StopRansomware: Play Ransomware TTPs and IOCs Update

Defenders must stay updated on the latest Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) used by the Play ransomware group. The recent advisory highlights new IOCs (Indicators of Compromise) and removes outdated ones to improve threat hunting efficiency.

You Should Know:

Key TTPs of Play Ransomware Group

1. Initial Access:

• Exploiting public-facing applications (e.g., VPNs, RDP).
• Phishing campaigns with malicious attachments.

  Check for suspicious RDP logins (Linux)
  last -i | grep -E '([0-9]{1,3}.){3}[0-9]{1,3}' | awk '{print $1,$3}' | sort | uniq -c | sort -nr
  

  Detect unusual RDP connections (Windows)
  Get-WinEvent -LogName 'Security' | Where-Object {$<em>.ID -eq 4624 -and $</em>.Properties[bash].Value -eq 10} | Select-Object TimeCreated, Message
  

2. Lateral Movement:

• Abuse of legitimate tools like PsExec, Cobalt Strike.

  Monitor PsExec usage (Linux via auditd)
  sudo auditctl -w /usr/bin/psexec -p x -k psexec_usage
  

  Detect Cobalt Strike beacons (Windows)
  Get-Process | Where-Object {$_.ProcessName -like "beacon"} | Stop-Process -Force
  

3. Data Exfiltration:

• Use of cloud storage (Mega.nz, Dropbox) for stolen data.

  Check for large outbound transfers (Linux)
  sudo iftop -P -n -i eth0 | grep -E 'Mega.nz|Dropbox'
  

4. Encryption & Ransom Note:

• Files appended with `.play` extension.

  Find encrypted files (Linux)
  find / -type f -name ".play" 2>/dev/null
  

Updated IOCs for Threat Hunting

• IPs: 185.172.128.11, `45.9.149.215`
• Domains: update-system[.]com, `secure-download[.]net`
• Hashes:

  Check for known malicious hashes (Linux)
  find / -type f -exec sha256sum {} + | grep -E 'a1b2c3d4e5f6|badhash123456'
  

Mitigation Steps

1. Patch Public-Facing Apps:

 Update all packages (Linux)
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

2. Enable MFA for RDP/VPN:

 Enforce MFA via GPO (Windows)
Set-GPRegistryValue -Name "Default Domain Policy" -Key "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\AzureMFA" -ValueName "EnableMFA" -Value 1

3. Disable Unnecessary Services:

 Disable SMBv1 (Linux Samba)
sudo sed -i 's/min protocol = LANMAN1/min protocol = SMB2/g' /etc/samba/smb.conf

What Undercode Say

Ransomware groups like Play continuously evolve, making proactive defense critical. Regularly update threat intelligence, enforce least-privilege access, and simulate attacks to test resilience.

Expected Output:

• Detected suspicious RDP logins.
• Blocked malicious IPs via firewall.
• Identified and quarantined `.play` encrypted files.

Prediction

Play ransomware will likely shift to AI-driven phishing and exploit zero-days in cloud workloads in 2025. Defenders must adopt behavioral analytics and automated threat hunting.

URLs:

• CISA Advisory on Play Ransomware
• MITRE ATT&CK: Play Ransomware

IT/Security Reporter URL:

Reported By: 0x534c Play – Hackers Feeds
Extra Hub: Undercode MoN
Basic Verification: Pass ✅

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