# Free Darktrack RAT Has the Potential of Being the Best RAT on the Market

**[news.softpedia.com/news/free-darktrack-rat-has-the-potential-of-being-the-best-rat-on-the-market-508179.shtml](http://news.softpedia.com/news/free-darktrack-rat-has-the-potential-of-being-the-best-rat-on-the-market-508179.shtml)**

Catalin Cimpanu September 11, 2016

**A remote access trojan (RAT) developed and provided for free by a malware coder**
**named Luckyduck is actually as good as other top-shelf commercial RATs available**
**today.**

This freemium distribution model is strange on today's malware scene where all powerful
toolkits are available for a price on underground hacking forums or Dark Web marketplaces,
especially if they're actually any good.

Free RATs are often incomplete, easily detected by antivirus engines, and often backdoored
by their creators.

That's why, when a security researcher that goes by the name of MalwareHunterTeam came
[across a Darktrack sample at the end of August, things just didn't add up.](https://twitter.com/malwrhunterteam/status/770690289401028608)

## Darktrack as good as commercial RATs

The RAT was full of powerful features, usually found in commercial RATs. But when
MalwareHunterTeam tracked down the RAT's homepage, he discovered that Darktrack's
creator was offering it for free, and pledging to do so forever.

MalwareHunterTeam had come across Darktrack version 4.0. In the meantime, after the
researcher's tip-off, Softpedia has been keeping an eye out for Darktrack mentions online,
trying to see how this RAT evolved.

As it turns out, on the same day that MalwareHunterTeam discovered version 4.0, Luckyduck
opened a thread on one of the largest underground hacking forums, teasing an upcoming
version called Darktrack Alien+ 4.1.

"The previous [4.0] version was also at least as good as the current 'best selling' RATs,"
MalwareHunterTeam told Softpedia. "If the new version will be even better, and still free,
don't think there is any reason to buy a paid RAT."

## Malware author doing business on the public Internet

Answering questions from other forum users, Luckyduck said that a new and improved
version was very close to its release. On September 4, Luckyduck uploaded a video on
YouTube (now delisted, check udpate at the end of the article) showing Darktrack Alien+ 4.1
during early tests.


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_Darktrack RAT GUI_
The malware coder also runs a dedicated website for Darktrack on the public Internet. He
also runs a support topic, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ pages, and brazenly lists his
[Skype ID. His YouTube channel also features many Darktrack tutorials.](https://www.softpedia.com/get/Office-tools/Fax-Telephony/Skype.shtml)

Domain whois information returns the details of a man named Ekrem Karatas from Istanbul,
Turkey. This may be a fake identity, so we wouldn't put too much trust into this information.
Performing a strict Google search for this person's Gmail address returns only results
associated with the Darktrack domain.

## Darktrack comes with a keylogger, DDoS module, more

According to his forum post, this free RAT is choke-full with all types of features you've
previously seen in commercial RATs such as Orcus or JBifrost (Adwind).

Here is just a short list of advertised features. You can read the full list at the end of this
article. According to its forum post and official website, Darktrack comes with the ability to
connect to remote computers and access their filesystem, the ability to spy via webcams, log
keystrokes, dump passwords, and perform network stress tests (DDoS attacks).

There is also a port scanner, an interface to interact with the victim's task scheduler, a
system monitoring tool, a clipboard data logger, a startup program manager, a hosts file
editor, a Windows Registry editor, the ability to execute commands on infected PCs, and
interact with local processes and services.


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Almost everything you find in commercial RATs is included. Maybe a good plugin system is
what could be a reason for buying a commercial RAT if Darktrack does not have one,"
MalwareHunterTeam also added. "But I think average skids don't care."

**UPDATE [September 14, 2016]: Following our article and the attention the RAT received**
from security researchers, Luckyduck shut down the Draktrack website and published the
following message.


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_Message on Darktrack website after it shut down_
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