Analysis

  • max time kernel
    149s
  • max time network
    139s
  • platform
    windows10-2004_x64
  • resource
    win10v2004-20260513-en
  • resource tags

    arch:x64arch:x86image:win10v2004-20260513-enlocale:en-usos:windows10-2004-x64systemwindows
  • submitted
    13/08/2026, 15:39

General

  • Target
    2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe
  • Size 1.9MB
  • Sample260813-s3zprabr21
  • SHA256 ac2c51a7ae108e0c24c9387345a41327dec358d77b0a7b89630efe2cdb498d08
  • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

Malware Config

Signatures

  • Checks computer location settings 2 TTPs 1 IoCs

    Looks up country code configured in the registry, likely geofence.

  • Executes dropped EXE 1 IoCs
  • Reads user/profile data of web browsers 3 TTPs

    Infostealers often target stored browser data, which can include saved credentials etc.

  • Checks whether UAC is enabled 1 TTPs 1 IoCs
  • Drops file in Program Files directory 64 IoCs
  • Enumerates physical storage devices 1 TTPs

    Attempts to interact with connected storage/optical drive(s).

  • System Location Discovery: System Language Discovery 1 TTPs 2 IoCs

    Attempt gather information about the system language of a victim in order to infer the geographical location of that host.

  • Modifies system certificate store 2 TTPs 3 IoCs
  • Suspicious use of SetWindowsHookEx 3 IoCs
  • Suspicious use of WriteProcessMemory 2 IoCs

Processes

  • C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe
    "C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe"
    1⤵
    • Drops file in Program Files directory
    • System Location Discovery: System Language Discovery
    • Suspicious use of SetWindowsHookEx
    • Suspicious use of WriteProcessMemory
    PID:4592
    • C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe.exe
      C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp/2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe.exe
      2⤵
      • Checks computer location settings
      • Executes dropped EXE
      • Checks whether UAC is enabled
      • System Location Discovery: System Language Discovery
      • Modifies system certificate store
      • Suspicious use of SetWindowsHookEx
      • Suspicious use of WriteProcessMemory
      PID:4024
      • C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat Reader DC\Reader\Reader_sl.exe
        "C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat Reader DC\Reader\Reader_sl.exe"
        3⤵
          PID:3012

    Network

          MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise v16

          Replay Monitor

          Loading Replay Monitor...

          Downloads

          arh.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat Reader DC\Reader\arh.exe
          • Size 840KB
          • SHA256 701e4d4b9fcae32cf5763bc8e4772d3c6bb0405e17c30275b94b6e6f8a411aae
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          DisabledGoogleUpdate.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Update\DisabledGoogleUpdate.exe
          • Size 6.4MB
          • SHA256 4600f08f9c8b2e1a0017960faee51e6981b1c75da9e7aba7dc6417e78773d760
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          ieinstal.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Internet Explorer\ieinstal.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 dd8074940b2a1e8d0ad513e7c6e2a0d0b11a857893f11dc77387800ca272e970
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          msedge.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\132.0.2957.140\msedge.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 4785d266a2c476e0948100ea80f927d16389f7718b540daf0488457ba01958b0
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          msedge_pwa_launcher.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\132.0.2957.140\msedge_pwa_launcher.exe
          • Size 2.2MB
          • SHA256 2366bd8601e61598f86c36c3b9d0496be02e1ca0b4fd3604e9e31df1ed84e844
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          notification_helper.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\132.0.2957.140\notification_helper.exe
          • Size 2.0MB
          • SHA256 d305c005b07ba64b09efe5f7c062acd847ff341605757c36c1701b1e2effdf27
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          ie_to_edge_stub.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\139.0.3405.125\BHO\ie_to_edge_stub.exe
          • Size 1.2MB
          • SHA256 a0ac3149e169314fa9635750f1359cf31552325b6139617dbb9d5a93ba7a20db
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          msedge_proxy.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\139.0.3405.125\msedge_proxy.exe
          • Size 2.2MB
          • SHA256 7bc7f89b39407bafb2f90d1380600bf328d9a45f857854c9aa64a66a0e979452
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          msedge_pwa_launcher.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\139.0.3405.125\msedge_pwa_launcher.exe
          • Size 2.5MB
          • SHA256 535edf3479c8321fcdb4027f6d3002982f43592691030c812bb9a61ac1cb6526
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          pwahelper.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore\139.0.3405.125\pwahelper.exe
          • Size 2.1MB
          • SHA256 5366e78d3f7868d95dfea62531189c269817415e200b79163c560ee8dfd5e660
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          MicrosoftEdgeUpdate.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate_bk\MicrosoftEdgeUpdate.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 2e039a7ce5af3783a3d522d27112bfe7a1dac319ed5061de3bef89790d5ad63e
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          MicrosoftEdgeUpdateOnDemand.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate_disable\1.3.195.65\MicrosoftEdgeUpdateOnDemand.exe
          • Size 854KB
          • SHA256 4f1ecd3e31d92494f846984080a72212c1a0ab52b06e643b88dae47622a444a9
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          identity_helper.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeWebView\Application\132.0.2957.140\identity_helper.exe
          • Size 1.8MB
          • SHA256 f780d0981537b166dfdd3d2f296e7fb7606839c00019de619483107aa2f3f325
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          setup.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\139.0.3405.125\Installer\setup.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 3d275500cf3ebda5e878d81dcbbaa53528397ccbe631aae8fae60de1ffefccf7
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          identity_helper.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\139.0.3405.125\identity_helper.exe
          • Size 2.1MB
          • SHA256 35f8e7a5ccdee98fc6cb42104e53d0268bead486ee035c970d20139f8835e079
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          msedgewebview2.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\139.0.3405.125\msedgewebview2.exe
          • Size 4.1MB
          • SHA256 f1fd1b74ca9e5aa0c57f97e65615063521e349f709dca8e18f4626e370476a87
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          pwahelper.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\pwahelper.exe
          • Size 2.1MB
          • SHA256 34be2a6b4747f45a0cc5756e21be202b10bb4dca64118882ea6d0915877066bc
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          Uninstall.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Maintenance Service\Uninstall.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 44ae793c391e8578709e181e83cb820caaa10c08844440885d969a6c839b8a2b
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          RCX1057.tmp

