{
  "family": "autorunerent",
  "sample_count": 2,
  "category": "trojan",
  "description": "Autorunerent (classified in antivirus detection telemetry under designations including Trojan:Win32/Autorunerent, Trojan.Win32.Autorunerent, and Win32/Autorunerent) 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, Autorunerent 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/Autorunerent",
    "Trojan.Win32.Autorunerent",
    "Win32/Autorunerent"
  ],
  "enrichment_level": "curated_sourced",
  "faq": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Trojan:Win32/Autorunerent?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Autorunerent is a trojan threat designed to infiltrate Windows systems and execute unauthorized operations without user consent."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How does Autorunerent 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 Autorunerent 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 Autorunerent 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 Autorunerent?",
      "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": "2026-10-16",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1091",
      "name": "Replication Through Removable Media (The core propagation mechanism using autorun.inf)",
      "tactic": "Lateral Movement"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1547.001",
      "name": "Boot or Logon Autostart Execution: Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder (Host persistence)",
      "tactic": "Persistence"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1566.002",
      "name": "Phishing: Spearphishing Link (Using fake folder .lnk files to trick users)",
      "tactic": "Initial Access"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Ensure that the Windows 'Autorun' and 'Autoplay' features are strictly disabled via Group Policy across the entire enterprise.",
    "Use enterprise EDR to scan all connected removable drives and network shares for malicious `autorun.inf` and associated hidden executables.",
    "Implement Endpoint Device Control policies to restrict or completely block the use of unapproved USB mass storage devices.",
    "Format infected USB drives rather than attempting manual file deletion, to ensure all hidden components are removed."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not blindly click on 'folder' icons on a USB drive without ensuring Windows is set to display file extensions, as they may be malicious `.lnk` files.",
    "Avoid plugging a potentially infected USB drive into a clean, networked machine for analysis without using a dedicated, isolated sandbox."
  ],
  "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/Autorunerent",
      "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/wdsi/threats/malware-encyclopedia-description?Name=Trojan:Win32/Autorunerent"
    },
    {
      "name": "Kaspersky Threat Intelligence - Trojan.Win32.Autorunerent",
      "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"
  ]
}