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Check Point Research reported that the Nitrokod malware campaign distributed cryptomining malware by disguising it as legitimate desktop software, most notably fake Google Translate Desktop installers promoted through free software websites and search results. The Turkish-speaking operation had reportedly been active since 2019 and may have infected thousands of systems across 11 countries by luring users into downloading Trojanized applications that appeared benign.
The malware used a lengthy multi-stage infection chain designed to evade detection, including delays of days or weeks, scheduled tasks, self-deletion, log clearing, and checks for security products before deploying its final payload. Once established, Nitrokod installed XMRig and a controller component named powermanager.exe, then contacted command-and-control infrastructure to retrieve configuration data and begin mining cryptocurrency on compromised Windows machines.
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Check Point Research detected the previously undisclosed Nitrokod cryptomining campaign at the end of July 2022. Its analysis linked the fake application installers to a multi-stage malware chain that deployed XMRig miners on victim systems.
Check Point Research said the Turkish-speaking Nitrokod campaign had been active since 2019, distributing trojanized desktop applications through free software sites and search results, especially fake Google Translate Desktop installers. The campaign ultimately infected thousands of machines across 11 countries.
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Researchers reported two malware campaigns that install cryptocurrency miners through trojanized downloads delivered from pirate streaming sites and fake software portals. In one operation, users visiting illicit movie and TV sites were shown a bogus video-plugin update that delivered a ZIP archive containing a legitimate executable and a malicious DLL; the DLL sideloaded a multi-stage miner framework with persistence, defense evasion, a watchdog, a **RAT** component, and CPU/GPU mining modules. The malware, a modified fork of SilentCryptoMiner, used DNS tunneling for execution gating, installed a service named `GoogleUpdateTaskMachineQC`, weakened Windows defenses, injected into `conhost.exe` and `explorer.exe`, and communicated through rotating domains and infrastructure tied to `107[.]172[.]212[.]235`. Microsoft described a related cryptojacking-focused campaign aimed at owners of high-performance PCs, using fake downloads of popular utilities and hardware-monitoring tools that were promoted through SEO poisoning and, more recently, surfaced in AI assistant recommendations. Those ZIP archives also paired a legitimate executable with a malicious DLL for sideloading, then installed **ScreenConnect** for persistent remote access, set registry autoruns and scheduled tasks, added Microsoft Defender exclusions, checked for analysis tools, and used process hollowing to launch payloads inside trusted Windows processes. After profiling infected systems, the attackers fetched GPU miners including **gminer**, **lolMiner**, and **SRBMiner-MULTI**; researchers warned the access could support not only cryptomining but also data theft, lateral movement, and eventual ransomware deployment.
Jun 29, 2026
Elastic Security Labs reported that the financially motivated **REF1695** operation has used counterfeit software installers since November 2023 to infect victims with remote access trojans and cryptocurrency miners. Recent activity relied on fake **ISO** files containing a .NET Reactor-protected loader and a text file that led to deployment of a previously undocumented **.NET implant** called **CNB Bot**, which can inject additional payloads. The infection chain instructed users to bypass Microsoft Defender SmartScreen, then used PowerShell to add broad Microsoft Defender Antivirus exclusions, launch malware, and display a fake application error to mask the compromise. Researchers linked the same actor to campaigns delivering **PureRAT**, **PureMiner**, a custom .NET-based **XMRig** loader, and **SilentCryptoMiner**, with some payloads abusing the vulnerable signed drivers `WinRing0x64.sys` and `Winring0.sys` to tune CPU settings and improve mining performance. The operation also used watchdog functions and scheduled tasks for persistence and recovery, communicated with command-and-control servers over HTTP POST, and abused **GitHub** as a trusted platform for staged payload delivery to reduce detection. Elastic estimated the campaign generated **27.88 XMR** across four tracked wallets, worth about **$9,392**.
Jun 29, 2026
Researchers reported a malware campaign delivering a modified **SilentCryptoMiner** alongside a remote access trojan through illegal movie, TV, and digital library websites that pushed fake video player plugin updates. The infection chain used a ZIP archive containing a legitimate executable and a malicious DLL for **DLL side-loading**, then triggered stack-overflow-based ROP decryption and reflective loading to deploy the main module, a watchdog component, the RAT, and CPU/GPU miners. The activity appears to extend operations seen since at least 2022, with refreshed infrastructure and delivery sites but largely unchanged archive structure and execution logic. The malware used **DNS tunneling** and date-based domain generation for execution gating and command-and-control, disabled security and power-saving features when it gained elevated privileges, and established persistence through a fake `GoogleUpdateTaskMachineQC` service; researchers said the campaign had substantial exposure because the affected piracy-related sites drew roughly **40 million visits** in April 2026.
Jun 29, 2026