{
  "family": "adinstaller",
  "sample_count": 7,
  "category": "trojan",
  "description": "Adinstaller (classified in antivirus detection telemetry under designations including Trojan:Win32/Adinstaller, Trojan.Win32.Adinstaller, and Win32/Adinstaller) is a multi-stage trojan engineered to disguise itself as legitimate software, execute unauthorized commands, and coordinate with external command-and-control infrastructure. Disseminated across enterprise networks and consumer workstations via social engineering, phishing attachments, malicious drive-by downloads, or weaponized software cracks, Adinstaller executes an initial reconnaissance phase upon system ingress. The binary evaluates host privileges, detects active hypervisors and sandbox environments to evade behavioral analysis, and establishes resilient autostart persistence by configuring registry keys under HKCU\\Software\\Microsoft\\Windows\\CurrentVersion\\Run or registering background Windows services. Operational mechanics characteristic of this family include deceptive executable masquerading, registry run key autostart, system telemetry gathering, and remote C2 beaconing. Outbound communication is established with remote threat actor infrastructure to beacon operational status and receive tasking, posing significant security risks to data integrity and host availability.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk Threat Intelligence Team.",
  "aliases": [
    "Trojan:Win32/Adinstaller",
    "Trojan.Win32.Adinstaller",
    "Win32/Adinstaller"
  ],
  "enrichment_level": "curated_sourced",
  "faq": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Trojan:Win32/Adinstaller?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Adinstaller is a trojan threat designed to infiltrate Windows systems and execute unauthorized operations without user consent."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How does Adinstaller compromise target systems?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "It commonly infiltrates systems via phishing emails, trojanized software installers, exploit kits, or unpatched vulnerabilities."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What persistence mechanisms does Adinstaller utilize?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "It typically creates autostart entries in the Windows Registry (HKCU/HKLM Run keys), registers scheduled tasks, or installs hidden background services."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What risks does Adinstaller pose to an enterprise?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "It can lead to credential theft, system manipulation, unauthorized remote access, data loss, or secondary malware delivery."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How can administrators detect and eliminate Adinstaller?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Deploy modern EDR solutions with updated behavioral signatures, isolate infected endpoints, audit autostart persistence entries, and conduct full antimalware scans."
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq_count": 5,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1059.003",
    "T1027",
    "T1547.001",
    "T1071.001",
    "T1105"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-10-15",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1189",
      "name": "Drive-by Compromise (Bundled Installers via SEO poisoning)",
      "tactic": "Initial Access"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1105",
      "name": "Ingress Tool Transfer (Downloading secondary adware payloads)",
      "tactic": "Command and Control"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1176",
      "name": "Browser Extensions (Bundled adware extensions)",
      "tactic": "Persistence"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1547.001",
      "name": "Boot or Logon Autostart Execution: Registry Run Keys",
      "tactic": "Persistence"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Use the Windows Control Panel to uninstall all unexpected software that was installed on the exact date and time the Adinstaller was executed.",
    "Deploy an enterprise PUA/Adware removal tool to locate and strip the secondary payload registry hooks and rogue browser extensions.",
    "Force a complete reset of all installed web browsers to factory defaults to clear the altered JSON preference files.",
    "Remind users of the corporate Acceptable Use Policy regarding the installation of unapproved freeware from third-party sites."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not assume the endpoint is clean just because the main downloaded application was uninstalled; the bundled payloads persist independently.",
    "Avoid ignoring the alert; PPI networks frequently rotate their payloads and may eventually drop severe malware like infostealers."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Global / Opportunistic"
  ],
  "motivation": "Opportunistic",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ],
  "attack_stage": [
    "execution",
    "persistence"
  ],
  "ecosystem": [
    "windows_pe"
  ],
  "is_emerging": false,
  "sources": [
    {
      "name": "Microsoft Defender Threat Encyclopedia - Trojan:Win32/Adinstaller",
      "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/wdsi/threats/malware-encyclopedia-description?Name=Trojan:Win32/Adinstaller"
    },
    {
      "name": "Kaspersky Threat Intelligence - Trojan.Win32.Adinstaller",
      "url": "https://threats.kaspersky.com/en/threat/"
    },
    {
      "name": "MITRE ATT&CK - Enterprise Techniques",
      "url": "https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1059.003/"
    }
  ],
  "target_platforms": [
    "Windows 11",
    "Windows 10",
    "Windows 7"
  ]
}