Adminlocker

MITRE ATT&CK does not currently catalogue Adminlocker, so this is our assessment of the techniques it uses, drawn from public reporting. The techniques themselves, and every "what that means" definition below, come from MITRE ATT&CK v19.2. Confidence: medium. Treat it as orientation, not attribution.

1. T1059.001 PowerShell Execution

   What they do: adminlocker executes malicious commands via PowerShell scripts to stage payloads and evade detection.

   What that means: Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.

2. T1547.001 Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder PersistencePrivilege Escalation

   What they do: adminlocker adds malicious registry run keys to ensure persistence across reboots.

   What that means: Adversaries may achieve persistence by adding a program to a startup folder or referencing it with a Registry run key.

3. T1685 Disable or Modify Tools Defense Impairment

   What they do: adminlocker disables antivirus tools by terminating security processes and modifying service configurations.

   What that means: Adversaries may disable, degrade, or tamper with security tools or applications (e.g., endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools, intrusion detection systems (IDS), antivirus, logging agents, sensors, etc.) to impair or reduce visibility of defensive capabilities.

4. T1027.013 Encrypted/Encoded File Stealth

   What they do: adminlocker encrypts its own binaries and configuration files using symmetric encryption modules.

   What that means: Adversaries may encrypt or encode files to obfuscate strings, bytes, and other specific patterns to impede detection.

5. T1070.004 File Deletion Stealth

   What they do: adminlocker deletes Volume Shadow Copies and backup directories via vssadmin and rm commands.

   What that means: Adversaries may delete files left behind by the actions of their intrusion activity.

6. T1003.001 LSASS Memory Credential Access

   What they do: adminlocker accesses LSASS memory using tools like Mimikatz to steal credentials for lateral movement.

   What that means: Adversaries may attempt to access credential material stored in the process memory of the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS).

7. T1135 Network Share Discovery Discovery

   What they do: adminlocker discovers network shares using net view and similar commands to map lateral movement paths.

   What that means: Adversaries may look for folders and drives shared on remote systems as a means of identifying sources of information to gather as a precursor for Collection and to identify potential systems of interest for Lateral Movement.

8. T1021.002 SMB/Windows Admin Shares Lateral Movement

   What they do: adminlocker exploits SMB shares to propagate payloads across compromised networked systems.

   What that means: Adversaries may use Valid Accounts to interact with a remote network share using Server Message Block (SMB).

9. T1486 Data Encrypted for Impact Impact

   What they do: adminlocker encrypts victim files using a custom ransomware binary targeting documents and backups.

   What that means: Adversaries may encrypt data on target systems or on large numbers of systems in a network to interrupt availability to system and network resources.

10. T1490 Inhibit System Recovery Impact

    What they do: adminlocker calls system recovery inhibitors like shutdown scripts to prevent restoration attempts.

    What that means: Adversaries may delete or remove built-in data and turn off services designed to aid in the recovery of a corrupted system to prevent recovery.