WikiLeaks has just revealed another secret CIA project used to tamper with Windows systems. This time the hacking tool allegedly targets the boot sector of the operating system and then allows for more malware to develop.
The project with code name Angelfire, targeted Windows XP and Windows 7, and consisted of 5 different hacking tools that worked together to compromise a system.
First of all, it had Solartime, a malware whose primary goal is to modify the Windows boot sector by loading a second module called Wolfcreek . Wolfcreek contained the set of drivers that would allow it to stop drivers and applications from running.
A third tool called Keystone was developed by the CIA specifically because it allowed its agents to implement additional malicious programs on infected systems. The fourth malicious software, according to WikiLeaks, was called BadMFS and could store data encrypted and confused.
And the last tool is the Windows Transitory File System, which WikiLeaks says was designed as an alternative to BadMFS and whose purpose was to use temporary (RAM) files instead of using a file system that stores information locally (on the hard drive).
WikiLeaks explains that, despite the complex ingredients contained in Angelfire, hacking tools could be discovered rather easily because of a number of issues that the CIA even recognized in the manuals explaining the use.
For example, Keystone was hijacked as a copy of svchost.exe and was always in C: \ Windows \ system32. So if the operating system was installed on a different disk, the process could cause malfunctions that would reveal malicious software.
In addition, the BadMFS file system creates a file called zf, which may have been encountered by some users when working on their systems.
The leaked documents are not dated, but since Angelfire was specifically about Windows 7 and Windows XP, the project was likely to have developed before 8 was released in Windows 2012.
Today's leak is part of a larger series called Vault 7.
Please be reminded that Wikileaks is releasing documents in the Vault 7 series from 7 2017 March, expounding more and more Coca-Cola tools.
Year Zero: CIA exploits popular hardware and software.
Weeping Angel: the spy tool that the service uses to penetrate smart TVs, turning them into disguised microphones.
Dark Matter: exploits targeting iPhones and Mac.
Marble: the source code of a secret anti-forensic framework. It is basically a obfuscator that CIA uses to hide the real source of malware.
Grasshopper: a framework that allows the information service to easily create custom malicious software to violate Microsoft Windows and bypass any virus protection.
Archimedes: a MitM attack tool allegedly created by the CIA for targeting computers within a local area network (LAN).
Scribbles: a software that is designed to add 'web beacons' to secret documents to allow for leakage control by secret services.
Athena:is designed to fully acquire full control over infected Windows computers, allowing the CIA to perform many functions on the target machine, such as deleting data or installing malicious software, data theft, and sending them to CIA servers.
CherryBlossom: a tool that tracks the online activity of a target, redirects the browser, crawls e-mail addresses and phone numbers, and more through the router.
Brutal Kangaroo:tool that can be used to infect air-gapped computers with malware.
ELSA: Windows malware used by the CIA to identify the location of a particular user using his computer's Wi-Fi.
OutlawCountry: Linux malware that the CIA uses to determine the location of a particular user using its computer's Wi-Fi.
BothanSpy - Gyrfalcon: for SSH authentication theft from Windows and Linux respectively
HighRise: the CIA tool for tracking and redirecting SMS messages to a remote server.
Achilles, Aeris and SeaPea: malicious spyware and data transfer software from MacOS and Linux
Dumbo: blocks cameras, microphones, and surveillance software.
CouchPotato: CIA tool for stealing streaming video from IP Webcams
ExpressLane: CIA tool to monitor colleagues at the FBI and the NSA
Angelfire: CIA tool to boot earlier Windows (7 and XP)
George is still wondering what he is doing here….
