CLR SqlShell Malware Targets MS SQL Servers for Crypto Mining and Ransomware

Improperly managed Microsoft SQL (MS SQL) servers are the focus on of a new campaign that’s made to propagate a group of malware termed CLR SqlShell that in the long run facilitates the deployment of cryptocurrency miners and ransomware.

“Identical to web shell, which can be put in on web servers, SqlShell is a malware strain that supports various options just after remaining installed on an MS SQL server, such as executing commands from threat actors and carrying out all kinds of destructive habits,” AhnLab Security Unexpected emergency reaction Center (ASEC) claimed in a report posted very last week.

A stored treatment is a subroutine that has a established of Structured Question Language (SQL) statements for use throughout a number of applications in a relational databases management system (RDBMS).

CLR (shorter for widespread language runtime) stored treatments – available in SQL Server 2005 and afterwards – refer to stored treatments that are published in a .NET language these kinds of as C# or Visual Standard.

The attack technique identified by the South Korean cybersecurity agency involves the use of CLR stored process to install the malware in MS SQL servers utilizing the xp_cmdshell command, which spawns a Windows command shell and passes an instruction as input for execution.

Some of the procedures used by threat actors, which include these connected with LemonDuck, MyKings (aka DarkCloud or Smominru), and Vollgar, worry the exploitation of internet-uncovered MS SQL servers through brute-force and dictionary attacks to run xp_cmdshell instructions and OLE stored methods and execute malware.

The use of CLR stored strategies is the hottest addition to this checklist, with attackers using gain of SqlShell routines to down load upcoming-phase payloads these as Metasploit and cryptocurrency miners like MrbMiner, MyKings, and LoveMiner.

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What’s far more, SqlShells named SqlHelper, CLRSQL, and CLR_module have been employed by distinct adversaries to escalate privileges on compromised servers and start ransomware, proxyware, and include abilities to carry out reconnaissance initiatives in focused networks.

“SqlShell can set up further malware these kinds of as backdoors, coin miners, and proxyware, or it can execute destructive instructions received from threat actors in a way related to WebShell,” ASEC mentioned.

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Some parts of this article are sourced from:
thehackernews.com