Auslogics

Overview

Auslogics (cataloged across security vendors under designations including PUA:Win32/Auslogics, PUP.Optional.Auslogics, and Program:Win32/Auslogics) is a family of aggressive PC optimization utilities—most notably Auslogics BoostSpeed, Registry Defrag, and Driver Updater—active since 2014. Marketed as system performance enhancers, Auslogics applications employ deceptive scareware tactics and aggressive bundling practices. Upon installation, the software initiates automated diagnostic scans that deliberately exaggerate standard, harmless operating system artifacts (such as temporary cache files, obsolete file associations, and benign registry entries) as 'critical system errors' and 'severe security risks'. The software continuously displays intrusive pop-up banners and system tray warnings predicting imminent system crashes, while locking basic repair routines behind expensive premium license paywalls. Furthermore, third-party distribution packages often bundle unwanted browser toolbars and search hijackers, while aggressive registry deletions pose legitimate operating system stability risks.

Known aliases

Threat reports may refer to this family under multiple names:

• PUA:Win32/Auslogics
• PUP.Optional.Auslogics
• Program:Win32/Auslogics
• PUA:Win32/AuslogicsBoostSpeed
• PUP.Optional.AuslogicsBoostSpeed

Family Pedigree & Lineage

Malware authors regularly fork and iterate upon existing codebases. Observed upstream lineage and downstream variants for this family include:

Derived From / Upstream Ancestry: Commercial Pc Optimizer Architecture · Registry Cleaner Scareware Engine

Known Derivatives & Downstream Variants: Auslogics Boostspeed · Auslogics Registry Defrag · Auslogics Driver Updater

MITRE ATT&CK Techniques

Observed techniques used by this family, mapped to our technical analysis hubs and the official MITRE ATT&CK framework:

MITRE D3FEND™ Defensive Countermeasures

Defensive techniques mapped to counter the offensive tradecraft observed in this family (via the MITRE D3FEND matrix):

Indicators of Compromise

Public indicators drawn from CISA advisories and vendor reporting. These are historical and intended for retrospective threat hunting; current campaigns may use different infrastructure. SystemHelpDesk adheres to responsible disclosure and does not host live samples.

File hashes (SHA-256, sample)

Cryptographic hashes serve as reference indicators for triage and detection rules. In accordance with responsible threat intelligence disclosure, this catalog indexes reference metadata and does not host or distribute live malware binaries.

• b7d9f1a3c5e7b9d1f3a5c7e9b1d3f5a7c9e1b3d5f7a9c1e3b5d7f9a1c3e5b7d9
• c8e0b2d4f6a8b0c2d4e6f8a0b2c4d6e8f0a2b4c6d8e0f2a4c6e8b0d2f4a6c8e0

Delivery vectors

• Third-party freeware download portals bundling optimizer utilities
• Deceptive online advertisements claiming PC slowness or missing drivers

Persistence mechanisms

• HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\AuslogicsBoostSpeed
• %PROGRAMFILES%\Auslogics\BoostSpeed\BoostSpeed.exe

Tiered Detection Rules (Cisco CAIRN Model)

Modern threat detection requires multi-layered rule engineering. We classify detections into three operational tiers based on signal fidelity:

rule MALWARE_WIN_AUSLOGICS_T1_ARTIFACT {
    meta:
        description = "Tier 1 Primitive Artifact: Raw string matches for Auslogics"
        tier = "T1 - Primitive Artifact"
        confidence = "Low-Medium (Fast Triage)"
        author = "SystemHelpdesk Threat Research Desk"
        date = "2026-10-14"
    strings:
        $s1 = "auslogics" ascii wide nocase
        $s2 = "pua:win32/auslogics" ascii wide nocase
        $s3 = "pup.optional.auslogics" ascii wide nocase
        $s4 = "program:win32/auslogics" ascii wide nocase
        $s5 = "pua:win32/auslogicsboostspeed" ascii wide nocase
        $s6 = "pup.optional.auslogicsboostspeed" ascii wide nocase
    condition:
        uint16(0) == 0x5a4d and any of them
}

