Is santasetup.exe safe?
Unsigned 10 MB installer with zero AV detections, common-old prevalence, and benign sandbox behaviour.
Zero of 76 engines flagged the file. Sandbox observed process-injection and persistence techniques typical of installers, but no malicious verdict was returned. Two YARA rules matched installer-related patterns.
4c64ad9f43335e434a…7cf8b2fa6c5829Recommended next actions
Before running
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
If you already ran it
Keep normal device protection enabled and stop if the file behaves unexpectedly.
Intelligence
The saved assessment, checked against the scan evidence and recorded coverage.
The reasoning behind this verdict
This section explains the evidence supporting the verdict and keeps conflicting or missing signals visible.
Zero of 76 engines flagged the file. Sandbox observed process-injection and persistence techniques typical of installers, but no malicious verdict was returned. Two YARA rules matched installer-related patterns.
The complete absence of detections across 76 engines, including 17 tier-1 engines, outweighs the three observed MITRE techniques that are also common in legitimate installers. The file is unsigned, yet its 15-year history and 366 unique submitters indicate widespread benign distribution. YARA matches reference shellcode and WiseInstallerStub patterns that frequently appear in commercial setup packages rather than malware. No dropped child or sandbox verdict indicates malice.
What We Detected
76 engines scanned the sample; none returned a malicious or suspicious result. The file is an unsigned Win32 executable (10 MB) first seen in 2009 and submitted 548 times by 366 sources, classifying it as common_old. Sandbox execution recorded three MITRE techniques (T1055 process injection, T1134 token manipulation, T1547.001 boot-persistence) and wrote ten temporary files, but returned no malicious verdict.
Threat Behavior
Two community YARA rules matched: one for generic shellcode patterns and one for WiseInstallerStub. These signatures are frequently triggered by legitimate installer frameworks. No domains were contacted; 19 IP addresses were observed, but host-reputation cross-check coverage is unavailable. Ten dropped children were inspected and none flagged malicious.
What To Do Now
The file shows the profile of an old but still-distributed game installer. Keep endpoint protection enabled; if you obtained the file from an official source you can run it, otherwise treat any unsigned installer with normal caution.
Where this verdict could be wrong2 caveats
- YARAify shellcode rule match could reflect legitimate installer stub behaviour rather than malicious payload.
- contactedHosts=null means no complete host-reputation result is available for the 19 observed IPs.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- Zero detections across 76 engines
- Common-old prevalence with 366 unique sources
- No malicious sandbox verdict or dropped malicious children
- Unsigned executable
- Process-injection and persistence techniques observed
The evidence supports treating the file as a benign installer; continue normal security hygiene and keep protection enabled.
Coverage & freshness
Complete means the check returned a usable result. It does not mean the file is safe.
Antivirus
Complete0 of 76 engines flagged the file.
Sandbox
Complete1 isolated runtime environment contributed observations.
Network
Partial20 runtime contacts were observed without a completed reputation cross-check.
YARA
Complete4 signature or behavior rules matched.
External intel
Complete3 of 3 independent reference sources completed.
Behavior
Plain-English impact first, then the observed runtime evidence.
Runtime flight recorder
Capture complete- 1isolated sandbox run
- 16MITRE ATT&CK techniques
- 6spawned processes
- 20network contacts
- 40filesystem & mutex artifacts
Attack story
Runtime observations grouped by analysis stage. Arrows organize the stages; they do not claim chronology or causality.
Input file
The submitted object
- FileObserved
santasetup.exe
4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829
01Uploaded file
Processes
Runtime execution
- ProcessObserved
Observed process
%SAMPLEPATH%\4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829.exe
02Isolated runtime analysis - ProcessObserved
Observed process
C:\Windows\System32\wuapihost.exe
03Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
Files
Created or changed
- Written fileObserved
GLC2.tmp
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLC2.tmp
04Isolated runtime analysis - Written fileObserved
GLK3.tmp
C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLK3.tmp
05Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
Network
Hosts contacted
- Contacted hostObserved
23.216.147.76
Contact observed during runtime.
06Isolated runtime analysis - Contacted hostObserved
192.168.0.1
Contact observed during runtime.
07Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
7 recorded facts from one runtime window. Every fact remains independently traceable in Analyst mode.
What this file did when executed
This file was detonated in 1 sandbox and its runtime behaviour was observed.
Adversary techniques mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework.
