{
  "family": "gamania",
  "sample_count": 4,
  "category": "trojan",
  "description": "PWS:Win32/Gamania is a specialized Password Stealer (PWS) trojan explicitly designed to target and harvest credentials associated with online gaming accounts, particularly those related to the Asian gaming portal Gamania, as well as other popular MMORPGs and digital distribution platforms.<br><br><b>Understanding Gamania (Gaming Credential Stealers)</b><br>To an end-user, a Gamania infection might seem invisible, only becoming apparent when they find themselves locked out of their gaming accounts or discover their in-game assets have been transferred. For a security analyst, while this malware targets consumer accounts rather than enterprise data, its presence on a corporate network indicates a severe violation of acceptable use policies and a potential vector for secondary, more damaging payloads, as the initial infection vector was successful.<br><br><b>Execution and Credential Harvesting Mechanics</b><br>Gamania is typically distributed via phishing links on gaming forums, disguised as 'cheats,' 'hacks,' 'bots,' or fake game updates (`T1204.002`). Upon execution, the trojan establishes persistence by modifying the Registry Run keys or dropping a shortcut in the Startup folder (`T1547.001`). Its primary function is to monitor running processes. When it detects a targeted game client or gaming portal launching, it uses API hooking (like `SetWindowsHookEx`) to intercept keystrokes (`T1056.001`) specifically within that application's context, or it searches the registry and specific file paths for stored session tokens and saved passwords (`T1555.003`). The stolen credentials are then packaged and exfiltrated to an attacker-controlled server, often via simple HTTP POST requests or SMTP email.<br><br><b>Indicators of Compromise & Impact</b><br>The primary impact is the loss of gaming accounts and virtual assets, which can have real-world financial value. Host-based IoCs include the presence of anomalous executables in the `%AppData%` or `%Temp%` directories, EDR alerts for keylogging activity or unauthorized access to browser credential stores, and unexpected outbound network traffic to known gaming-malware drop zones.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk team.",
  "aliases": [],
  "enrichment_level": "expert-seo",
  "faq": [],
  "faq_count": 0,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1555.003",
    "T1048.003",
    "T1056.001",
    "T1547.001"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-06-09",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1555.003",
      "name": "Credentials from Password Stores: Credentials from Web Browsers (Targeting gaming portals)",
      "tactic": "Credential Access"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1056.001",
      "name": "Input Capture: Keylogging (Targeting game clients)",
      "tactic": "Collection"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1048.003",
      "name": "Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol (Sending logs via email/HTTP)",
      "tactic": "Exfiltration"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1547.001",
      "name": "Boot or Logon Autostart Execution",
      "tactic": "Persistence"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Isolate the endpoint to prevent further exfiltration of credentials.",
    "Force a password reset for all gaming accounts, email accounts, and any corporate accounts accessed from the infected machine, as the keylogger may have captured non-gaming data.",
    "Run a comprehensive anti-malware scan to remove the Gamania executable and its associated registry hooks.",
    "Educate users on the dangers of downloading third-party 'cheats' or 'trainers', which are the primary distribution method for this class of malware."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Avoid assuming the malware *only* stole gaming passwords; many modern PWS variants are modular and will steal any cached credentials they find.",
    "Do not allow the user to continue using the machine for sensitive tasks until a full wipe and reimage has been performed, to ensure no persistent hooks remain."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Global / Opportunistic"
  ],
  "motivation": "Opportunistic",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ]
}