fast16 | Mystery ShadowBrokers Reference Reveals High-Precision Software Sabotage 5 Years Before Stuxnet
Researchers uncovered fast16, a cyber sabotage framework from 2005 that predates Stuxnet by five years. The toolset includes fast16.sys, a kernel driver that selectively targets high-precision calculation software by patching code in memory to corrupt computational results. Combined with self-propagation mechanisms via a Lua-powered carrier module (svcmgmt.exe), the framework spreads across facilities to produce consistent inaccurate calculations. This operation represents the first documented instance of strategic cyber sabotage targeting ultra-expensive computing workloads in advanced physics, cryptographic, and nuclear research. The framework uses an embedded Lua virtual machine predating Flame by three years and appears in the ShadowBrokers leak of NSA Territorial Dispute components with the evasion signature: 'fast16 *** Nothing to see here – carry on ***'.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
fast16 is a malware framework from 2005 that selectively sabotages high-precision calculation software by patching code in memory via a kernel driver (fast16.sys). It spreads through facilities using a Lua-based carrier module (svcmgmt.exe), causing consistent computational inaccuracies in critical scientific and cryptographic workloads. This framework is notable for being the first documented cyber sabotage targeting ultra-expensive computing tasks and uses an embedded Lua virtual machine predating Flame malware. The malware was revealed in the ShadowBrokers leak under the NSA Territorial Dispute components. There is no evidence of active exploitation in the wild, and no official patches or vendor advisories exist for this threat.
Potential Impact
The impact of fast16 is the strategic sabotage of high-precision computational software, leading to corrupted calculation results in advanced physics, cryptographic, and nuclear research environments. This could undermine scientific experiments, cryptographic operations, and nuclear research integrity. However, there are no known active exploits in the wild, and the malware appears to be historical in nature. No direct impact on cloud services or consumer systems is indicated.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. No official patches or remediation instructions are available. Since this is a historical malware framework with no known active exploitation, immediate mitigation actions are not specified. Security teams should monitor for any future advisories or detection signatures related to fast16 and apply standard incident response procedures if detected.
Indicators of Compromise
- hash: cb66a4d52a30bfcd980fe50e7e3f73f0
- hash: e6018cd482c012de8b69c64dc3165337bc121b86
- hash: 66fe485f29a6405265756aaf7f822b9ceb56e108afabd414ee222ee9657dd7e2
- hash: 075b4aa105e728f2b659723e3f36c72c
- hash: 0ff6abe0252d4f37a196a1231fae5f26
- hash: 1d2f32c57ae2f2013f513d342925e972
- hash: 2717b58246237b35d44ef2e49712d3a2
- hash: 2740a703859cbd8b43425d4a2cacb5ec
- hash: 410eddfc19de44249897986ecc8ac449
- hash: 49a8934ccd34e2aaae6ea1e6a6313ffe
- hash: af4461a149bfd2ba566f2abefe7dcde4
- hash: cf859f164870d113608a843e4a9600ab
- hash: daea40562458fc7ae1adb812137d3d05
- hash: dbe51eabebf9d4ef9581ef99844a2944
- hash: e0c10106626711f287ff91c0d6314407
- hash: ebff5b7d4c5becb8715009df596c5a91
- hash: f4dbbb78979c1ee8a1523c77065e18a5
- hash: 145ef372c3e9c352eaaa53bb0893749163e49892
- hash: 1ce1111702b765f5c4d09315ff1f0d914f7e5c70
- hash: 2fa28ef1c6744bdc2021abd4048eefc777dccf22
- hash: 3ce5b358c2ddd116ac9582efbb38354809999cb5
- hash: 586edef41c3b3fba87bf0f0346c7e402f86fc11e
- hash: 650fc6b3e4f62ecdc1ec5728f36bb46ba0f74d05
- hash: 675cb83cec5f25ebbe8d9f90dea3d836fcb1c234
- hash: 829f8be65dfe159d2b0dc7ee7a61a017acb54b7b
- hash: 92e9dcaf7249110047ef121b7586c81d4b8cb4e5
- hash: 952ed694b60c34ba12df9d392269eae3a4f11be4
- hash: 9e089a733fb2740c0e408b2a25d8f5a451584cf6
- hash: ca665b59bc590292f94c23e04fa458f90d7b20c9