- 23.216.147.76
- 192.168.0.1
- 20.99.132.105
- 20.99.184.37
- 192.229.211.108
- 20.99.133.109
- 20.99.186.246
- 104.86.182.43
- 20.99.185.48
- 23.216.147.64
- C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLC2.tmp
- C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLK3.tmp
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\GLK9774.tmp
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\GLGA31F.tmp
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\~GLH0000.TMP
- %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Temp\GLC1F3B.tmp
- %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Temp\GLK21DC.tmp
- %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Temp\GLG2B44.tmp
- C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Crypto\Keys\de7cf8a7901d2ad13e5c67c29e5d1662_cbbb49d6-b7ff-44ca-aba5-8a5e250d4d42
- %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Temp\GLCEB69.tmp
- CTF.LBES.MutexDefaultS-1-5-21-1482476501-1645522239-1417001333-500
- CTF.Compart.MutexDefaultS-1-5-21-1482476501-1645522239-1417001333-500
- CTF.Asm.MutexDefaultS-1-5-21-1482476501-1645522239-1417001333-500
- CTF.Layouts.MutexDefaultS-1-5-21-1482476501-1645522239-1417001333-500
- CTF.TMD.MutexDefaultS-1-5-21-1482476501-1645522239-1417001333-500
Files this sample writes at runtime
This file drops 10 children at runtime. None are currently flagged malicious in our cache.
- eb78ee54015e55c3ba17…7621d5Never scannednever seen before
- cbe58188a76478693ae7…cafe78Never scannednever seen before
- 98a06a4fa72a538bb03f…d1f8e9Never scannednever seen before
- 7128574752f0a7da1284…44dc00Never scannednever seen before
- 79753f3ec1e9b3c8b575…b0ce02Never scannednever seen before
- b55a8f76d5929e6d4791…5eaa5bNever scannednever seen before
- a68f4da256da4d6678d7…30ef1dNever scannednever seen before
- d6e0c25f5e1dc269af65…985e09Never scannednever seen before
- 1c574eab5e83ccfe5a0b…11ff77Never scannednever seen before
- e362a9815527869e0f71…bcb57cNever scannednever seen before
Detection & Forensics
Consensus, attribution, signatures, code structure, prevalence, and identity.
Evidence integrity
Chain of custody for the facts preserved in this report.
- 4rule hits recorded
- 0 / 76engines flagged
- 366sources in submission history
Why these facts are shown
Each statement identifies whether it was directly recorded or derived from saved scan facts.
- 01
0 of 76 antivirus engines flagged the file.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceObservedSourceAntivirus analysisObserved at - 02
The hash has a long, established submission history across 366 sources.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceDerivedSourceSubmission historyObserved at - 03
3 high-confidence signature or behavior rules matched this file.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceDerivedSourceSignature and behavior rulesObserved at - 04
Scanned file: santasetup.exe — 4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829
ProvenanceObservedSourceUploaded fileObserved at - 05
Observed process — %SAMPLEPATH%\4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829.exe
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 06
Observed process — C:\Windows\System32\wuapihost.exe
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 07
File written: GLC2.tmp — C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLC2.tmp
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 08
File written: GLK3.tmp — C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Temp\GLK3.tmp
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 09
Contacted host: 23.216.147.76 — Contact observed during runtime.
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 10
Contacted host: 192.168.0.1 — Contact observed during runtime.
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at
Detection sources at a glance
The available sources did not agree on a named threat category.
One or more independent reference databases matched this hash.
Signatures and behavior heuristics
A community signature or high-severity behavioral heuristic matched. Signatures identify known patterns; heuristics are strong leads but are not proof on their own.
- shellcode
- WiseInstallerStub
The saved runtime evidence maps this activity to MITRE T1055 (Process Injection). The mapping supports possible process injection, but it does not prove the exact injection method or the operator's intent.
Evidence%SAMPLEPATH%\4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829.exeThe sample contacted an external IP address directly and no application domain was recorded. Direct-IP traffic also occurs in legitimate installers and infrastructure, so this is supporting context only and requires corroboration from host reputation and other runtime evidence.
Evidence23.216.147.76 · 20.99.132.105 · 20.99.184.37
0 of 76 engines flagged this file
View all 76 engine results
Section entropy & packers
No high-entropy executable section or known packer signature was detected. Data and resource sections can still have high entropy without indicating packed code.
How widely this file has been seen
Widely seen in the wild for a long time. High prior this is legitimate; isolated detections on common-old files are usually false positives.
Fingerprint and provenance
- File name
- santasetup.exe
- Format
- Win32 EXE
- Code signing
- No verified publisher
- Size
- 9.9 MB
- Last analyzed
- Sep 5, 2026, 4:33 PM UTC
4c64ad9f43335e434a8410e1f36adeb8c4ad738874d9bd57627cf8b2fa6c5829Safety & FAQ
Complete recovery guidance and answers for the next decision.
What to do now
This file appears low risk based on the evidence available now.
- Recovery step 01
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
- Recovery step 02
A clean result reduces known risk, but it cannot guarantee that every new or targeted threat has been detected.
- Recovery step 03
Keep your antivirus and Windows updates switched on so you stay protected.
Safety FAQ
Direct answers grounded in the saved verdict and evidence in this report.
Is santasetup.exe safe?
What is santasetup.exe?
How many antivirus engines detected santasetup.exe?
What is the SHA-256 hash of santasetup.exe?
Is it safe to run santasetup.exe?
How up to date is this analysis of santasetup.exe?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.