{ "id": "af16cd3b-fe30-4cf6-a8f0-d94f217f5929", "created_at": "2026-04-06T00:18:35.588385Z", "updated_at": "2026-04-10T03:20:52.637885Z", "deleted_at": null, "sha1_hash": "f9c3fb644dab34782b591cd54707f945c275f5fd", "title": "Time Bombs: Malware with Delayed Execution", "llm_title": "", "authors": "", "file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "file_modification_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "file_size": 40770, "plain_text": "Time Bombs: Malware with Delayed Execution\r\nBy ANY.RUN\r\nPublished: 2020-09-17 · Archived: 2026-04-05 23:51:14 UTC\r\nDid you know that there’s malware that behaves just like cliched ticker-bombs from Hollywood blockbusters? It\r\nenters the system and waits there, sometimes for ages, with the timer slowly but inevitably counting towards the\r\ndestructive explosion. Or in our case — execution. Once the time comes, a cyber-bomb like this can be\r\ndevastating.\r\nTime bombs are notoriously difficult to detect. They may not leave any signs of malicious activity for a while.\r\nThere is even a chance that your network is infected with a time bomb right now. \r\nThat’s why it’s worth learning about the dangers this type of malware brings and how to deal with them.\r\nWhat are Time Bombs?\r\nTime bombs are a subcategory of logic bombs — programs with delayed execution that are designed to run when\r\nthey detect that certain conditions are being met. For example, it could be reaching a specific date or detecting\r\ncertain user behavior on the target machine. Although software like this doesn’t have to be malicious, sometimes\r\nit’s used by threat actors to create devious malware. \r\nLogic bombs can enter a network and sit there undetected for prolonged periods of time, until a set date of\r\nexecution. Sometimes it could months, or even years.\r\nWhen the time comes, they act just like any other malware, potentially inflicting great damages to your network or\r\nyour machine.\r\nWhere Time Bombs can be Used?\r\nThere are a lot of scenarios where attackers can use time-bombs instead of typical instantly executing malware. \r\nAny malware can be designed to work as a time bomb. It could be a Trojan, Ransomware, Spyware, a\r\nworm, or anything really.\r\nTime-bomb malware can be implanted by employees. If the malware executes long after the attacker left\r\nthe company it would be much harder to connect the responsible person to the crime.\r\nVery often time-bombs are designed to execute on a notable holiday, like Christmas or New-Years-Eve.\r\nThe idea is that at busy times like these are mind is not focused on work or security and the chance of a\r\nsuccessful attack becomes much higher.\r\nFamous Time Bomb Examples\r\nhttps://any.run/cybersecurity-blog/time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution/\r\nPage 1 of 3\n\nTime bombs are not particularly uncommon, but there are a few that made an especially big splash. Let’s look at\r\nthem in detail.\r\nJerusalem malware\r\nThe first malware pandemic (an outbreak of computer viruses that affected multiple countries) was triggered by\r\nnothing other than a time bomb. This MS-DOS malware is the reason many cybersecurity professionals still fear\r\nFriday the thirteenth.\r\nAs you probably already guessed, Jerusalem, also known as “Friday the 13th” was designed to execute on the\r\nspooky date of any year except for 1987. Since Friday 13s aren’t very common, most of the time the malware\r\ncould spread completely stealthily.\r\nThe malware was notoriously known for deleting any file that the victim interacted with if the calendar showed\r\nFriday the 13th. Apart from that, on any regular date, Jerusalem slowed down affected PC-XT machines by up to\r\nfive times.\r\nWin95.CIH or Chernobyl malware\r\nReleased in 1998, Chernobyl was arguably the most destructive malware of its time. It was one of the first\r\ncomputer viruses that not only damaged software but also affected the hardware of infected machines.\r\nThis malware was set to execute on the 26th of April — the date of the infamous 26 Chernobyl disaster.\r\nWin95.CIH was able to wipe out all information on system hard drives as well as damage BIOS on certain\r\nmotherboards. Chernobyl was the malware that revealed the BIOS overwriting vulnerability, showing that\r\nmalware could be destructive to hardware just as well as to software.\r\nHow to Prevent Time Bomb Attacks?\r\nA malware that does not immediately produce any indicators of malicious activity can be tricky to detect.\r\nHowever, you can follow some basic best practices to greatly increase the chances of noticing the danger in time. \r\n1. Having a robust antivirus on all machines in the network is a must. This one goes without saying, but make\r\nsure it is regularly updated.\r\n2. Don’t skip on OS updates. Many of them contain vulnerability fixes and generally improve system\r\nsecurity. However, before updating make sure to test that the new version doesn’t bring its own security\r\nshortcomings and bugs, that can potentially open a door to malware.\r\n3. We never get tired of saying this one — check all suspicious emails and make sure to be extra careful with\r\nattachments and links. You can safely analyze emails by uploading them into ANY.RUN. It barely takes a\r\nfew minutes and ensures your safety.\r\n4. Educate your colleagues about the dangers of malware and the most common attack vectors. The more\r\npeople know about mechanisms that get users infected and the dangers of modern malware, the safer we\r\nwill all be. It’s just like with physical virus pandemics — the positive outcome is dependant on the\r\nmajority following recommendations of healthcare professionals. \r\nhttps://any.run/cybersecurity-blog/time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution/\r\nPage 2 of 3\n\nSource: https://any.run/cybersecurity-blog/time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution/\r\nhttps://any.run/cybersecurity-blog/time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution/\r\nPage 3 of 3", "extraction_quality": 1, "language": "EN", "sources": [ "MITRE" ], "references": [ "https://any.run/cybersecurity-blog/time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution/" ], "report_names": [ "time-bombs-malware-with-delayed-execution" ], "threat_actors": [], "ts_created_at": 1775434715, "ts_updated_at": 1775791252, "ts_creation_date": 0, "ts_modification_date": 0, "files": { "pdf": "https://archive.orkl.eu/f9c3fb644dab34782b591cd54707f945c275f5fd.pdf", "text": "https://archive.orkl.eu/f9c3fb644dab34782b591cd54707f945c275f5fd.txt", "img": "https://archive.orkl.eu/f9c3fb644dab34782b591cd54707f945c275f5fd.jpg" } }