- hash: d475ace24b9aedebf431efc68f9db32d5ae761bd
- hash: de584703c78a60a56028f9834086facd1401b355
- hash: 06361562cc53d759fb5a4c2b7aac348e4d23fe59be3b2871b14678365283ca47
- hash: 07c69fc33271cf5a2ce03ac1fed7a3b16357aec093c5bf9ef61fbfa4348d0529
- hash: 09ca719e06a526f70aadf34fb66b136ed20f923776e6b33a33a9059ef674da22
- hash: 37414d9ca87a132ec5081f3e7590d04498237746f9a7479c6b443accee17a062
- hash: 5966513a12a5601b262c4ee4d3e32091feb05b666951d06431c30a8cece83010
- hash: 7e00030a35504de5c0d16020aa40cbaf5d36561e0716feb8f73235579a7b0909
- hash: 8b018452fdd64c346af4d97da420681e2e0b55b8c9ce2b8de75e330993b759a0
- hash: 8fcb4d3d4df61719ee3da98241393779290e0efcd88a49e363e2a2dfbc04dae9
- hash: 9a10e1faa86a5d39417cae44da5adf38824dfb9a16432e34df766aa1dc9e3525
- hash: aeaa389453f04a9e79ff6c8b7b66db7b65d4aaffc6cac0bd7957257a30468e33
- hash: bd04715c5c43c862c38a4ad6c2167ad082a352881e04a35117af9bbfad8e5613
- hash: c11a210cb98095422d0d33cbd4e9ecc86b95024f956ede812e17c97e79591cfa
- hash: da2b170994031477091be89c8835ff9db1a5304f3f2f25344654f44d0430ced1
- hash: e775049d1ecf68dee870f1a5c36b2f3542d1182782eb497b8ccfd2309c400b3a
- hash: 3471224e20d7b6912816509b7154e2f24c06425c
- hash: 6f20bd7308ec165af23609dceb7849fedfe6205c
- hash: 79fcf9f8e1db09e5b403b83b9f5910bdda24aff7
- hash: c9408c1d9bab5974e23584e944819019e2500100
fast16 | Mystery ShadowBrokers Reference Reveals High-Precision Software Sabotage 5 Years Before Stuxnet
Description
Researchers uncovered fast16, a cyber sabotage framework from 2005 that predates Stuxnet by five years. The toolset includes fast16.sys, a kernel driver that selectively targets high-precision calculation software by patching code in memory to corrupt computational results. Combined with self-propagation mechanisms via a Lua-powered carrier module (svcmgmt.exe), the framework spreads across facilities to produce consistent inaccurate calculations. This operation represents the first documented instance of strategic cyber sabotage targeting ultra-expensive computing workloads in advanced physics, cryptographic, and nuclear research. The framework uses an embedded Lua virtual machine predating Flame by three years and appears in the ShadowBrokers leak of NSA Territorial Dispute components with the evasion signature: 'fast16 *** Nothing to see here – carry on ***'.
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
fast16 is a malware framework from 2005 that selectively sabotages high-precision calculation software by patching code in memory via a kernel driver (fast16.sys). It spreads through facilities using a Lua-based carrier module (svcmgmt.exe), causing consistent computational inaccuracies in critical scientific and cryptographic workloads. This framework is notable for being the first documented cyber sabotage targeting ultra-expensive computing tasks and uses an embedded Lua virtual machine predating Flame malware. The malware was revealed in the ShadowBrokers leak under the NSA Territorial Dispute components. There is no evidence of active exploitation in the wild, and no official patches or vendor advisories exist for this threat.
Potential Impact
The impact of fast16 is the strategic sabotage of high-precision computational software, leading to corrupted calculation results in advanced physics, cryptographic, and nuclear research environments. This could undermine scientific experiments, cryptographic operations, and nuclear research integrity. However, there are no known active exploits in the wild, and the malware appears to be historical in nature. No direct impact on cloud services or consumer systems is indicated.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. No official patches or remediation instructions are available. Since this is a historical malware framework with no known active exploitation, immediate mitigation actions are not specified. Security teams should monitor for any future advisories or detection signatures related to fast16 and apply standard incident response procedures if detected.
