{
  "family": "loadmoney",
  "sample_count": 398,
  "category": "pua",
  "description": "Adware:Win32/LoadMoney is a massive Russian pay-per-install (PPI) affiliate network responsible for distributing vast quantities of adware, browser hijackers, and Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUPs).<br><br><b>What is LoadMoney?</b><br>For consumers, LoadMoney is the underlying infrastructure that ruins their browsing experience with pop-ups and fake toolbars. For threat intelligence, LoadMoney represents a highly organized cybercrime business model. Software developers pay the LoadMoney network to bundle their toolbars or adware into legitimate freeware installers. The affiliate who facilitates the download gets a cut of the revenue, driving massive, deceptive distribution campaigns.<br><br><b>Infection Vectors & Threat Hunting</b><br>LoadMoney relies entirely on social engineering during the software installation process. Users are presented with confusing opt-out screens or pre-checked boxes while installing media players or PDF converters downloaded from third-party sites. Once executed, the LoadMoney wrapper reaches out to its C2 servers to determine which adware payloads will generate the most revenue for that specific geographic region. It then silently downloads and installs a myriad of toolbars, crypto-miners, or search hijackers, modifying the Windows Registry to establish persistence.<br><br><b>Forensic Analysis & Impact</b><br>Threat hunters will notice a massive spike in outbound HTTP/HTTPS connections to known PPI tracking domains (e.g., loadmoney.ru or affiliate links). The <code>%ProgramFiles%</code> and <code>%AppData%</code> directories will suddenly fill with randomly named folders containing unwanted software. The impact is a severely bloated endpoint, reduced performance, and an expanded attack surface, as LoadMoney has historically been observed dropping higher-severity trojans.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk team.",
  "aliases": [],
  "enrichment_level": "expert-seo",
  "faq": [],
  "faq_count": 0,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1112",
    "T1189",
    "T1176",
    "T1105",
    "T1204.002"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-06-09",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1189",
      "name": "Drive-by Compromise",
      "tactic": "Initial Access"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1105",
      "name": "Ingress Tool Transfer",
      "tactic": "Command and Control"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1204.002",
      "name": "User Execution: Malicious File",
      "tactic": "Execution"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1112",
      "name": "Modify Registry",
      "tactic": "Defense Evasion"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1176",
      "name": "Browser Extensions",
      "tactic": "Persistence"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Quarantine the endpoint to halt the ongoing downloading of secondary adware modules and toolbars.",
    "Audit the 'Add/Remove Programs' list and methodically uninstall the LoadMoney utility and all software installed concurrently.",
    "Reset all web browsers to their factory defaults to purge rogue extensions and restore legitimate search engine configurations.",
    "Deploy specialized adware removal tools (like AdwCleaner) to automatically identify and strip deep registry hooks left by the bundled PUPs."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not allow users to download software from third-party aggregators; enforce strict application whitelisting.",
    "Avoid treating LoadMoney as a simple annoyance; the affiliate networks it contacts are known to drop banking trojans."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Global / Opportunistic"
  ],
  "motivation": "Opportunistic",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ]
}