- Apr 26, 2017
- 89
A free tool that can scan networks to discover computers that are vulnerable to the NSA-linked EternalBlue exploit is now available.
EternalBlue is a tool that hacker group ShadowBrokers allegedly stolen from the National Security Agency (NSA)-linked Equation Group. It was made public in April this year, one month after Microsoft released patches for it and for various other exploits. -
In addition to being fully ported to Metasploit, EternalBlue was one of the seven NSA exploits to have been included in a network worm dubbed EternalRocks. What made the exploit famous, however, was its use in the global WannaCry outbreak.
Weeks before WannaCry, however, a stealth Remote Access Trojan (RAT) was using the exploit to compromise systems. The cryptocurrency miner Adylkuzz was also abusing EternalBlue before WannaCry. Additionally, the UIWIX ransomware was using the exploit around the same time as WannaCry.
Over the past week, EternalBlue came into focus once again, as it started being used in yet another worldwide outbreak by the destructive NotPetya wiper.
Microsoft president and chief legal officer Brad Smith has already warned of the risks that stockpiling exploits brings along, and a bi-partisan group of lawmakers already announced the introduction of the 'Protecting Our Ability to Counter Hacking Act of 2017' -- the PATCH Act.
This, however, does little to protect companies from attacks leveraging EternalBlue, especially if they are unaware of the existence of vulnerable machines within their networks. Dubbed Eternal Blues, the newly released free tool is meant to provide a helpful hand by scanning their network for computers that can be compromised via this exploit.
According to the tool’s developer Elad Erez, Eternal Blues has been already tested on real world networks. The utility wasn’t meant to exploit the vulnerability, but only to find it and notify of its existence.
“The majority of latest WannaCry, NotPetya victims are not technical organizations and sometimes just small business who don’t have a security team, or even just an IT team to help them mitigate this. I aimed to create a simple ‘one-button’ tool that tells you one thing and one thing only – which systems are vulnerable in your network,” Erez explains.
The developer also advises admins who find vulnerable computers using his tool to apply the necessary patches as soon as possible, and also to disable SMBv1, even on patched systems, considering that the protocol was written over three decades ago. The tool, he reveals, sends anonymous usage statistics through Google Analytics, including number of scanned computers and found vulnerabilities.
EternalBlue is a tool that hacker group ShadowBrokers allegedly stolen from the National Security Agency (NSA)-linked Equation Group. It was made public in April this year, one month after Microsoft released patches for it and for various other exploits. -
In addition to being fully ported to Metasploit, EternalBlue was one of the seven NSA exploits to have been included in a network worm dubbed EternalRocks. What made the exploit famous, however, was its use in the global WannaCry outbreak.
Weeks before WannaCry, however, a stealth Remote Access Trojan (RAT) was using the exploit to compromise systems. The cryptocurrency miner Adylkuzz was also abusing EternalBlue before WannaCry. Additionally, the UIWIX ransomware was using the exploit around the same time as WannaCry.
Over the past week, EternalBlue came into focus once again, as it started being used in yet another worldwide outbreak by the destructive NotPetya wiper.
Microsoft president and chief legal officer Brad Smith has already warned of the risks that stockpiling exploits brings along, and a bi-partisan group of lawmakers already announced the introduction of the 'Protecting Our Ability to Counter Hacking Act of 2017' -- the PATCH Act.
This, however, does little to protect companies from attacks leveraging EternalBlue, especially if they are unaware of the existence of vulnerable machines within their networks. Dubbed Eternal Blues, the newly released free tool is meant to provide a helpful hand by scanning their network for computers that can be compromised via this exploit.
According to the tool’s developer Elad Erez, Eternal Blues has been already tested on real world networks. The utility wasn’t meant to exploit the vulnerability, but only to find it and notify of its existence.
“The majority of latest WannaCry, NotPetya victims are not technical organizations and sometimes just small business who don’t have a security team, or even just an IT team to help them mitigate this. I aimed to create a simple ‘one-button’ tool that tells you one thing and one thing only – which systems are vulnerable in your network,” Erez explains.
The developer also advises admins who find vulnerable computers using his tool to apply the necessary patches as soon as possible, and also to disable SMBv1, even on patched systems, considering that the protocol was written over three decades ago. The tool, he reveals, sends anonymous usage statistics through Google Analytics, including number of scanned computers and found vulnerabilities.
