The hypothesis is that the detection of Codoso APT PGV_PVID Malware indicates potential adversary persistence and lateral movement within the network. SOC teams should proactively hunt for this behavior in Azure Sentinel to identify and mitigate early-stage APT activity before it leads to data exfiltration or system compromise.
YARA Rule
rule Codoso_PGV_PVID_6
{
meta:
description = "Detects Codoso APT PGV_PVID Malware"
author = "Florian Roth"
reference = "https://www.proofpoint.com/us/exploring-bergard-old-malware-new-tricks"
date = "2016-01-30"
hash = "4b16f6e8414d4192d0286b273b254fa1bd633f5d3d07ceebd03dfdfc32d0f17f"
strings:
$s0 = "rundll32 \"%s\",%s" fullword ascii
$s1 = "/c ping 127.%d & del \"%s\"" fullword ascii
condition:
uint16(0) == 0x5a4d and filesize < 6000KB and all of them
}
This YARA rule can be deployed in the following contexts:
This rule contains 2 string patterns in its detection logic.
Scenario: Scheduled System Maintenance Task
Description: A legitimate scheduled task runs a script that uses pgv_pvid as part of a system cleanup or configuration update.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude processes initiated by schtasks.exe or tasks with a known name in the Task Scheduler (e.g., CleanupTask, SystemMaintenance).
Scenario: Admin Performing Disk Cleanup or File Integrity Check
Description: An administrator uses a tool like DISM or sfc /scannow to check or repair system files, which may temporarily generate pgv_pvid-related activity.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude processes with DISM.exe or sfc.exe in the command line, or processes initiated by an admin account with elevated privileges.
Scenario: Software Update or Patch Deployment
Description: A patching tool like Windows Update or third-party tools like Microsoft Endpoint Manager (MEM) may use pgv_pvid during deployment.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude processes associated with wuauserv, msiexec.exe, or known patching tools with specific command-line arguments.
Scenario: Log File Analysis or Forensic Tool Usage
Description: A tool like LogParser or PowerShell script is used to analyze log files, and the term pgv_pvid appears in the logs as part of normal operations.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude processes running under logparser.exe, powershell.exe with known forensic scripts, or processes accessing log files in the C:\Windows\System32\LogFiles directory.
Scenario: Custom Script for Data Migration or Backup
Description: A custom script (e.g., written in Python or PowerShell) is used to migrate data or perform backups