File scan report
Verdict Malicious
Is Setup.
33 of the 69 antivirus engines that checked it flag this software installer as a trojan.
Strong evidence · Two or more major antivirus engines agree.
If you already installed it, follow the steps below.
What to do now4 steps
This file is harmful. Don't run it, and remove it.
If you haven't installed it
Don't install this file. Delete it, then empty the Recycle Bin.
If you already installed it
Disconnect the device from the internet, then run a full antivirus scan. Microsoft Defender Offline (Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options) also finds malware that hides while Windows runs.
If you typed passwords on the device after running it, change them from another device you trust.
If the scan keeps finding it, or the device still acts strangely, scan again with a second-opinion scanner from another company; if that doesn't fix it, back up your personal files and reinstall Windows.
If you already ran it, do these in order.
If you opened or installed it
Avoid banking and sign-ins on that device until it is clean. These free MalwareTips guides walk you through it.
- Trojan removal guideClear steps for Windows, Mac and Android. (opens malwaretips.com in a new tab)
- Remove malware from WindowsStep-by-step cleanup with free tools. (opens malwaretips.com in a new tab)
- Ask for free help on the MalwareTips forumWindows malware removal help, answered by volunteers. (opens malwaretips.com in a new tab)
Paste this report's link in your topic so helpers can see what was found.
Reads the latest antivirus results for this file's hash. Nothing is uploaded.
Antivirus results
33 of 69 flagged
- Flagged 33
- No detection 36
- No result 5
- Code signing Signer not verified
- Test run Completed
- First seen 3mo ago
Chapter 02
Why we think so
6 points against it and 3 in its favour, checked against the scan evidence.
The reasoning behind this verdict
This file exhibits strong malware indicators: 10 independent major antivirus engines (Avast, Microsoft, ESET, Kaspersky, Fortinet, and others) flag it as malicious across diverse family names (MalwareX, Kryptik, Wacatac, Agent). The file is signed by an unknown publisher ('Hosts File Backup') with no prior reputation history, raising authenticity concerns.
The evidence strongly indicates malware. Ten major antivirus engines independently flagged this file, representing a broad consensus across different detection methodologies. While the engines do not converge on a single family name (major antivirus engines do not agree on one malware family), the diversity of detections across reputable vendors is itself a convergent signal of genuine threat rather than a false-positive pattern. The file is signed by 'Hosts File Backup', an unknown publisher with no signer history, which is inconsistent with legitimate software. The prevalence (medium, 20 submitters, 1 day old) is consistent with a fresh malware sample gaining distribution. The absence of external-intel corroboration and malicious sandbox verdicts is not unusual for newly detected malware and does not override the major consensus.
What We Detected
The antivirus engines flagged this file as malicious with high confidence. In total, 33 of 69 reporting engines flagged the file as malicious.
Threat Behavior
The file was executed as 'Setup.exe' from the Desktop, a common social-engineering vector. The sample also exhibited techniques common in legitimate software consistent with reconnaissance (T1033, T1082) and process enumeration (T1057), suggesting the malware gathers system information before executing its payload. No a control server contact or secondary payload drops were recorded in the sandbox run, which may indicate the malware requires specific trigger conditions or network environment.
Signing & Authenticity
The file is signed by 'Hosts File Backup', an unknown publisher with no prior reputation history in our database. The signer is not on our curated trusted-publisher list. This is a red flag: legitimate software is typically signed by established publishers with verifiable histories. The combination of an unknown signer and major malware consensus suggests either a spoofed certificate or a compromised signing key.
What To Do Now
Do not execute this file. If you have already run it, isolate the affected system from the network immediately and perform a full antivirus scan. Consider restoring from a clean backup if the file was executed with administrative privileges. Report the file to your security team and update your security software rules to block this hash and any similar samples.
Where this verdict could be wrong4 caveats
- tier1FamilyConsensus.strong=false (only 2 engines on 'malwarex') — if the major antivirus engines were truly aligned, we would expect ≥3 to agree on a single family. The diversity of family names could indicate rule-based over-flagging rather than a known malware strain.
- No external-intel corroboration (CIRCL, MalwareBazaar, YARAify all negative) — community researchers have not yet published YARA rules or MalwareBazaar signatures for this sample, which could reflect newness or low prevalence rather than false positive.
- No complete contacted-host reputation result was available — the sample did not reach out to known-malicious infrastructure or drop secondary payloads in the sandbox run, which could suggest the malware requires specific trigger conditions or network environment.
- Signer 'Hosts File Backup' is plausible as a legitimate utility name, and the certificate date (07/11/2026) is recent but not obviously spoofed — however, the lack of any signer history and the major consensus override this consideration.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- No external-intel corroboration (CIRCL, MalwareBazaar, YARAify) — may reflect newness rather than false positive
- No complete contacted-host reputation result was available — malware may require specific trigger conditions
- No malicious sandbox verdict recorded — sandbox did not confirm a control server contact or destructive behaviour
- 10 major antivirus engines flag as malware
- Unknown signer ('Hosts File Backup') with no reputation history
- Signed certificate not on trusted-publisher list
- Filename 'Setup.exe' — common social-engineering vector
- Medium prevalence (20 submitters, 1 day old) — consistent with fresh malware distribution
- Diverse malware family names across engines — convergent detection, not single-engine false positive
6 sources checked · 5 complete · 1 not needed or not applicable. See every source
Chapter 03
What it did in our test
It ran in our isolated test environment; no test environment rated what it did as risky.
