File verdict·Decided by the MT AI Engine
Our call

Safe

Old InstallShield-signed installer with zero engine detections and clean sandbox behaviour.

Verified · InstallShield Software Corporation
Trust score88High trust
Setup.exe
105.0 KB
e25cadc80ea5163e0fcdb01b39bd
Antivirus engines
0 of 74 flagged
Code signing
Signed by InstallShield Software Corporation
Age
First seen 20y ago
MT AI Engine · Verdict analysis

The reasoning behind this verdict

The MT AI Engine weighs every signal from this scan — antivirus detections, sandbox behaviour, code signing, prevalence and historical matches — to reach a single, evidence-based verdict.

85%Confidence
Very high
Reasoning

The complete absence of malicious detections across all engine tiers, combined with a verified commercial signer and long submission history, outweighs the heuristic MITRE flags. Sandbox execution yielded no malicious verdicts and no malicious dropped children. External NSRL reference plus multiple researcher comments labelling the sample benign further support a clean classification.

Key signals · 5

Each signal cites a concrete token from the evidence the arbiter saw — engine name, MITRE technique, signer string, or an exact count.

  1. engines: 0/74 malicious (17 tier-1 clean)

  2. signing.verified=true, signer='InstallShield Software Corporation'

  3. prevalence.classification='common_old' (6075 submissions)

  4. externalIntel.circl.knownMalicious=null (nsrl_legacy hit)

  5. communityComments[4].text='Photoshop Installer #safe'

Points in its favour
  • Zero engine detections across 70 reporters
  • Verified InstallShield signature
  • NSRL legacy reference with no known-malicious flag
  • Multiple researcher comments labelling the sample benign
Recommended action

Proceed with normal use; the evidence indicates a clean legacy installer.

What to do now

This file looks safe based on everything we checked.

  1. This file is safe to use.

  2. Good habit: only download files from the official website or an app store.

  3. Keep your antivirus and Windows updates switched on so you stay protected.

Runtime behaviour

What this file did when executed

This file was detonated in 1 sandbox and its runtime behaviour was observed.

MITRE ATT&CK
22

Adversary techniques mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework.

T1012T1018T1036T1053· Scheduled taskT1055· Process injectionT1056· KeyloggingT1057· Lists programsT1059· Runs commandsT1071· Remote server (C2)T1082· System reconT1083· Scans your filesT1095· Custom networkT1112T1129· Loads modulesT1497· Sandbox evasionT1518.001· Checks your AVT1543.003· Service installT1547.001· Auto-startT1564.001· Hides artifactsT1564.003· Hides artifactsT1574.001· Execution hijackT1574.002· Execution hijack
Spawned processes
15
$(unnamed)
"C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\file.exe"
$(unnamed)
-deleter
$(unnamed)
%SAMPLEPATH%\Setup.exe
$(unnamed)
C:\Windows\System32\wuapihost.exe
$(unnamed)
C:\Program Files (x86)\Google2164_979134505\bin\updater.exe
$(unnamed)
%SAMPLEPATH%\e25cadc80ea5163e0f1c6fd703479469d9f23b47ade244fac5f22bcdb01b39bd.exe
$(unnamed)
C:\Windows\System32\UI0Detect.exe
$(unnamed)
C:\Program Files\Google3016_1570854431\bin\updater.exe
+7 more processes captured.
Network activity
20
IP addresses20
  • 13.107.39.203
  • a83f:8110:3300:3400:3500:3900:3800:3100
  • 20.80.129.13
  • 192.168.0.45
  • a83f:8110:3066:95ff:3066:95ff:3266:95ff
  • a83f:8110:0:0:700:700:2800:4000
  • 23.59.190.193
  • a83f:8110:e5d5:9aff:e5d5:9aff:e5d5:9aff
  • 192.168.0.83
  • 23.54.49.182
+10 more
Filesystem & mutexes
40
Files written15
  • C:\Program Files (x86)
  • C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft
  • C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate\1.3.147.37
  • C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate\Download\{56EB18F8-B008-4CBD-B6D2-8C97FE7E9062}\92.0.902.67
  • C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate\Download\{56EB18F8-B008-4CBD-B6D2-8C97FE7E9062}\92.0.902.67\MicrosoftEdge_X64_92.0.902.67_92.0.902.62.exe
+10 more
Files deleted15
  • C:\Users\<USER>\AppData\Local\Temp\_isdelet.ini
  • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER\Temp\WER615.tmp.WERInternalMetadata.xml
  • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER\Temp\WER616.tmp.WERInternalMetadata.xml
  • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER\Temp\WER6E0.tmp.csv
  • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER\Temp\WER6E1.tmp.csv
+10 more
Mutexes created10
  • 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
+5 more
Dropped payload