          • Path C:\Program Files\7-Zip\RCX1057.tmp
          • Size 752KB
          • SHA256 680f10662d812899e3b9a3437dff393931a60f7ab238622fc2b0c7a26fe2158f
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          AppVShNotify.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Common Files\microsoft shared\ClickToRun\AppVShNotify.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 2a5c5c2bc95c18eded222f0a38752717c1a6ad20e31bcda6472bbba77ed22fe4
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          OfficeClickToRun.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Common Files\microsoft shared\ClickToRun\OfficeClickToRun.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 19306f3f899e8bae15a744924f1ebf2ce88624f5dd297e3993645fe8453adaa9
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          javaws.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Java\jdk-1.8\bin\javaws.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 6c3d33a5119708abbf19b802f0908183037cd57a6394e45b7b234a76ef4b46c5
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          XLICONS.EXE.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\Office16\XLICONS.EXE.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 6454633b8c6a69aad48c3fc556c5e81cb5362db0c449b3f543bddfa41eba8d6b
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          dbcicons.exe

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\dbcicons.exe
          • Size 835KB
          • SHA256 5a856e3295d3da36d43bd8b8f96a0e78e226e3cb8116f81c8b4df206da04cd70
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          misc.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\misc.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 df2cca9b322f9432b3f3aa7b91a12dd5f22fd50e589e3107e066d99bdb071176
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          ohub32.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\ohub32.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 063c8f44d23e1ebbe390ea320eee672c449f47333120b7abbd4a78094c613113
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          pptico.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\pptico.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 3b07d1aaa1c9c27082d7811d694aae3d422d5d965a91b2d4b8ecda3a79f760a2
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          sscicons.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\sscicons.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 b2a350ffac5074add67fe974467351777915de5a319be7879ba15d1f6915a092
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          wordicon.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\Windows\Installer\{90160000-000F-0000-1000-0000000FF1CE}\wordicon.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 5bd706a18e0cf54197df7f1d5239f3e058652bfde372afcab230ee9b95ba14a5
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          vlc.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 3b17b29b6c4e39fc36571f8e0795eae6559637529602ae7a37d5f8f6254d0500
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          wmplayer.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Program Files\Windows Media Player\wmplayer.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 a32208cf5c16d7223999e6ecf1c185bc88d519483ff56ad5ca5f2cc00e677307
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          ArmReport.ini

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Adobe\ARM\ArmReport.ini
          • Size 782B
          • SHA256 8395f93b0e0240f5c79ce70bc2257f9cb0d92227b15f7724ba65b1c5c0b19625
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          ArmReport.ini

