Delete APT28 Permanently From PC

 

Threat Summary

Know About APT28

APT28 (Advanced Persistent Threat) is a hacking group that originates from the country of Russia. Malware researchers believe that the APT28 group's campaigns are founded by the Kremlin and their activity dates in the mid-2000s. APT28 generally target foreign political actors. The APT28 hacking group is known as Fancy Bear and it is also recognized under various other nicknames- STRONTIUM, Sofacy Group, Sednit, Pawn Storm and Tsar Team.

Experts believe that the Fancy Bear had a hand in the year of 2016 in the Democratic National Committee hack and had some influence on the outcome of the Presidential Elections, taking place in the same year. Also, the Fancy Bear group targeted the World Anti-Doping Agency because of the scandal involving in Russian athletes during the same year. The data which was obtained from Fancy Bear was published and available publicly. The data revealed that some of the athletes who tested positive for doping were exempted in later. The report of the World Anti-Doping Agency stated that the illicit substances were meant for 'therapeutic use' only.

The Fancy Bear group was involved in various campaigns in targeting media personalities from Ukraine, the United States, Russia, the Baltic States and Moldova in the period of 2014 to 2017. Fancy Bear went after individuals which were working in media corporations as well as independent journalists. All the targets were totally involved in the reporting of the Russia-Ukraine conflict that took place in the Eastern Ukraine. Germany and France had their major elections and it is the Fancy Bear group who dipped their fingers in these pies in the year of 2016 and 2017. Officials who came from both countries reported that a campaign with the help of using spear-phishing emails as infection vectors took place and clearly stated that there were no any consequences of the hacking attack.

The Fancy Bear hacking group makes sure to alter their C&C (Command and Control) infrastructure regularly inorder to evade the prying eyes of cyber security researchers. The group has an impressive arsenal of hacking tools which they have built privately which is X-Agent, Xtunnel, Sofacy, JHUHUGIT, DownRange and CHOPSTICK. Instead of direct propagation, Fancy Bear often prefers to host its malware on the third-party websites which they build to imitate legitimate pages to trick their victims.

 

Fancy Bear is one of the most ill-famed hacking groups and there are no any indications that they will halt in their campaigns anytime. The Russian government is known to use the services of hacking groups and it is one of the highest-tier hacking groups out there.

>>Free Download APT28 Scanner<<

Steps to Remove APT28

Step 1>> How to Boot Windows in Safe Mode to isolate APT28

Step 2>> How to View Hidden Files created by APT28

for Windows XP

• Exit all Program and Go to Desktop
• Select My Computer icon and Double Click to Open it
• Click on the Tools Menu and now select and Click on Folder Options.
• Select on View Tab that appears in New Window.
• Check mark on the box next to Dispaly the Contents of System Folders
• Now Check the box in order to Show Hidden Files and Folders
• Now press on Apply and OK to close the Window.
• As soon as these steps are performed, you can view the files and folders that were created by APT28 and hidden till now.

for Windows Vista

• Minimize all Window and Go to Desktop
• Click on the Start Button which can be found in lower lef Corner having Windows Logo
• Click on the Control Panel on the Menu and Open it
• Control Panel can be opened in Classic View or Control Panel Home View.
• If you have Selected Classic View, follow this
• Double Click on the Folder icon to open it
• Now select the view tab
• Click on Option to Show Hidden Files or Folders
• If you have Selected Control Panel Home View, follow this
• Appearance and Personalization link is to be Clicked
• Select on Show Hidden Files or Folders
• Press Apply Option and then Click on OK.

This will Show all the Folders including those created by APT28

Know how to view Hidden Folders on Windows 7, Win 8 and Windows 10

(Following the above steps are necessary to view all the files created by APT28 and that is known to exist on Compromised PC.)

• Open the Run Box by holding together the Start Key and R.

• Now Type and input appwiz.cpl and press on OK
• This will take you to the Control Panel, Now Search for Suspicious programs or any entries related to APT28. Unistall it once if you happen to find it. However be sure not to Uninstall any other program from the list.
• In the Search Field, Type msconfig and press on Enter, this will pop-up a Window

In the Startup Menu, Uncheck all the APT28 related entries or which are Unknown as Manufacturer.

Step 3>> Open the Run Box by Pressing Start Key and R in Combination

1. Copy + Paste the following Command as
2. notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts and press on OK
3. This will Open a new file. If your system has been hacked by APT28, certain IP’s will be displayed which can be found in the bottom of the screen.

Look for the suspicious IP that is present in your Localhost

Step 4>> How to Terminate APT28 Running Processes

• Go the Processes Tab by pressing on CTRL+SHIFT+ESC Keys Together.
• Look for the APT28 Running Processes.
• Right Click on APT28 and End the Process.

Step 5>> How to Remove APT28 Related Registry Entries

• Open Registry by Typing Regedit in the Run box and Hit Enter Key

• This will open all the list of entries.
• Now Find and search the entries created by APT28 and cautiously delete it.
• Alternatively, you can manually search for it in the list to delete APT28 Manually.

Unfortunately, if you are unable to remove APT28, Scan your PC Now

Also submit question and let us know in case you are having some doubt. Our Experts will definitely respond with some positive suggestions for the same. Thanks!