Files this sample writes at runtime

This file drops 10 children at runtime. None are currently flagged malicious in our cache.

10 unseen
  • 0950336e0d633eb645e0f636e7Never scanned
    never seen before
  • 027f58ea864ae1bffbb0430ca0Never scanned
    never seen before
  • dea37666ea6a0d73741e9e883dNever scanned
    never seen before
  • a3c71159920d066f570f03d5eaNever scanned
    never seen before
  • 2099f0854585b2115e090d7b95Never scanned
    never seen before
  • 3096d8e82917a9b73f323cdd5bNever scanned
    never seen before
  • 30e621d2720a1f8b727f44e8bcNever scanned
    never seen before
  • f2f69d75c8e2d790026cf926e9Never scanned
    never seen before
  • 67f193c7b2edcd0c93efbbaa2dNever scanned
    never seen before
  • 4d5434fc95c38b74a2acfea714Never scanned
    never seen before
External threat intelligence

1 corroborating signal from researcher-curated sources

CIRCL hashlookup HIT·known-good reference DB·trust 50/100View on CIRCL
nsrl_legacyCSI: Miami· setup.exe
Cross-referenced against MalwareBazaar (abuse.ch), YARAify, and the CIRCL hashlookup reference DB.
Signature matches

YARA & heuristic rule matches

A researcher-curated or high-severity heuristic rule matched this sample. These rules target specific malware families and are near-definitive.

2 synthesis
MITRE ATT&CK profile
Defense evasion× 1C2× 1
MalwareTips synthesis rules
Our own detection rules, applied to the scan data and sandbox behaviour
  • ProcessInjectionhigh

    MITRE T1055 (Process Injection) observed — CreateRemoteThread / APC / reflective-DLL injection. The payload is being smuggled into a legitimate process to bypass AV hooks.

    Evidence
    "C:\Users\<USER>\Desktop\file.exe"
  • DirectIpC2medium

    Sample contacted 18 external IP address(es) and zero domains. Benign software virtually always uses DNS; no-DNS direct-IP C2 is a strong malware indicator because it bypasses reputation systems and dodges domain-based blocklists.

    Evidence
    13.107.39.203 · a83f:8110:3300:3400:3500:3900:3800:3100 · 20.80.129.13
Antivirus engine breakdown

0 detections across 74 engines

0 malicious0 suspicious74 clean
Tier-117 engines
0flag
Top commercial AVs (low FP rate)
Tier-240 engines
0flag
Mainstream engines with mixed FP rates
Low-trust17 engines
0flag
Heuristic / generic-AI engines (high FP rate)
All 74 engines report this file as clean.
Hash e25cadc80ea5… cross-referenced against 74 AV engines via our AV network.
PE forensics

Section entropy & packers

Section-level entropy and packer detection from the PE header. Nothing suspicious here — entropy is within the normal range for unpacked code.

ent 7.12Unpacked
Section entropy4 sections
.text
6.39
.rdata
5.41
.data
4.58
.rsrc
4.77
0.0Packed threshold 7.28.0
Prevalence

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.

