Darktrace’s Cyber AI Analyst uncovers the intricate details of a Sodinokibi ransomware attack on a retail organization. Dive into this real-time incident.
Darktrace cyber analysts are world-class experts in threat intelligence, threat hunting and incident response, and provide 24/7 SOC support to thousands of Darktrace customers around the globe. Inside the SOC is exclusively authored by these experts, providing analysis of cyber incidents and threat trends, based on real-world experience in the field.
Written by
Max Heinemeyer
Global Field CISO
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29
Nov 2020
Sodinokibi is one of the most lucrative ransomware strains of 2020, with its creators, cyber-criminal gang REvil, recently claiming over $100 million in profits this year alone. The prevalent threat is known to wipe backup files, encrypt files on local shares and exfiltrate data.
Exfiltration before encryption is a technique being increasingly adopted by profit-seeking cyber-criminals, who can threaten to leak the stolen data should a target organization not comply with their demands. Sodinobiki also makes heavy use of code obfuscation and encryption techniques to evade detection by signature-based, anti-virus solutions.
Darktrace’s AI recently detected Sodinokibi targeting a retail organization in the US. Prior to this year, the company operated primarily face-to-face in physical stores, but have conducted the majority of their business in the digital realm since the onset of the pandemic.
Cyber AI Analyst automatically launched a full investigation into this incident in real time, as the attack was unfolding. The technology provided summary reports of the entire incident which the security team could immediately action for incident response. This blog explores its findings.
Sodinokibi timeline
Darktrace automatically investigated on the full scope of the Sodinokibi attack, with Cyber AI Analyst clearly identifying and summarising every stage of the attack lifecycle, which played out over the course of three weeks as below:
Figure 1: A timeline of the attack
Darktrace produced a large number of security-relevant anomalies associated with just three credentials, and displayed these along a common timeline shown below:
Figure 2: A timeline view of anomaly detections separated by users. Note the clusters of model breaches for the compromised credentials leading up to October 14.
While a human analyst might have been able to identify these unusual patterns and investigate what caused the clusters of anomalous activity, this process would have taken precious hours during a crisis. Cyber AI Analyst automatically performed the same analysis using supervised machine learning trained on Darktrace’s world-leading analysts, generating meaningful summaries of each stage of the event in real time, as the incident unfolded.
REvil ransomware attack
The following events occurred during a free trial period, and Darktrace was not being actively monitored. Its Autonomous Response technology, Darktrace Antigena, was installed in passive mode, and in the absence of automatic interference at an early stage, this compromise was allowed to unfold without interruption. However, with Darktrace’s AI learning normal ‘patterns of life’ for every device in the background, identifying anomalies, and launching an automated investigation into the attack, we are able to go back into the Threat Visualizer and see how the incident unfolded.
The attack began when the credentials of a highly privileged member of the retail organization’s IT team were compromised. REvil is known to make use of phishing emails, exploit kits, server vulnerabilities, and compromised MSP networks for initial intrusion.
In this case, the attacker used the IT credential to compromise a domain controller and exfiltrate data directly after initial reconnaissance. Darktrace’s AI detected the attacker logging into the domain controller via SMB, writing suspicious files and then deleting batch scripts and log files in the root directory to clear their tracks.
The domain controller then made connections to several rare external endpoints, and Darktrace witnessed a 28MB upload that was likely exfiltration of initial reconnaissance data. Four days later, the attacker connected to the same endpoint (sadstat[.]com) – likely a stager download for C2, which was then initiated via connections on port 443 later that same day.
A week on from the intial C2 connection, a SQL server was detected engaging in network scanning as the attacker sought to move laterally in search of sensitive and valuable data. Over the course of two weeks, Darktrace witnessed unusual internal RDP connections using administrative credentials, before data was uploaded to multiple cloud storage endpoints as well as an SSH server. PsExec was used to deploy the ransomware, resulting in file encryption.
The evasive nature of modern ransomware
REvil started with an inherent advantage in that they were armed with the credentials of a highly privileged IT admin. Nevertheless, they still made several attempts to evade traditional, signature-based tools, such as ‘Living off the Land’ – using common tools such PsExec, WMI, RDP to blend into to legitimate activity.
