Windows 10: Malicious Software Removal Tool 5.45 released

Brink · Feb 22, 2017

In September 2016, we started adding to Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) a malware suite of browser modifiers and other Trojans installed by software bundlers. We documented how the malware in this group install other malware or applications silently, without your consent. This behavior ticks boxes in the evaluation criteria that Microsoft Malware Protection Center (MMPC) uses for identifying unwanted software. Installing software without your permission, interaction, or consent is considered unwanted behavior because that can take away the choice you should have in determining what applications to install on your computer.

By October 2016, MSRT detected and removed most of the malware families in this suite:

Sasquor, which changes browser search and homepage settings to circumvent the browser’s supported methods and bypass your consent, and can install other malware like Xadupi and Suweezy

SupTab, which also changes browser search and homepage settings, and installs services and scheduled tasks that regularly install additional malware

Suweezy, which attempts to modify settings for various antivirus software, including Windows Defender, creating a significant danger to your computer’s overall security

Xadupi, which registers a service that regularly installs other apps, including Ghokswa and SupTab, and is ostensibly an update service for an app that has some user-facing functionality: CornerSunshine displays weather information on the taskbar, WinZipper can open and extract archive files, and QKSee can be used to view image files

Ghokswa, which installs a customized version of Chrome or Firefox browsers, modifying the home page and search engine front-end or stopping processes and replacing shortcuts and associations for the legitimate browser with ones pointing to its own version

This month, we’re adding Chuckenit, the last remaining malware in this group, to MSRT, helping make sure the whole suite is detected and removed from your computer and doesn’t interfere with your computing experience.

Chuckenit is an application called “Uncheckit”, whose main purpose is to uncheck checkboxes in installation dialogue boxes, effectively messing with choices without your knowledge during installation.

Chuckenit is installed together with Suptab and Ghokswa when Xadupi downloads and installs updates. Xadupi, meanwhile is installed by Sasquor, although it may also be installed directly by software bundlers.

Figure 1. Chuckenit is installed silently by Xadupi, which is installed by Sasquor.

Figure 2. Xadupi may also be installed directly by software bundlers, such as ICLoader.

Similar to the other malware in this suite, as part of its installation, Chuckenit adds several Scheduled Tasks and registers a couple of services to automatically download updates, which may come with other applications or malware.

Since May 2016, Windows Defender has encountered this threat in over 418,000 computers, of which 12% are in Brazil, 7% are in India, and 7% are in Russia.

Figure 3. Geographic distribution of Chuckenit encounters

Prevention, detection, and recovery

Chuckenit is part of an infection chain that involves malware and software bundlers silently installing other applications. You need security solutions that detect and remove all components of this type of infection.

Ensure you get the latest protection from Microsoft. Keep your Windows operating system and antivirus up-to-date and, if you haven’t already, upgrade to Windows 10.

Ensure your antimalware protection, such as Windows Defender and Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool, is up-to-date. In Windows Defender, you can check your exclusion settings to see whether the malware added some entries in an attempt to exclude folders from being scanned. To check and remove excluded items in Windows Defender: Navigate to Settings > Update & security > Windows Defender > Add an exclusion. Go through the lists under Files and File locations, select the excluded item that you want to remove, and click Remove. Click OK to confirm.

Use cloud protection to get protection against the latest malware threats. It’s turned on by default for Microsoft Security Essentials and Windows Defender for Windows 10. Go to Settings > Update & security > Windows Defender and make sure that your Cloud-based Protection settings is turned On.

Use the Settings app to reset to Microsoft recommended defaults that may have been changed by the malware in this suite. Launch the Settings app. Navigate to the Default apps page. From Home go to System > Default apps, then click Reset.

For enterprises, use Device Guard, which can lock down devices and provide kernel-level virtualization-based security, allowing only trusted applications to run.

Use Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection to get alerts about suspicious activities, including the download of malware, so you can detect, investigate, and respond to attacks in enterprise networks. Evaluate Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection for free.

James Patrick Dee

MMPC
Click to expand...

Source: https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/...malware-suite/

See also:

Download Malicious Software Removal Tool from Official Microsoft Download Center

Malicious Software Removal Tool - Use in Windows - Windows 10 Tutorials

:)

Swathi Ravichandran · Feb 22, 2017

MRT.exe

Hi,

Thank you for being part of Microsoft Community.

I would like to inform you that MRT.exe is the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool. MRT.exe is the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool. It scans for malicious files like viruses in the background and is updating itself every patch day.

The Malicious Software Removal Tool is released on the second Tuesday of every month. Each release of the tool helps detect and remove current, prevalent malicious software. This malicious software includes viruses, worms, and Trojan horses. Microsoft
uses several metrics to determine the prevalence of a malicious software family and the damage that can be associated with it.

Refer the link below and check if it helps:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/890830

Hope this helps. Get back to us for further assistance.

José Antonio Pontón Posada CEO · Feb 22, 2017

Is there a difference between Windows Defender full scan and MS Windows Malicious Software removal tool full scan in Win10?

Malicious Software Removal Tool

Once a month, a new version of the Malicious Software Removal tool appears in Windows Update.

This tool checks your computer for infection by specific, prevalent malicious software (including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom) and helps to remove the infection if it is found.
Microsoft will release an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month.

The Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool does not replace an antivirus product.

Quote

The Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool differs from an antivirus product in three key ways:

•The tool removes malicious software from an already-infected computer. Antivirus products block malicious software from running on a computer. It is significantly more desirable to block malicious software from running on a computer than to remove it after
infection.

•The tool removes only specific prevalent malicious software. Specific prevalent malicious software is a small subset of all the malicious software that exists today.

•The tool focuses on the detection and removal of active malicious software. Active malicious software is malicious software that is currently running on the computer. The tool cannot remove malicious software that is not running.
However, an antivirus product can perform this task.

Unquote Published by Brink

`~`

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/890830

`~`

MSRT is updated with Windows Update and thus if/when a computer is updated, the more significant malware at the time can be detected and removed.

Windows Defender needs to be deliberately installed.

Nothing other than good safety and security practices will replace MSRT:

Safety & Security

There is no one tool that will currently replace MSRT

`~`

Joanne · Feb 22, 2017

Hey Brink, thanks for the update *Smile

I don't know if I am off-topic but today I have received this:

If off-topic, please remove my post.

Thank you *Smile

Brink · Feb 22, 2017

Hello Joanne,

The KB890830 update would be the one for this. *Smile

hTconeM9user · Feb 22, 2017

Received flash yesterday and this one downloaded and just installing now so far so good

DooGie · Feb 22, 2017

Received flash yesterday and this one downloaded and just installing now so far so good
Click to expand...

Same here.

jtjt00 · Apr 4, 2018

Out of 3 machines, only one managed to install this (KB890830) through windows update.
Is there is a manual way to download and install it. I tried through MS catalog and what it did is to scan, but not install.

Windows 10: Malicious Software Removal Tool 5.45 released

Malicious Software Removal Tool 5.45 released

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