{
  "family": "hackav",
  "sample_count": 2,
  "category": "ransomware",
  "description": "Trojan:Win32/Hackav is a specific classification for utility malware designed with a singular, critical purpose: to impair, terminate, or completely uninstall legitimate endpoint security software (Antivirus, EDR, and Windows Defender). Hackav tools are almost never used in isolation; they are deployed by attackers as a precursor step immediately before executing a highly destructive payload, most commonly ransomware, to ensure the encryption process goes uninterrupted (`T1562.001`).<br><br><b>Understanding Hackav (AV Killers)</b><br>To an end-user, Hackav is invisible, though they might briefly notice a Windows notification stating that their antivirus has been turned off. For a security operations center, the execution of Hackav is a 'Code Red' alarm. It means an attacker has achieved high-level administrative privileges and is actively clearing the way for a catastrophic attack.<br><br><b>Execution and Impairment Mechanics</b><br>Hackav requires administrative or SYSTEM privileges to function. Once deployed by an affiliate or initial access broker, it employs extremely aggressive techniques. It may use legitimate, signed drivers (Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver - BYOVD) (`T1068`) to gain kernel-level access to forcefully terminate protected EDR processes. It modifies the Windows Registry (`HKLM\\SOFTWARE\\Policies\\Microsoft\\Windows Defender`) to permanently disable real-time protection. It may also attempt to uninstall security software using silent WMI commands or by stopping critical security services (`T1562.001`).<br><br><b>Indicators of Compromise & Impact</b><br>The primary impact is the complete loss of endpoint visibility and protection, invariably followed by a major secondary attack. Host-based IoCs include EDR alerts (often the final alert before the agent goes offline) indicating tampering, unexpected stopping of security services (e.g., `WinDefend`), and unauthorized registry modifications targeting AV policies. The presence of known vulnerable drivers (like `procexp.sys` or outdated hardware drivers) dropped in the `%Temp%` directory is a major warning sign.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk team.",
  "aliases": [],
  "enrichment_level": "expert-seo",
  "faq": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Hackav and what threat category does it belong to?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hackav is classified as a Ransomware. Documented across security telemetry, it is engineered to execute unauthorized operations, establish persistent footholds on target endpoints, and facilitate malicious campaigns targeting enterprise and individual environments."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How does Hackav establish persistence and evade defensive controls?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hackav typically establishes persistence through registry run keys, scheduled tasks, or service installations, while evading signature-based antivirus solutions through code obfuscation, memory injection, or anti-analysis sandbox checks."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What are the essential incident response steps for mitigating a Hackav compromise?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Security teams responding to Hackav should immediately isolate affected endpoints from the network, perform memory triage to capture volatile forensic artifacts, audit registry and startup persistence mechanisms, revoke exposed user credentials, and restore systems from verified, clean backups."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What cryptographic algorithms and file targeting techniques does Hackav employ during execution?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hackav typically leverages hybrid cryptographic architectures combining symmetric stream or block ciphers (such as AES-256 or ChaCha20) for rapid file encryption with asymmetric algorithms (such as RSA-2048 or Curve25519) to securely protect the session keys. It aggressively targets sensitive file extensions including corporate documents, databases, virtual disks, and backups while systematically executing commands to delete Volume Shadow Copies (vssadmin delete shadows /all /quiet) and disable system recovery options."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "Are decryptors available for Hackav, and what is the recommended recovery procedure?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Decryption availability for Hackav depends on whether security researchers or law enforcement (such as the No More Ransom initiative) have recovered the master private keys or discovered flaws in its key generation routines. Victims should never pay the extortion demand, as payment fuels criminal operations without guaranteeing file restoration. The recommended recovery procedure entails isolating infected hosts, conducting forensic disk imaging, identifying the root access vector, and restoring validated systems from immutable offline backups."
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq_count": 5,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1486",
    "T1068",
    "T1562.001"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-06-09",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1562.001",
      "name": "Impair Defenses: Disable or Modify Tools (The core function of Hackav tools)",
      "tactic": "Defense Evasion"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1068",
      "name": "Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (Abusing vulnerable drivers to terminate protected processes)",
      "tactic": "Privilege Escalation"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1486",
      "name": "Data Encrypted for Impact (The nearly guaranteed follow-on attack)",
      "tactic": "Impact"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Isolate the endpoint IMMEDIATELY at the network switch level. If Hackav has run successfully, ransomware execution is likely imminent.",
    "Investigate how the attacker gained the administrative privileges necessary to run the AV killer (e.g., compromised credentials, local privilege escalation).",
    "Hunt across the environment for the specific Hackav executable or the vulnerable drivers it dropped, as the attacker may be preparing multiple machines.",
    "Do not rely on the local AV for cleanup, as it has been compromised; use a standalone, bootable forensic tool or reinstall the OS."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not assume it's a false positive if an endpoint suddenly stops reporting to the EDR console; treat it as a critical incident.",
    "Avoid turning the machine off entirely if possible, as capturing a memory image is vital for analyzing the follow-on payload."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Healthcare",
    "Critical Infrastructure",
    "Enterprise"
  ],
  "motivation": "Financial Extortion",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ],
  "attack_stage": [
    "defense_evasion",
    "impact"
  ],
  "ecosystem": [
    "windows_pe"
  ],
  "is_emerging": false,
  "target_platforms": [
    "Windows 11",
    "Windows 10",
    "Windows Server 2022",
    "Windows Server 2019"
  ]
}