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Adobe\ARM\ArmReport.ini
          • Size 634B
          • SHA256 4f9b2f699943dc7a42321fde879d884202e9b3bd8391519cc69bd83d8d485aae
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          AdobeARMHelper.exe

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Adobe\ARM\S\24998\AdobeARMHelper.exe
          • Size 413KB
          • SHA256 fd115ae8ebd2f37cf1ef72f75242206cf1331c7cb258305011302e981137ee5e
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          AdobeARMHelper.exe.ico

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Adobe\ARM\S\24998\AdobeARMHelper.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 2f33dacaebb8bdf6d2d88550cce349c09b51dfeb4f499796f32bd30e14aab86c
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          RdrManifest2.msi

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Adobe\ARM\{291AA914-A987-4CE9-BD63-AC0A92D435E5}\RdrManifest2.msi
          • Size 18KB
          • SHA256 0abcb8b7c0bda3128316b3e4f4a5857e9c8194105043a0c0e9801a1a96105d01
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          VC_redist.x86.exe

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Package Cache\{4d8dcf8c-a72a-43e1-9833-c12724db736e}\VC_redist.x86.exe
          • Size 1.4MB
          • SHA256 1771fa0877ca87efc8899da0d42e046b25d6c8c5bcec574f909a67246117ccbd
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          VC_redist.x86.exe.ico

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Package Cache\{4d8dcf8c-a72a-43e1-9833-c12724db736e}\VC_redist.x86.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 6ed1664d7718a68084ea1a4abb1d9621a6ae8da8e19db35cfca13aaa4c05eb33
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          windowsdesktop-runtime-8.0.15-win-x64.exe

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Package Cache\{5625bb48-295c-4113-bc92-d6a69b19b04c}\windowsdesktop-runtime-8.0.15-win-x64.exe
          • Size 1.3MB
          • SHA256 6ae6633a5c2c171339b6c7ced94a5aac8a24a8489e0b4ca2e4ceb78c5b80bdd8
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          vcredist_x86.exe

          • Path C:\ProgramData\Package Cache\{61087a79-ac85-455c-934d-1fa22cc64f36}\vcredist_x86.exe
          • Size 1.2MB
          • SHA256 c83ba9710c01abcc548e875a3fffef63e69e973b8479bfa3b6f62f60c9064583
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          OneDriveSetup.exe.ico

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Microsoft\OneDrive\18.151.0729.0013\OneDriveSetup.exe.ico
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 3a2d7fd9799178af58fbd08a2fffc56398cbf289c7ddd5c5f0fb2e241395261e
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          OneDrive.exe

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Microsoft\OneDrive\OneDrive.exe
          • Size 2.3MB
          • SHA256 cf517f8f1ff92409b760e3b3d9c8e801177eec67612ac90ab9eeb7a9d1604759
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          iconcache_idx.db

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer\iconcache_idx.db
          • Size 56KB
          • SHA256 6d1b9528fbf11a7a1e9b6c7afaa323ac39bd62e0977d87f265095cfdf24da510
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe.exe

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\2026-08-13_0159cb561cf140d23d476605d5878e09_amadey_darkgate_elex_smoke-loader_stop.exe.exe
          • Size 1.1MB
          • SHA256 7967adebf88b14d92774324f3808d58b9d3cd180a3ed932aead4e61b8be7079c
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          ArmUI.ini

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\ArmUI.ini
          • Size 251KB
          • SHA256 b4d4dcd9594d372d7c0c975d80ef5802c88502895ed4b8a26ca62e225f2f18b0
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 SSDEEP TLSH

          Tmp4DAE.tmp

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\Tmp4DAE.tmp
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 ff9b4cf04e3202f150f19c1711767361343935da7841c98b876c42fd2cabce9b
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          Tmp6F41.tmp

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\Tmp6F41.tmp
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 19fe53c801ad7edc635f61e9e28d07da31780c2480e6f37ecfc63fffe1b250fe
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          Tmp6F52.tmp

          • Path C:\Users\Admin\AppData\Local\Temp\Tmp6F52.tmp
          • Size 3KB
          • SHA256 dcc9d2695125406282ba990fec39403c44b12964acf51b5e0dc7f2080d714398
          • MD5 SHA1 SHA512 TLSH

          memory/4592-1080-0x0000000000400000-0x00000000004DE000-memory.dmp

          memory/4592-0-0x0000000000400000-0x00000000004DE000-memory.dmp