They leveraged frequently-used cloud storage solutions like Dropbox and pCloud for data transfer, and they conducted SSH on port 443, blending in with SSL connections on the same port. They used a newly-registered domain for C2 communication, meaning Open Source Intelligence Tools (OSINT) were blind to the threat.
Finally, the malware itself was evasive in that it made use of code obfuscation and encryption, and had no need for a system library or API imports. This is the basis for most modern ransomware attacks, and the reality is signature-based tools cannot keep up. Darktrace’s AI not only detected the anomalous activity associated with every stage of the attack, but generated fleshed-out summaries of each stage of the attack with Cyber AI Analyst.
Cyber AI Analyst: Real-time incident reporting
Between September 21 and October 12, Cyber AI Analyst created 15 incidents, investigating dozens of point detections and creating a coherent attack narrative.
Figure 3: Cyber AI Incident log of the first compromised DC. This incident tab details the connections to sadstat[.]com
Figure 4: The DC establishes C2 to the first GHOSTnet GmbH IP
Figure 5: This incident tab highlights the file encryption of files on network shares
Figure 6: Darktrace surfaces the IT admin account takeover
Figure 7: Example of a client type device involved in extensive administrative RDP and SMB activity, as well as data uploads to Dropbox (this upload to Dropbox occurs few seconds before file encryption begins)
REvil vs AI
This Sodinokibi ransomware attack slipped under the radar of a range of traditional tools deployed by the retail organization. However, despite the threat dwelling in the retail organization’s digital environment for over a month, and REvil using local tools to blend in to regular traffic, from Darktrace’s perspective these actions were noisy in comparison to the organization’s normal ‘pattern of life’, setting off a series of alerts and investigations.
Darktrace’s Cyber AI Analyst was able to autonomously investigate nearly every attack phase of the ransomware. The technology works around the clock, without requiring training or time off, and can often reduce hours or days of incident response into just minutes, reducing time to triage by up to 92% and augmenting the capabilities of the human security team.
Thanks to Darktrace analyst Joel Lee for his insights on the above threat find.
Darktrace cyber analysts are world-class experts in threat intelligence, threat hunting and incident response, and provide 24/7 SOC support to thousands of Darktrace customers around the globe. Inside the SOC is exclusively authored by these experts, providing analysis of cyber incidents and threat trends, based on real-world experience in the field.
Hola VPN Abuse: From Proxy Traffic to Malware and Cryptomining
Introduction
In enterprise environments, non-compliant software traffic can introduce unexpected exposure by creating unmanaged paths for outbound connectivity. Hola VPN is a notable example because of its peer-to-peer design, which can effectively turn user devices into routing or exit nodes for other parties’ traffic, shifting the risk profile from that of a traditional virtual private network (VPN) to something closer to a distributed proxy.
As a result, the appearance of Hola-related activity, whether from prior installation or unintended background connections, should be treated with caution. Such activity may provide a foothold for malicious behavior, including lateral movement or command-and-control communication.
This blog explores how Hola-associated activity appeared as part of broader patterns of suspicious behavior observed across the Darktrace customer base.
The campaign
In February and March 2026, Darktrace observed similar anomalous activity across multiple customer environments, with affected devices showing consistent behavioral patterns. These included connections to multiple *.hola[.]org endpoints using Hola-related user agents, suggesting interaction with Hola infrastructure rather than isolated or incidental traffic.
Following these connections, affected customer environments showed downloads of suspicious executable files from rare external endpoints 188.241.219[.]55 and 184.241.218[.]111. Both endpoints have been flagged as potentially malicious by open-source intelligence (OSINT) [1][2].
These downloads were conducted using consistent user agents across impacted customers, specifically ‘Hola svc_js_win32/1.249.408’ and ‘Hola svc_js_win32/1.251.389’, suggesting a possible association with Hola-related activity.
Notably, this pattern aligns with recent reporting that, in some cases, Hola distributed an undeclared executable component, me[.]exe, which was later assessed to be a likely Monero-mining binary introduced via a compromised delivery pipeline [3].
Case Study 1
Darktrace first observed a new device on January 19, 2026, within a customer environment based in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region. On the same day it appeared on the network, the device communicated with multiple pieces of Hola VPN-linked infrastructure before downloading a binary from a hola[.]org subdomain.
