Kimwolf v7: Android/IoT Botnet with HTTP/2 Browser Spoofing DDoS and ENS/Tor Three-Layer C2
Kimwolf v7: Android/IoT Botnet with HTTP/2 Browser Spoofing DDoS and ENS/Tor Three-Layer C2 1. Basic Information Severity : High Article Title : Kimwolf v7: An Evolution of the Kimwolf Botnet Publisher : Unit 42 / Palo Alto Networks Publication Date : 2026-08-11 Original Source : https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/kimwolf-v7-botnet-malware/ Related Sources : Unit 42 IOCs and Analysis Materials: https://github.com/pan-unit42/iocs/tree/master/Kimwolf-v7 BleepingComputer (Large-scale DDoS Observation): https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ddos-attacks-over-1-tbps-surged-fivefold-in-the-second-quarter/ Related Malware, Groups, and Products : Kimwolf v7, AISURU, Android TV box, set-top box, Android Debug Bridge (ADB), Ethereum Name Service (ENS), Tor, nghttp2, BoringSSL Main IOCs : netd_service , TVHelper , 127.0.0.1:23075 , eth.rpcuniverse[.]com , 212.193.31[.]119:13 , 212.193.31[.]122:13 , 212.193.31[.]92:443 , 212.193.31[.]158:443 2. Executive Summary This is a new version of the botnet that uses residential proxies to reach unauthenticated ADB and turn Android TV devices into bots. It maintains DDoS and proxy relay capabilities using Chrome-like HTTP/2 floods and a fault-tolerant C2 that combines ENS, Tor, and local SOCKS proxies. 3. Attack Flow Chain A: Infection and Bot Registration The attacker uses a residential proxy exit node as a stepping stone to reach ADB TCP/5555 on the local network. The attacker finds Android TV boxes or set-top boxes where ADB is active and requires no authentication. The attacker drops and runs an ARM ELF payload via an external loader or APK wrapper. For APK variants, a Java wrapper disguised as SystemService runs an embedded ELF such as libdevice.so . Some samples check for root access, but public sources do not explain how this affects execution. Some samples use BootReceiver to run after reboot. The ELF creates a Unix domain socket to prevent multiple instances and changes its process name to netd_service or TVHelper . It