{
  "family": "lineage",
  "sample_count": 2,
  "category": "advanced_threat",
  "description": "PWS:Win32/Lineage (Password Stealer) is a highly targeted classification for malware designed specifically to steal credentials, account information, and valuable in-game assets from players of the popular MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game), 'Lineage' and its sequels. This malware highlights the lucrative nature of virtual economies, where stolen high-level accounts and items can be sold for real-world currency on gray markets (`T1005`).<br><br><b>Understanding Lineage (Game Password Stealers)</b><br>To an end-user, the infection is usually discovered when they find their game account emptied of gold and items, or entirely locked out. For threat analysts, Lineage represents specialized cybercrime. These stealers are highly focused, ignoring typical corporate data (like banking info) in favor of specific game clients, demonstrating the maturity and specialization of malware developers targeting gaming demographics.<br><br><b>Execution and Theft Mechanics</b><br>Lineage stealers are almost exclusively distributed via gaming forums, disguised as game 'cheats', 'bots', 'gold generators', or unofficial patches (`T1566.002`). Upon execution, the malware establishes persistence (Registry Run keys) and actively monitors running processes. When it detects the `lineage.exe` client launching, it utilizes API hooking (e.g., hooking `send()` and `recv()` functions in `ws2_32.dll` or keyboard logging via `SetWindowsHookEx`) to capture the username, password, and session tokens before they are encrypted and sent to the game server (`T1056.001`). This stolen data is then exfiltrated via HTTP/SMTP to the attacker.<br><br><b>Indicators of Compromise & Impact</b><br>The impact is personal financial loss (via virtual assets) and account compromise. Host-based IoCs include unexpected executables running from the `%Temp%` or `%AppData%` directories, often with names mimicking game components or popular cheat tools. EDR may flag anomalous API hooking or keylogging behaviors targeting the game client process. Network IoCs include outbound connections (often SMTP or plain HTTP) transmitting the stolen credentials to unknown IP addresses.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk team.",
  "aliases": [],
  "enrichment_level": "expert-seo",
  "faq": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Lineage and what threat category does it belong to?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Lineage is classified as a Advanced Threat. 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 Lineage establish persistence and evade defensive controls?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Lineage 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 Lineage compromise?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Security teams responding to Lineage 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 lateral movement and credential access tactics does Lineage leverage in enterprise intrusions?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Lineage frequently utilizes privileged account harvesting techniques such as LSASS memory dumping, Kerberoasting, and token impersonation to escalate privileges. Once administrative credentials are acquired, it pivots across the victim network utilizing living-off-the-land binaries (LOLBins) such as WMI, PowerShell remoting, and PsExec, or abuses remote desktop protocols (RDP) to reach critical internal repositories and domain controllers."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How does Lineage maintain covert communications and evade perimeter network monitoring?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Lineage often relies on multi-stage command and control (C2) architectures utilizing encrypted protocols over standard web ports (HTTPS/443 or DNS tunneling) to blend in with legitimate enterprise network traffic. Many variants incorporate proxy networks, domain fronting, or cloud services (such as Microsoft Graph API, Google Drive, or Telegram) to masquerade C2 channels, bypassing traditional signature-based egress filtering."
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq_count": 5,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1056.001",
    "T1005",
    "T1566.002"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-06-09",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1056.001",
      "name": "Input Capture: Keylogging (Capturing keystrokes when the game client is active)",
      "tactic": "Credential Access"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1005",
      "name": "Data from Local System (Searching for and stealing local game configuration/session files)",
      "tactic": "Collection"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1566.002",
      "name": "Phishing: Spearphishing Link (Distributing via fake game cheats/mods)",
      "tactic": "Initial Access"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Immediately change the passwords for the Lineage account and the associated email address from a known clean device.",
    "Run a full system scan with updated antivirus/anti-malware software to locate and remove the persistent stealer executable.",
    "Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) or OTP (One-Time Password) systems provided by the game publisher to mitigate future credential theft.",
    "Contact game support immediately; many MMOs have processes for restoring items stolen via account compromise if reported quickly."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not attempt to log into any sensitive accounts (banking, email) on the infected machine until it has been completely sanitized, as the keylogger may capture those as well.",
    "Avoid downloading unofficial patches, 'bots', or 'trainers' from untrusted gaming forums, as these are the primary vector for game stealers."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Global / Opportunistic"
  ],
  "motivation": "Opportunistic",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ],
  "attack_stage": [
    "execution",
    "persistence"
  ],
  "ecosystem": [
    "windows_pe"
  ],
  "is_emerging": false,
  "target_platforms": [
    "Windows 11",
    "Windows 10",
    "Windows Server 2022",
    "Windows Server 2019"
  ]
}