Is fnext.exe safe?
Unsigned 20 MB PE triggers six tier-1 engines with VMProtect labels and shows direct-IP contact.
Six tier-1 engines flag the file as malicious, including generic VMProtect and Wacatac detections. The binary is unsigned, newly submitted, and exhibits T1548 plus direct-IP traffic, yet no sandbox verdict or researcher signatures confirm malice.
60acfb234917271383…7d6c4c262246fbRecommended next actions
Before running
Do not run it until the source and publisher can be verified independently.
If you already ran it
Stop using it, scan the device, and watch for unexpected behavior or security alerts. Get a fresh copy from the developer's official site or an official app store.
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.
Six tier-1 engines flag the file as malicious, including generic VMProtect and Wacatac detections. The binary is unsigned, newly submitted, and exhibits T1548 plus direct-IP traffic, yet no sandbox verdict or researcher signatures confirm malice.
The combination of tier-1 detections, unsigned status, and rare-new prevalence outweighs the absence of sandbox malice or external-intel hits. Direct-IP contact is noted but cannot be fully assessed because contactedHosts coverage is missing. The weak single-engine VMProtect consensus and generic labels keep the verdict at suspicious rather than malicious.
What We Detected
Six tier-1 engines (Avast, AVG, Avira, ESET-NOD32, F-Secure, Microsoft, Symantec) report malicious or suspicious labels, most citing generic packers or heuristics. The file is a 20 MB unsigned Win32 EXE with no code-signing certificate and no prior signer history.
Threat Behavior
One sandbox execution recorded MITRE technique T1548 and a direct connection to IP 162.159.36.2 without an associated domain. No dropped children, persistence indicators, or malicious sandbox verdicts were observed. External intelligence sources returned no matching YARA rules or known-malware entries.
What To Do Now
Do not execute the file. Keep endpoint protection enabled. If the binary is required for legitimate work, submit it to a controlled analysis environment and monitor for further indicators such as C2 domains or additional dropped payloads.
Where this verdict could be wrong2 caveats
- contactedHosts is null so no complete host-reputation cross-check is available
- externalIntel.yaraify.ruleCount=0 and malwareBazaar.hit=false — no independent researcher signatures
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 sandbox malicious verdict
- No dropped malicious children
- No YARA or CIRCL hits
- Unsigned executable
- Six tier-1 malicious detections
- Rare and newly observed
- Direct-IP contact without domain
Treat the sample as suspicious; do not run it outside an isolated environment until additional sandbox or dynamic-analysis results are available.
Coverage & freshness
Complete means the check returned a usable result. It does not mean the file is safe.
Antivirus
Complete17 of 75 engines flagged the file.
Sandbox
Complete1 isolated runtime environment contributed observations.
Network
Partial1 runtime contact was observed without a completed reputation cross-check.
YARA
Complete1 signature or behavior rule 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
- 5MITRE ATT&CK techniques
- 1spawned processes
- 1network contacts
- 0filesystem & mutex artifacts
What this file does
Observed actions and their security significance
Moderate concern: Contained obfuscated or packed code that makes inspection harder.
Moderate concern: Checked the environment for virtualisation or analysis tools.
Moderate concern: Checks which security software you have installed.
Note: Connected to 1 server during sandbox analysis.
These are observed capabilities from an isolated analysis. A technique does not prove malicious intent on its own, and the file never ran on your device.
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
fnext.exe
60acfb234917271383bc078ccf40abc41a5c99e7b4ddf6e1267d6c4c262246fb
01Uploaded file
Processes
Runtime execution
- ProcessObserved
Observed process
"C:\Users\user\Desktop\software.exe"
02Isolated runtime analysis
Network
Hosts contacted
- Contacted hostObserved
162.159.36.2
Contact observed during runtime.
03Isolated runtime analysis
3 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.
- 162.159.36.2
Detection & Forensics
Consensus, attribution, signatures, code structure, prevalence, and identity.
Evidence integrity
Chain of custody for the facts preserved in this report.
- 1rule hit recorded
- 17 / 75engines flagged
- 2sources in submission history
Why these facts are shown
Each statement identifies whether it was directly recorded or derived from saved scan facts.
- 01
17 of 75 antivirus engines flagged the file, including Avast and AVG.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceObservedSourceAntivirus analysisObserved at - 02
The hash has been submitted 2 times from 2 sources.
ProvenanceDerivedSourceSaved report factsObserved at - 03
Scanned file: fnext.exe — 60acfb234917271383bc078ccf40abc41a5c99e7b4ddf6e1267d6c4c262246fb
ProvenanceObservedSourceUploaded fileObserved at - 04
Observed process — "C:\Users\user\Desktop\software.exe"
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 05
Contacted host: 162.159.36.2 — Contact observed during runtime.
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at
Detection sources at a glance
Category: generic-trojan
MalwareBazaar, YARAify, and CIRCL hashlookup completed and returned no entries for this hash.
Signatures and behavior heuristics
Low-severity pattern matches — worth noting but not on their own cause for alarm.
The 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.
Evidence162.159.36.2
17 of 75 engines flagged this file
View all 75 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
Barely seen in the wild and first surfaced recently. 17 antivirus detections make that low prevalence materially relevant, but rarity alone is not proof of malware.
Fingerprint and provenance
- File name
- fnext.exe
- Format
- Win32 EXE
- Code signing
- No verified publisher
- Size
- 19.1 MB
- Last analyzed
- Aug 21, 2026, 12:21 AM UTC
60acfb234917271383bc078ccf40abc41a5c99e7b4ddf6e1267d6c4c262246fbSafety & FAQ
Complete recovery guidance and answers for the next decision.
What to do now
We couldn't fully clear this file. Treat it with caution.
- Recovery step 01
Don't run it unless you're certain it came from a source you trust.
- Recovery step 02
Check where you got it — an unexpected attachment or a random download link is a red flag.
- Recovery step 03
If its origin cannot be confirmed, delete this file and use a fresh copy from a trusted source. Get a fresh copy from the developer's official site or an official app store.
- Recovery step 04
If you're still unsure, scan it again in a day or two — detections often catch up on newer files.
Safety FAQ
Direct answers grounded in the saved verdict and evidence in this report.
Is fnext.exe safe, or is it malware?
What is fnext.exe?
How many antivirus engines detected fnext.exe?
I already downloaded and ran fnext.exe — what should I do?
How do I remove fnext.exe?
What kind of malware is fnext.exe?
What is the SHA-256 hash of fnext.exe?
How up to date is this analysis of fnext.exe?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.