Technical Details
- Author
- AlienVault
- Tlp
- white
- References
- ["https://www.sentinelone.com/labs/fast16-mystery-shadowbrokers-reference-reveals-high-precision-software-sabotage-5-years-before-stuxnet/"]
- Adversary
- null
- Pulse Id
- 69eafa1063a05bb892acea52
- Threat Score
- null
Indicators of Compromise
Hash
| Value | Description | Copy |
|---|---|---|
hashcb66a4d52a30bfcd980fe50e7e3f73f0 | — | |
hashe6018cd482c012de8b69c64dc3165337bc121b86 | — | |
hash66fe485f29a6405265756aaf7f822b9ceb56e108afabd414ee222ee9657dd7e2 | — | |
hash075b4aa105e728f2b659723e3f36c72c | — | |
hash0ff6abe0252d4f37a196a1231fae5f26 | — | |
hash1d2f32c57ae2f2013f513d342925e972 | — | |
hash2717b58246237b35d44ef2e49712d3a2 | — | |
hash2740a703859cbd8b43425d4a2cacb5ec | — | |
hash410eddfc19de44249897986ecc8ac449 | — | |
hash49a8934ccd34e2aaae6ea1e6a6313ffe | — | |
hashaf4461a149bfd2ba566f2abefe7dcde4 | — | |
hashcf859f164870d113608a843e4a9600ab | — | |
hashdaea40562458fc7ae1adb812137d3d05 | — | |
hashdbe51eabebf9d4ef9581ef99844a2944 | — | |
hashe0c10106626711f287ff91c0d6314407 | — | |
hashebff5b7d4c5becb8715009df596c5a91 | — | |
hashf4dbbb78979c1ee8a1523c77065e18a5 | — | |
hash145ef372c3e9c352eaaa53bb0893749163e49892 | — | |
hash1ce1111702b765f5c4d09315ff1f0d914f7e5c70 | — | |
hash2fa28ef1c6744bdc2021abd4048eefc777dccf22 | — | |
hash3ce5b358c2ddd116ac9582efbb38354809999cb5 | — | |
hash586edef41c3b3fba87bf0f0346c7e402f86fc11e | — | |
hash650fc6b3e4f62ecdc1ec5728f36bb46ba0f74d05 | — | |
hash675cb83cec5f25ebbe8d9f90dea3d836fcb1c234 | — | |
hash829f8be65dfe159d2b0dc7ee7a61a017acb54b7b | — | |
hash92e9dcaf7249110047ef121b7586c81d4b8cb4e5 | — | |
hash952ed694b60c34ba12df9d392269eae3a4f11be4 | — | |
hash9e089a733fb2740c0e408b2a25d8f5a451584cf6 | — | |
hashca665b59bc590292f94c23e04fa458f90d7b20c9 | — | |
hashd475ace24b9aedebf431efc68f9db32d5ae761bd | — | |
hashde584703c78a60a56028f9834086facd1401b355 | — | |
hash06361562cc53d759fb5a4c2b7aac348e4d23fe59be3b2871b14678365283ca47 | — | |
hash07c69fc33271cf5a2ce03ac1fed7a3b16357aec093c5bf9ef61fbfa4348d0529 | — | |
hash09ca719e06a526f70aadf34fb66b136ed20f923776e6b33a33a9059ef674da22 | — | |
hash37414d9ca87a132ec5081f3e7590d04498237746f9a7479c6b443accee17a062 | — | |
hash5966513a12a5601b262c4ee4d3e32091feb05b666951d06431c30a8cece83010 | — | |
hash7e00030a35504de5c0d16020aa40cbaf5d36561e0716feb8f73235579a7b0909 | — | |
hash8b018452fdd64c346af4d97da420681e2e0b55b8c9ce2b8de75e330993b759a0 | — | |
hash8fcb4d3d4df61719ee3da98241393779290e0efcd88a49e363e2a2dfbc04dae9 | — | |
hash9a10e1faa86a5d39417cae44da5adf38824dfb9a16432e34df766aa1dc9e3525 | — | |
hashaeaa389453f04a9e79ff6c8b7b66db7b65d4aaffc6cac0bd7957257a30468e33 | — | |
hashbd04715c5c43c862c38a4ad6c2167ad082a352881e04a35117af9bbfad8e5613 | — | |
hashc11a210cb98095422d0d33cbd4e9ecc86b95024f956ede812e17c97e79591cfa | — | |
hashda2b170994031477091be89c8835ff9db1a5304f3f2f25344654f44d0430ced1 | — | |
hashe775049d1ecf68dee870f1a5c36b2f3542d1182782eb497b8ccfd2309c400b3a | — | |
hash3471224e20d7b6912816509b7154e2f24c06425c | — | |
hash6f20bd7308ec165af23609dceb7849fedfe6205c | — | |
hash79fcf9f8e1db09e5b403b83b9f5910bdda24aff7 | — | |
hashc9408c1d9bab5974e23584e944819019e2500100 | — |
Threat ID: 69eb280887115cfb68038e62
Added to database: 4/24/2026, 8:21:28 AM
Last enriched: 4/24/2026, 8:36:10 AM
Last updated: 4/25/2026, 5:44:55 AM
Views: 141
Community Reviews
0 reviewsCrowdsource mitigation strategies, share intel context, and vote on the most helpful responses. Sign in to add your voice and help keep defenders ahead.
Want to contribute mitigation steps or threat intel context? Sign in or create an account to join the community discussion.
Actions
Updates to AI analysis require Pro Console access. Upgrade inside Console → Billing.
External Links
Need more coverage?
Upgrade to Pro Console for AI refresh and higher limits.
For incident response and remediation, OffSeq services can help resolve threats faster.
Latest Threats
Check if your credentials are on the dark web
Instant breach scanning across billions of leaked records. Free tier available.