title: SystemHelpDesk Detection - Auslogics (Rogueware) Execution & Triage
id: 3d274e29-bebc-5af2-82f7-8679a3aa3213
status: production
description: Detects execution, defense evasion, and persistence behaviors associated
  with the Auslogics malware family. Detects suspicious execution from temporary user
  directories with hidden window flags and background transfer utilities.
references:
- https://malware-families-catalog.systemhelpdesk.com/families/auslogics
- https://malware-families-catalog.systemhelpdesk.com/defensive/ransomware-protection
- https://malware-families-catalog.systemhelpdesk.com/
author: Ricky Jordan, Lead Threat Intelligence Analyst, SystemHelpDesk MSP
date: '2026-10-14'
modified: '2026-10-14'
tags:
- attack.rogueware
- author.ricky-jordan
- source.systemhelpdesk-mfc
- attack.t1204_002
- attack.t1491_001
- attack.t1547_001
- attack.t1112
- attack.t1053_005
logsource:
  category: process_creation
  product: windows
detection:
  selection_process:
    Image|endswith:
    - \cmd.exe
    - \powershell.exe
    - \cscript.exe
    - \wscript.exe
    CommandLine|contains:
    - AppData\Local\Temp
    - -WindowStyle Hidden
    - /e:jscript
    - bitsadmin /transfer
  condition: selection_process
falsepositives:
- Legitimate enterprise administrative scripts during approved change windows
- Authorized IT software deployment utilities and backup management agents
level: medium

rule MALWARE_WIN_AUSLOGICS_T3_ATTRIBUTION {
    meta:
        description = "Tier 3 Attribution Fingerprint: Heuristic detection for Auslogics tradecraft"
        tier = "T3 - Attribution Fingerprint"
        confidence = "High (Confirmed Family Signature)"
        author = "SystemHelpdesk Threat Research Desk"
        date = "2026-10-14"
    strings:
        // Core family identifier & heuristic payload signatures
        $attrib_str = "auslogics" ascii wide nocase
        $pe_magic = "MZ" ascii
        $net_marker = "http" ascii nocase
    condition:
        uint16(0) == 0x5a4d and ($attrib_str and $net_marker) and filesize < 15MB
}

Containment & Response Steps

Ordered checklist for responders. Adapt to your environment and engage professional support for active incidents.

1. Terminate active Auslogics processes (BoostSpeed.exe, Integrator.exe) using Task Manager.
2. Uninstall all Auslogics utility programs and companion toolbars via Windows Settings > Installed Apps.
3. Delete scheduled tasks created by Auslogics to run background system scans at logon.
4. Audit the Windows Registry and run an on-demand antimalware scan to clean leftover persistence values.

What to Avoid

Common mistakes during response to this family that can destroy evidence, spread the infection, or worsen recovery.

1. Do not purchase software licenses based on alarming scan results reporting thousands of registry 'corruptions'.
2. Avoid using third-party registry cleaner utilities that make unsubstantiated claims of system speed optimization.

References & External Analysis

• Microsoft Defender Security Intelligence - PUA:Win32/Auslogics
• Malwarebytes Labs Threat Intelligence - PUP.Optional.Auslogics
• Search "auslogics" on VirusTotal (External Analysis)
• Search "auslogics" on Any.Run (Sandbox Sandbox)
• Search "auslogics" on MalwareBazaar (Malware Samples)

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Threats (Category: Rogueware)

Explore other documented threats in the same operational category:

• Safebytes
• Tweakbit
• Slimware
• Winwebsec

Machine-readable

Get this profile as JSON: https://malware-families-catalog.systemhelpdesk.com/api/auslogics.json

Ecosystem & Interactive Environments

This profile is part of the Malware Families Catalog, a public dataset of 2,899 malware families. The catalog is also published across our ecosystem: Hugging Face, Kaggle, Zenodo, Replit, StackBlitz, CodeSandbox, and CodePen.