8] Hutchins later admitted to being paid to work on Kronos and its predecessor UPAS Kit (named after the toxic Upas tree) as the main developer between 2011 and spring 2015.[2]
References
- Kessem, Limor (October 2, 2015). "UK Banks Hit With New Zeus Sphinx Variant and Renewed Kronos Banking Trojan Attacks". Security Intelligence. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
- Greenberg, Andy (12 May 2020). "The Confessions of Marcus Hutchins, the Hacker Who Saved the Internet". Wired. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
- "Overview of the Kronos banking malware rootkit". Lexsi Security Hub. September 24, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
- Constantin, Lucian (14 July 2014). "New banking malware 'Kronos' advertised on underground forums". Retrieved 4 August 2017.
- Gibbs, Samuel (22 May 2017). "WannaCry hackers still trying to revive attack says accidental hero". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
- McGoogan, Cara (4 August 2017). "WannaCry hero Marcus Hutchins could face 40 years in US prison". Retrieved 4 August 2017.
- Cox, Joseph (August 3, 2017). "Kronos Indictment R". DocumentCloud. (independent journalist). Retrieved November 8, 2018.
- Kerr, Orin (3 August 2017). "The Kronos indictment: Is it a crime to create and sell malware?". Retrieved 4 August 2017.