Is vs_setup.exe safe?
A verified Microsoft signature, zero detections across 75 engines, and five matching signer precedents outweigh uncorroborated sandbox technique mappings.
The executable carries a verified Microsoft Corporation signature, and none of 75 antivirus engines flagged it. One sandbox produced concerning technique mappings involving injection and LSASS, but issued no malicious runtime finding; because the exact hash is newly observed, obtain it through Microsoft's official channel.
abfc7e8ea00913fa52…39bafd6cd79ccdRecommended next actions
Before installing
Install it only when it came from the developer's official site or an official app store.
If you already installed 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.
The executable carries a verified Microsoft Corporation signature, and none of 75 antivirus engines flagged it. One sandbox produced concerning technique mappings involving injection and LSASS, but issued no malicious runtime finding; because the exact hash is newly observed, obtain it through Microsoft's official channel.
No antivirus engine flagged the sample: the result is 0 of 75, including no tier-1 detections. Its signature verifies to Microsoft Corporation, a curated trusted publisher, and 15 of 16 historical samples associated with that signer were rated safe. Five signer-matched prior files also received safe decisions, strengthening the commercial-installer interpretation. One sandbox mapped activity to T1055, T1485, and T1486 and surfaced LSASS-related activity, but it did not issue a malicious sandbox finding and no inspected child was identified as malicious. The exact hash is only two days old, and the direct-IP contact lacks a completed host-reputation cross-check, so source verification remains advisable.
What We Detected
The file is a signed Windows executable named vs_setup.exe. Its Authenticode signature verifies to Microsoft Corporation, signing.trustedPublisher.matched is true, and 0 of 75 antivirus engines reported a detection. Five previous signer-matched files received safe decisions, while the signer's recorded history is 15 safe results out of 16 samples.
Threat Behavior
One completed sandbox run mapped activity to T1055, T1485, and T1486 and associated process activity with LSASS. These are concerning mappings, but the sandbox did not issue a malicious finding, and none of 10 inspected dropped files was identified as malicious; their individual verdicts remain unknown. The executable also contacted 162.159.36.2 directly, but no complete host-reputation result is available because the contacted-host check was not saved.
What To Do Now
Use the file only if it came from Microsoft's official download channel and Windows still shows a valid Microsoft Corporation signature. Keep endpoint protection enabled, and redownload the installer if its origin or signature cannot be verified.
Where this verdict could be wrong5 caveats
- behaviour.offensiveTechniques includes T1055, T1485, and T1486, and MalwareTips.Synth.CredentialDumper associated observed process activity with LSASS.
- prevalence.classification=rare_new: this exact hash was submitted once and first observed two days ago.
- The sample contacted 162.159.36.2 directly, but contactedHosts=null means no completed reputation cross-check is available.
- droppedChildren inspected 10 files without identifying a malicious child, but all 10 individual child verdicts are unknown.
- signing.signerStats includes 1 malicious result among 16 Microsoft-signed historical samples.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- 0 of 75 antivirus engines reported a detection.
- The Microsoft Corporation signature is verified.
- Microsoft matched the curated trusted-publisher list.
- Five of five signer-matched prior decisions were safe.
- No malicious sandbox verdict or malicious dropped child was recorded.
- The exact hash is newly observed and has only one recorded submission.
- Sandbox mappings included T1055, T1485, and T1486.
- A heuristic associated observed process activity with LSASS.
- The direct-IP contact to 162.159.36.2 lacks a completed reputation check.
- All 10 dropped-child verdicts remain unknown.
Confirm that the installer was downloaded from an official Microsoft domain and that Windows reports a valid Microsoft Corporation signature. Keep endpoint protection enabled during installation.
Coverage & freshness
Complete means the check returned a usable result. It does not mean the file is safe.
