LSA Shell VIRUS ALERT

[antiskeptic84]

My Computer Got hit with this last night, Can some one please photoshop bill gates head??
This virus triggers your computer to restart (only WIN2K OR GREATER (ie. XP/XP- pro)
If your computer flashes a warning saying something like "LASS.exe has created errors, the system needs to be shut down" quickley make a b-line to command prompt (ie go to and open RUN in your start menu, TYPE "cmd" and and that will open command prompt THEN TYPE: "shutdown /a" which tells windows to abort any shutdown process. I suggest you go and grab the fix if u allready havent then...you will most likely be hit with the virus in the first 5 minutes you are online, usually instantaneously if your like me PLEASE NOTE: ONCE THE VIRUS HITS, YOU ONLY HAVE 1:00 to stop it
There is annother way to do this listed below, the way i listed above will disable Windows shutting down full stop (until you manually do it) when you restart, your computer will regain its ability to shutdown normally (hopefully you have allready patched it! GOTO: www.microsoft.com/technet/

the below is taken from symantec.com
Notes:

* Rapid Release virus definitions, version 30/04/04 rev 70 (20040430.070) and greater, detect this threat.
* This worm has an MD5 hash value of 0xA73C16CCD0B9C4F20BC7842EDD90FC20
* Symantec Security Response has developed a removal tool to clean the infections of W32.Sasser.Worm.

Technical Details

When W32.Sasser.Worm runs, it does the following:

1. Attempts to create a mutex called Jobaka3l and exits if the attempt fails. This ensures that no more than one instance of the worm can run on the computer at any time.
2. Copies itself as %Windir%\avserve.exe.

Note: %Windir% is a variable. The worm locates the Windows installation folder (by default, this is C:\Windows or C:\Winnt) and copies itself to that location.
3. Adds the value:

"avserve.exe"="%Windir%\avserve.exe"

to the registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\Run

so that the worm runs when you start Windows.

4. Uses the AbortSystemShutdown API to hinder attempts to shut down or restart the computer.

5. Starts an FTP server on TCP port 5554. This server is used to spread the worm to other hosts.

6. Attempts to connect to randomly-generated IP addresses on TCP port 445. If a connection is made to a computer, the worm sends shellcode to that computer which may cause it to run a remote shell on TCP port 9996. The worm then uses the shell to cause the computer to connect back to the FTP server on port 5554 and retrieve a copy of the worm. This copy will have a name consisting of 4 or 5 digits followed by _up.exe (eg 74354_up.exe).

The IP addresses generated by the worm are distributed as follows:
+ 50% are completely random
+ 25% have the same first octet as the IP address of the infected host
+ 25% have the same first and second octet as the IP address of the infected host.
The worm starts 128 threads that scan randomly-chosen IP addresses. This demands a lot of CPU time and as a result an infected computer may be so slow as to be barely useable.


Symantec Security Response encourages all users and administrators to adhere to the following basic security "best practices":

* Turn off and remove unneeded services. By default, many operating systems install auxiliary services that are not critical, such as an FTP server, telnet, and a Web server. These services are avenues of attack. If they are removed, blended threats have less avenues of attack and you have fewer services to maintain through patch updates.
* If a blended threat exploits one or more network services, disable, or block access to, those services until a patch is applied.
* Always keep your patch levels up-to-date, especially on computers that host public services and are accessible through the firewall, such as HTTP, FTP, mail, and DNS services.
* Enforce a password policy. Complex passwords make it difficult to crack password files on compromised computers. This helps to prevent or limit damage when a computer is compromised.
* Configure your email server to block or remove email that contains file attachments that are commonly used to spread viruses, such as .vbs, .bat, .exe, .pif and .scr files.
* Isolate infected computers quickly to prevent further compromising your organization. Perform a forensic analysis and restore the computers using trusted media.
* Train employees not to open attachments unless they are expecting them. Also, do not execute software that is downloaded from the Internet unless it has been scanned for viruses. Simply visiting a compromised Web site can cause infection if certain browser vulnerabilities are not patched.