Figure 1: Cyber AI Analyst investigation highlighting Hola VPN service activity potentially associated with subsequent HTTP command-and-control (C2) connections.
Subsequent Darktrace telemetry revealed a recurring pattern of activity from the day the device was first observed through to March 4, 2026. During this period, the device repeatedly issued HTTP GET requests to the URI /bwfile?size=1048576, each returning a 200 OK response, indicating successful file retrieval.
This behavior was accompanied by a POST request to /bwfile, followed by an additional GET request for a significantly larger file at /bwfile?size=26214400, suggesting a deliberate and structured file transfer pattern.
Notably, the binary download activity was not tied to a single static host. Instead, it was observed across multiple URLs that changed over time while remaining within the same hola[.]org domain. This pattern suggests the use of rotating or distributed delivery infrastructure rather than a fixed endpoint.
Figure 2: Variation in URLs over time within the same hola[.]org domain, indicating the use of dynamically changing endpoints.
Across these events, the activity was consistently associated with the user agent Hola svc_js_win32/1.249.408, further linking the traffic to Hola-related service components. Amid these persistent and unusual connections, on February 22, Darktrace observed the device connecting to 188.241.219[.]55/proxy-peer-windows-amd64[.]exe, resulting in the download of an executable file.
Figure 3: File transfer event showing the download of an executable from the rare external endpoint 188.241.219[.]55.
Based on its file hash, the downloaded file was assessed as a likely Trojan downloader [4], with import hash (imphash) values showing similarities to samples linked to Vidar, Rhadamanthys, and Stealc according to OSINT [5]. Overall, this sequence of activity suggests that Hola-related connectivity may have been leveraged as part of a broader malware delivery chain.
Darktrace’s Autonomous Response
Due to the highly unusual activity observed, Darktrace Autonomous Response was triggered by the device’s behavior. However, as the customer deployment was configured in “Human Confirmation” mode, manual approval was required before any action could be taken.
Had the deployment been set to “Fully Autonomous” mode, Darktrace would have automatically:
Blocked connections to the associated ports and external endpoints
Prevented all outgoing network connections from the device
Enforced the device’s established ‘pattern of life’, allowing normal activity to continue while restricting any anomalous behavior
Figure 4: Example of a Darktrace Autonomous Response model highlighting the action that would have been taken, demonstrating how the system identifies anomalous behavior and applies targeted containment measures to restrict suspicious network activity.
Case Study 2
While the first case focused on anomalous activity from a newly observed device, Darktrace also identified cases in which devices had already been communicating with Hola-related endpoints prior to the suspected campaign. This may suggest pre-existing Hola usage within the environment, potentially increasing exposure and creating an avenue for subsequent suspicious activity.
One case involved three devices within a customer network based in the Americas (AMS). In this instance, a different payload was identified: me[.]exe, a potentially malicious cryptocurrency miner also referred to as HolaMonitorService[.]exe [6][7]. The downloads were observed from infrastructure similar to that seen in Case 1, including an IP address within the same 188.241.0.0/16 subnet.
Connections to *.hola[.]org, alongside the use of potential Hola-related user agents consistent with those in Case 1, were also identified, further suggesting a link between the observed activity and Hola-associated infrastructure.
Darktrace observed activity indicative of unusual VPN usage on the first affected device on February 2, followed by telemetry suggesting potential Tor usage. This was later followed by the download of me[.]exe on March 10 from 188.241.218[.]111. Notably, this device was the earliest among the three within the deployment to exhibit the presence of the suspicious executable.
Figure 5: Cyber AI Analyst detection highlighting the download of a suspicious executable from a similar external endpoint in a separate deployment.
On March 5, 2026, the second affected device exhibited a slightly different progression, initiating connections to http-test1[.]hola[.]org using the user agent ‘hola_get’. This activity was followed by the download of me[.]exe from the same endpoint on March 13, consistent with the broader pattern of Hola-related downloads observed across the environment.
Figure 6: Example of Hola VPN-related connectivity observed on the network prior to the suspected campaign, indicating pre-existing usage that may have contributed to subsequent activity.
The final affected device within this customer’s network demonstrated a more limited but related pattern, also downloading me[.]exe on March 17 using the same ‘hola_get’ user agent.