Common & old
Unique uploaders
3,349
Hundreds of people have uploaded this — common.
Total submissions
6,075
Includes repeat uploads by the same source.
First seen
20y ago
Jul 10, 2006
Prevalence quadrant
Rare · New
Targeted malware lives here
Common · New
Just-released software
Rare · Old
Niche or internal tooling
here
Common · Old
Trusted legitimate binaries
File identity

Forensic fingerprint

File biography
First seen (VT)
7/10/2006, 6:38:49 PM
First seen (MalwareBazaar)
Last analysis (VT)
7/18/2026, 8:39:33 AM
Scanned here
7/19/2026, 8:15:50 AM
File name
Setup.exe
Size
105.0 KB
MIME type
(unknown)
Detected type
Win32 EXE
SHA-256
e25cadc80ea5163e0f1c6fd703479469d9f23b47ade244fac5f22bcdb01b39bd
MD5
5b2065fa6f2ec63fe28be26fdb7b0480
SHA-1
e6d5fde72e7dd1d6581ff6dc05c4d00c795cd760
PE imphash
052531e33b73e689b62443a5a3b4e9d1
First seen (VT)
7/10/2006, 6:38:49 PM
Last analysis (VT)
7/18/2026, 8:39:33 AM
First scan (MalwareTips)
7/19/2026, 8:15:50 AM
Last scan (MalwareTips)
7/19/2026, 8:15:50 AM
Code signer
InstallShield Software Corporationverified
Community reputation
+126trusted
Behavior tags
via-torinstallshielddetect-debug-environmentinvalid-signaturepeexerevoked-certoverlaynsrllong-sleepssignedidlechecks-user-inputknown-distributor
Frequently asked

Safety FAQ

Common questions about Setup.exe, answered from the scan data above.

  • Setup.exe appears safe. 74 of 74 antivirus engines report it clean. It carries a verified digital signature from InstallShield Software Corporation. As a habit, only run files you downloaded from the official source, since attackers sometimes distribute trojanised copies of legitimate software under the same name.
  • Setup.exe is a Windows executable program, about 105 KB. Our analysis found no threat indicators for it. It carries a verified digital signature from InstallShield Software Corporation. A file's name can be reused by different files, so we identify it by its cryptographic hash (below).
  • None — all 74 antivirus engines we queried report Setup.exe as clean. That's reassuring, though brand-new malware can briefly evade detection before vendors add signatures, so we also weigh the file's behaviour and reputation.
  • Yes — Setup.exe carries a valid digital signature from InstallShield Software Corporation, which confirms the file hasn't been tampered with since that publisher signed it. A valid signature is a positive signal, but note that malware is occasionally signed with stolen or abused certificates, so it isn't proof of safety on its own.
  • The SHA-256 hash of Setup.exe is e25cadc80ea5163e0f1c6fd703479469d9f23b47ade244fac5f22bcdb01b39bd, and its MD5 is 5b2065fa6f2ec63fe28be26fdb7b0480. This hash is the file's unique fingerprint — two files with the same SHA-256 are identical. Use it to confirm you're looking at exactly this file (not just one with the same name) when comparing against antivirus databases or a download's published checksum.
  • Based on this scan, yes — Setup.exe shows no threat indicators and is properly signed. The important caveat is source: make sure you downloaded it from the official website or a trusted store, because attackers sometimes distribute malware-laced copies under a legitimate file's name. If your own antivirus flags it while we report it clean, that is most often a false positive, but verify the source before overriding your antivirus.
  • This report reflects the scan run on July 19, 2026. Because a file's hash never changes, the identity of Setup.exe is fixed — but antivirus coverage improves over time, so a file that looks clean today can pick up detections later (and vice-versa). If you need the latest picture, MalwareTips staff can re-run the analysis from scratch.
Community classification

Reviews & malware reports(0)

Tell the community what you saw. Tag the sample — Trojan, Adware, False Positive — and share what the file did on your system. Your report helps confirm or dispute the AV verdict.

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Files are processed in a streaming pass-through — MalwareTips never stores the binary on its servers. Only the scan result (hash, detections, verdict) is retained so the next person who scans the same file gets an instant answer. If you ran this file on your computer and are worried, scan your system with an up-to-date antivirus and change critical passwords from a different device.