Hacker uses malware built-in chat to toy with researchers

Malware researchers investigating a Trojan linked in a gaming forum as a how-to video for Diablo III got a surprise when the hacker started chatting with them—through a feature in the malware. Franklin Zhao & Jason Zhou of antivirus company AVG were looking for keylogging code in the malware with a debugger after downloading it to a virt...ual machine when a chat box popped up. The hacker asked, in Chinese, “What are you doing? Why are you researching my Trojan?”

The malware gave the hacker the ability to monitor the victim’s screen, mouse, and keyboard input. It also provided access to other devices. The hacker apparently was online when the two researchers started poking around his code, and he decided to intervene. “I would like to see your face, but what a pity you don’t have a camera,” he typed to the researchers, as they tried to engage him in conversation. Eventually, he tired of the cat-and-mouse game and remotely shut down their virtual machine.