While the earlier Hola VPN usage observed across the deployment may not have been directly related to the suspected malware campaign, it may nonetheless have contributed to reduced visibility. The presence of pre-existing Hola-related traffic could have obscured malicious activity, making it more difficult to distinguish legitimate usage from attacker-driven behavior and, in turn, hindering the timely identification of the emerging compromise.
Darktrace’s Autonomous Response
For this deployment, the customer had their Autonomous Response capability configured in “Fully Autonomous” mode, allowing Darktrace to take action without human intervention. As a result, the system was able to autonomously disrupt the activity as soon as relevant events were identified through model detections.
Figure 7: Darktrace Autonomous Response actions taken against suspicious activity linked to Hola VPN.
Suspected cryptomining activity
As previously noted, some of the observed executable payloads appear to be linked to cryptomining malware. Across a subset of affected customer environments, this assessment was further supported by subsequent device activity consistent with Monero mining. Affected devices established follow-on connections to multiple external endpoints aligned with known mining infrastructure, indicating post-download execution.
Considering the broader sequence of activity, this pattern may point to a wider form of abuse in which legitimate VPN-related traffic is used to mask or facilitate malicious behavior following compromise.
On several devices, the download of executable files, including a newly observed peer[.]exe, was followed by alerts indicative of cryptocurrency mining activity. Mining-related credentials such as ‘x’ were observed using the Minergate protocol to communicate with endpoints within the 89.125.255.0/24 subnet and 188.241.218[.]111, the same endpoint involved in earlier download activity. Additional credentials appeared to reflect device-specific CPU identifiers, for example ‘12th Gen Intel(R) Core (TM) i5-1235U’.
Observed mining methods included login, submit, and job, consistent with active participation in a pool-based mining workflow rather than passive or incidental contact. The login method indicates that the host authenticated to the mining service as a worker, job reflects the assignment of computational tasks, and submit shows completed work being returned to the pool [8]. This sequence suggests that affected devices were actively contributing processing resources as part of an unauthorized distributed mining operation.
The presence of unauthorized cryptominers can lead to degraded system performance and reduced device stability. Beyond the immediate resource impact, such activity often serves as an indicator of a broader compromise rather than an isolated issue. This may increase the risk of further malware deployment, persistence mechanisms, and lateral movement, particularly in environments where the initial intrusion has not been fully contained.
Conclusion
Across affected environments, detections such as unusual VPN usage, connections to Hola infrastructure, anomalous HTTP activity, suspicious file downloads, and subsequent cryptomining behavior were linked into a single, evolving incident narrative. This aggregation provided a clearer view of attack progression, enabling security teams to understand not just isolated alerts, but the full sequence of compromise from initial contact through to post-exploitation.
Ultimately, these activities show that the risk posed by non-compliant software such as Hola VPN can extend far beyond simple policy violations. What began as traffic to Hola-related infrastructure was, in multiple cases, followed by behavior suggesting deliberate misuse, including suspicious executable downloads using Hola-related user agents and, in some instances, evidence of active cryptomining. These were not isolated anomalies, but elements of a broader pattern in which seemingly benign proxy or VPN-related communications may have created a pathway for malicious delivery and unauthorized resource exploitation.
The significance of this activity lies not only in the downloads or mining, but in what it reveals about an attacker’s ability to blend malicious operations into traffic associated with software that may already have a foothold in the environment. When unapproved software operates within an enterprise, it can reduce visibility, blur the distinction between legitimate and malicious traffic, and create opportunities to extend compromise in ways that are persistent and difficult to detect. Darktrace’s anomaly-based approach enables these behavioral distinctions to be identified, regardless of whether the device is new or long established within the network.
Credit to Min Kim (Associate Principal Analyst), Priya Thapa (Senior Cyber Analyst) Edited by Ryan Traill (Content Manager)
![Variation in URLs over time within the same hola[.]org domain, indicating the use of dynamically changing endpoints.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/626ff4d25aca2edf4325ff97/6a304bdeff111215c0436931_Screenshot%202026-06-15%20at%2012.00.43%E2%80%AFPM.avif)
![File transfer event showing the download of an executable from the rare external endpoint 188.241.219[.]55.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/626ff4d25aca2edf4325ff97/6a304c2468d20aeff16a2721_Screenshot%202026-06-15%20at%2012.01.53%E2%80%AFPM.avif)