Antivirus
Complete0 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
Complete3 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
- 9spawned processes
- 1network contacts
- 15filesystem & 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
vs_setup.exe
abfc7e8ea00913fa526096de5a3fa9855d16538b3be955f83b39bafd6cd79ccd
01Uploaded file
Processes
Runtime execution
- ProcessObserved
Observed process
"C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\vs_setup_bootstrapper.exe"
02Isolated runtime analysis - ProcessObserved
Observed process
C:\Windows\system32\services.exe
03Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
Files
Created or changed
- Written fileObserved
dd_vs_setup_bootstrapper_decompression_log.txt
C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\dd_vs_setup_bootstrapper_decompression_log.txt
04Isolated runtime analysis - Written fileObserved
help.html
C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\2052\help.html
05Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
Network
Hosts contacted
- Contacted hostObserved
162.159.36.2
Contact observed during runtime.
06Isolated runtime analysis
6 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
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\dd_vs_setup_bootstrapper_decompression_log.txt
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\2052\help.html
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\1028\help.html
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\1029\help.html
- C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\1033\help.html
Files this sample writes at runtime
This file drops 10 children at runtime. None are currently flagged malicious in our cache.
- 9502ac0910bcee0eb312…90581aNever scannednever seen before
- c2fdf9f03667e0b61f39…df501fNever scannednever seen before
- 7a13a7da236e87310b88…15baebNever scannednever seen before
- ce2907f69b1eea5b7805…2c89fdNever scannednever seen before
- aaee9a85803dde0db7e1…ca9c59Never scannednever seen before
- bcd4776cf7b0320e4138…72fddcNever scannednever seen before
- df46ca96704cbef3b79e…f9fd34Never scannednever seen before
- d9ab0a8db5a8409c5849…401611Never scannednever seen before
- 74de0856d5acb4200fd9…010105Never scannednever seen before
- d43abc82de4fb5dccd62…d65574Never 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.
- 3rule hits recorded
- 0 / 75engines flagged
- 1sources 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 75 antivirus engines flagged the file.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceObservedSourceAntivirus analysisObserved at - 02
The file has a valid code signature from Microsoft Corporation.
ProvenanceObservedSourceCode-signing metadataObserved at - 03
1 high-confidence signature or behavior rule matched this file.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceDerivedSourceSignature and behavior rulesObserved at - 04
Scanned file: vs_setup.exe — abfc7e8ea00913fa526096de5a3fa9855d16538b3be955f83b39bafd6cd79ccd
ProvenanceObservedSourceUploaded fileObserved at - 05
Observed process — "C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\vs_setup_bootstrapper.exe"
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 06
Observed process — C:\Windows\system32\services.exe
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 07
File written: dd_vs_setup_bootstrapper_decompression_log.txt — C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\dd_vs_setup_bootstrapper_decompression_log.txt
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 08
File written: help.html — C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\7e2154ef0bd2c32f095229fd8cd7e3\vs_bootstrapper_d15\HelpFile\2052\help.html
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 09
Contacted host: 162.159.36.2 — Contact observed during runtime.
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at
Detection sources at a glance
The available sources did not agree on a named threat category.
MalwareBazaar, YARAify, and CIRCL hashlookup completed and returned no entries for 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.
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.
EvidenceC:\Windows\System32\svchost.exe -k NetworkService -pSandbox observed process activity targeting LSASS (Windows credential store). Legitimate software has no business reading LSASS memory — this is Mimikatz-shape behaviour.
EvidenceC:\Windows\system32\lsass.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.
Evidence162.159.36.2
0 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. That limits reputation evidence, but rarity alone is not proof of malware.
Fingerprint and provenance
- File name
- vs_setup.exe
- Format
- Win32 EXE
- Code signing
- Signature valid: Microsoft Corporation
- Size
- 5.4 MB
- Last analyzed
- Sep 10, 2026, 9:04 PM UTC
abfc7e8ea00913fa526096de5a3fa9855d16538b3be955f83b39bafd6cd79ccdSafety & 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
Install it only when it came from the developer's official site or an official app store.
- 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 vs_setup.exe safe?
What is vs_setup.exe?
How many antivirus engines detected vs_setup.exe?
Is vs_setup.exe digitally signed?
What is the SHA-256 hash of vs_setup.exe?
Is it safe to install vs_setup.exe?
How up to date is this analysis of vs_setup.exe?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.