Removal using the W32.Sasser Removal Tool
Symantec Security Response has developed a removal tool to clean the infections of W32.Sasser.Worm. This is the easiest way to remove this threat and should be tried first.

Manual Removal
The following instructions pertain to all current and recent Symantec antivirus products, including the Symantec AntiVirus and Norton AntiVirus product lines.

1. End the malicious process.
2. Disable System Restore (Windows Me/XP).
3. Update the virus definitions.
4. Run a full system scan and delete all the files detected as W32.Sasser.Worm.
5. Reverse the change made to the registry.

For details on each of these steps, read the following instructions.

1. To end the malicious process

To end the malicious process:
1. Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete once.
2. Click Task Manager.
3. Click the Processes tab.
4. Double-click the Image Name column header to alphabetically sort the processes.
5. Scroll through the list and look for the following processes:
o avserve.exe
o any process with a name consisting of 4 or 5 digits followed by _up.exe (eg 74354_up.exe).
6. If you find any such process, click it, and then click End Process.
7. Exit the Task Manager.

2. To disable System Restore (Windows Me/XP)
If you are running Windows Me or Windows XP, we recommend that you temporarily turn off System Restore. Windows Me/XP uses this feature, which is enabled by default, to restore the files on your computer in case they become damaged. If a virus, worm, or Trojan infects a computer, System Restore may back up the virus, worm, or Trojan on the computer.

Windows prevents outside programs, including antivirus programs, from modifying System Restore. Therefore, antivirus programs or tools cannot remove threats in the System Restore folder. As a result, System Restore has the potential of restoring an infected file on your computer, even after you have cleaned the infected files from all the other locations.

Also, a virus scan may detect a threat in the System Restore folder even though you have removed the threat.

For instructions on how to turn off System Restore, read your Windows documentation, or one of the following articles:

* "How to disable or enable Windows Me System Restore"
* "How to turn off or turn on Windows XP System Restore"

Note: When you are completely finished with the removal procedure and are satisfied that the threat has been removed, re-enable System Restore by following the instructions in the aforementioned documents.

For additional information, and an alternative to disabling Windows Me System Restore, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article, "Antivirus Tools Cannot Clean Infected Files in the _Restore Folder," Article ID: Q263455.

3. To update the virus definitions
Symantec Security Response fully tests all the virus definitions for quality assurance before they are posted to our servers. There are two ways to obtain the most recent virus definitions:

* Running LiveUpdate, which is the easiest way to obtain virus definitions: These virus definitions are posted to the LiveUpdate servers once each week (usually on Wednesdays), unless there is a major virus outbreak. To determine whether definitions for this threat are available by LiveUpdate, refer to the Virus Definitions (LiveUpdate).
* Downloading the definitions using the Intelligent Updater: The Intelligent Updater virus definitions are posted on U.S. business days (Monday through Friday). You should download the definitions from the Symantec Security Response Web site and manually install them. To determine whether definitions for this threat are available by the Intelligent Updater, refer to the Virus Definitions (Intelligent Updater).

The Intelligent Updater virus definitions are available: Read "How to update virus definition files using the Intelligent Updater" for detailed instructions.


4. To scan for and delete the infected files

1. Start your Symantec antivirus program and make sure that it is configured to scan all the files.
* For Norton AntiVirus consumer products: Read the document, "How to configure Norton AntiVirus to scan all files."
* For Symantec AntiVirus Enterprise products: Read the document, "How to verify that a Symantec Corporate antivirus product is set to scan all files."
2. Run a full system scan.
3. If any files are detected as infected with W32.Sasser.Worm, click Delete.


5. To reverse the change made to the registry

[nibby]

Holy Crap!

[Melodi]

Hi Antiskeptic:
Are you letting you know that you have this problem and want help to fix it or is this a variation of the sasser threat that came out in April? LSA Shell alert came out in April, it's also known as the sasser virus.

[antiskeptic84]

yep, its the sasser virus, but the name given above is the Technical one