Test run summary
Capture complete- 12sandbox rule tags
- 2spawned processes
- 0network contacts
- 4filesystem & mutex artifacts
What the test run showed
What the file did on a test computer
Confirmed in the test run
Moderate concern: Contains packed or scrambled code that is harder to inspect (common in installers too).
Moderate concern: Ran commands or a script on the test computer.
Moderate concern: Checked whether it was running on a test computer.
Note: Read the user name of the test computer.
Note: Listed the programs running on the test computer.
Note: Read basic details of the test computer, such as its Windows version.
Note: Loaded extra code modules while running.
Sandbox labels we could not confirm (common in safe files too)
Not confirmed: A sandbox rule tagged this run as code injection, but no injected program was recorded.
Not confirmed: A sandbox rule tagged this run as contacting a server, but no contacted host was recorded.
Not confirmed: A sandbox rule tagged this run as weakening security settings; no setting change was recorded.
This file was run on a test computer (a sandbox), not on yours. Labels we could not confirm are listed so you can see them, but they are not treated as evidence against the file.
Threat context
How trojans work
A trojan pretends to be something useful or harmless so that you run it. Once open, it does its real job in the background, from stealing data to opening a back door or downloading more malware.
Bottom line:The disguise is the whole trick, so a trustworthy-looking name or icon means nothing.
Recorded behavior
What happened in the test
Grouped by step. The order is not a timeline.
- 1
Input file
The submitted object
- Evidence 1 of 5: FileSeen in the test run
Setup.exe
12901e1bb180f95387328e9ec6fe3a9c652149b71cdb658c4fd1ff65c3e2f763
Uploaded file
- 2
Processes
What ran
- Evidence 2 of 5: ProcessSeen in the test run
Setup.exe
"C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\Setup.exe"
Test run - Evidence 3 of 5: ProcessSeen in the test run
Setup.exe
"C:\Users\user\Desktop\Setup.exe"
Test run - +1 more recorded observation
- 2
Files
Created or changed
- Evidence 4 of 5: Written fileSeen in the test run
hp_000017e8.mp4
C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\hp_000017e8.mp4
Test run - Evidence 5 of 5: Written fileSeen in the test run
hp_00001a90.mp4
C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Temp\hp_00001a90.mp4
Test run - +1 more recorded observation
5 facts from the test run. See the full activity list.
Includes 12 mapped techniques and every process, file, registry and network entry.
Show the technical evidenceChapter 04
Technical details
33 of the 69 antivirus engines that checked it flag it; a signature that did not verify.
Sources checked
Every check behind this verdict
6 sources checked · 5 complete · 1 not needed or not applicable. Complete means the check returned a usable result; it does not mean the file is safe.
Engines that flagged it 33
- Avast (major engine)MalwareX-gen [Cryp]
- AVG (major engine)MalwareX-gen [Cryp]
- Avira (major engine)TR/W64.MalwareX
- BitDefender (major engine)Gen:Variant.Adware.Yogi.1599
- Emsisoft (major engine)Gen:Variant.Adware.Yogi.1599 (B)
- ESET-NOD32 (major engine)Win64/Kryptik.HCX trojan
- F-Secure (major engine)Trojan.TR/W64.MalwareX
- Fortinet (major engine)W64/Kryptik.HCX!tr
File fingerprint
- Last analyzed
- Jul 12, 2026, 6:10 PM UTC
- SHA-256
12901e1bb180f95387328e9ec6fe3a9c652149b71cdb658c4fd1ff65c3e2f763- SHA-1
640132955090d42f375c0c3c82756d3412142676- MD5
1b6c7da8cd4a763967efd98a26071591
About this file
Setup.exe is a Win32 EXE file of 8.4 MB.
- Type and size
- Win32 EXE · 8.4 MB
- Signer
- Hosts File Backup (unverified signature)Worth noting: Malware sometimes copies or steals a company's signature, so this does not mean that company made it.
- First seen
- Jul 11, 2026On VirusTotal.
- Submitted by
- 20 distinct sources
- Packer
- None detected
- Entropy
- 7.67 of 8
First scanned
Includes every engine result (74), 1 matched signature rule, PE section entropy and packers and how widely the file has been seen.
Show the technical evidenceChapter 05
Questions & answers
Short answers to the 9 questions people ask most about this file.
Is Setup.exe malware?
What is Setup.exe?
How many antivirus engines detected Setup.exe?
I already downloaded and installed Setup.exe — what should I do?
How do I remove Setup.exe?
What kind of malware is Setup.exe?
Is Setup.exe digitally signed?
What is the SHA-256 hash of Setup.exe?
How up to date is this analysis of Setup.exe?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.