# PhishDestroy threat dossier — cardanodesktopinstall.xyz ================================================================ Fetched: 2026-07-01 09:30:50 UTC Canonical: https://phishdestroy.io/domain/cardanodesktopinstall.xyz/ ## VERDICT ---------------------------------------------------------------- ACTIVE + CLOAKED — returns HTTP 666 to scanners, real fraudulent site to victims Composite threat score: 100/100 (PhishDestroy scoring — see methodology below) Scam classification: fake_wallet Targeted brand: cardano Cloaking: DETECTED — domain returns custom HTTP 666 to scanners while serving fraudulent content to real users (type: content_split) (score: 1/6) ## DETECTION EVIDENCE ---------------------------------------------------------------- VirusTotal: 5/92 security vendors flagged this domain Flagging vendors: ADMINUSLabs, alphaMountain.ai, G-Data, Gridinsoft, Sophos AlienVault OTX: 1 pulses (threat-intel feed mentions) Public blocklists: listed on 1 independent blocklist ## INFRASTRUCTURE ---------------------------------------------------------------- IP address: 64.29.17.65 (US, Walnut) ASN: AS16509 Amazon.com, Inc. Hosting org: Vercel, Inc Registrar: NICENIC INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LIMITED !!! REGISTRAR INTEGRITY ALERT — NiceNIC !!! NiceNIC International: over 90% of its registered domains are associated with illegal content; documented systematic abuse-report non-response. Primary sources: https://phishdestroy.io/nicenic-real https://phishdestroy.io/nicenic-verdict Nameservers: ["beau.ns.cloudflare.com", "indie.ns.cloudflare.com"] Registered: 2026-05-09 Page title: Download Cardano Wallet for Desktop — Windows ## TLS CERTIFICATE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Issuer: Let's Encrypt / R12 Expires: 2026-08-02 Status: INVALID chain Fingerprint: 5ee6f4254879e7e13dab6a3fd5b105b75b3f9f7bd1ef79024b6d2c9696a684a4 ## ABUSE-REPORT HISTORY (evidence of registrar non-response) ---------------------------------------------------------------- Status: pending notification queue. No abuse reports filed yet — this domain is waiting for the next cycle of our automated abuse-reporter. ## TIMELINE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Domain registered: 2026-05-09 (per WHOIS / CT — may reflect a renewal or transfer date, not first-ever registration) First detected: 2026-05-09 11:30:10 UTC (by PhishDestroy tracker) First reported: 2026-06-15 06:27:34 UTC (abuse notice filed) Last verified: 2026-07-01 08:20:36 UTC Neutralised: 2026-05-09 15:28:07 UTC Current status: ACTIVE — cloaked behind HTTP 666 to evade scanners ## ANALYST NARRATIVE ---------------------------------------------------------------- [Generated: 2026-06-22 23:08:39 UTC — narrative may predate facts above. Treat fields in TIMELINE / DETECTION EVIDENCE / INFRASTRUCTURE as authoritative if they differ from the prose below.] The domain cardanodesktopinstall.xyz is currently offline but previously hosted a phishing operation targeting Cardano users. The site masqueraded as a legitimate Cardano wallet download page, aiming to deceive users into installing malicious software. This operation has been flagged by 5 out of 92 vendors on VirusTotal, indicating a moderate level of detection across security platforms. Registered with NICENIC INTERNATIONAL GROUP CO., LIMITED, the domain was hosted on an IP address managed by Vercel, Inc in the United States. It utilized an SSL certificate issued by Let's Encrypt, which is commonly used by both legitimate and malicious sites due to its ease of access and free availability. The impersonation of Cardano, a well-known cryptocurrency, suggests that the attackers were targeting individuals interested in cryptocurrency investments, potentially leading to financial losses or theft of sensitive information. Despite the domain being taken down, it has been included in at least one public blocklist, specifically PhishDestroy's, highlighting the ongoing efforts to mitigate the threat. The use of a fake wallet download page is a typical method for attackers to gain access to users' private keys or install malware on their systems. The detection by multiple vendors on VirusTotal underscores the importance of early identification and response to such threats, which can exploit the initial window of opportunity before widespread detection by antivirus solutions. ## EVIDENCE HASHES ---------------------------------------------------------------- Favicon MD5: 9f504444f85a5af2eef9264b02ae40be TLS cert SHA-256: 5ee6f4254879e7e13dab6a3fd5b105b75b3f9f7bd1ef79024b6d2c9696a684a4 ## SCORING METHODOLOGY ---------------------------------------------------------------- Composite score is NOT derived from VirusTotal alone. PhishDestroy aggregates: - VirusTotal positive ratio - Public blocklist consensus (MetaMask, ScamSniffer, OpenPhish, PhishTank, URLhaus, CryptoFirewall, SEAL, Polkadot, Enkrypt, Phishunt, DiscordPhishing, PhishingDB) - Cloaking detection (HTTP 666 or rendering delta between bot and real visitor) - DNS-filter consensus (Quad9, CleanBrowsing, NextDNS, AdGuard, Cloudflare, etc.) - AlienVault OTX pulses + Cloudflare Radar + Google Safe Browsing - URLScan / URLQuery verdicts - Brand-impersonation heuristics (DOM analysis of forms, logos, wording) - Known phishing-kit fingerprinting (favicon hash, JS obfuscation signatures) - Wallet-drainer family classification (Angel, MS, Rainbow, Pink, Inferno, ...) - Free-TLS vs paid-cert ratio (throwaway infrastructure signal) - Registrar/hosting abuse history (this registrar's track record) - Human researcher sign-off (volunteer takedown team) A domain present in our database is ALREADY flagged. A low VT count by itself does NOT mean the domain is safe — new scam domains routinely show 0/95 VT for their first 7–30 days while actively draining wallets. Always cross-reference the composite score and the individual indicators above, not just VT. ## CORRECTIONS / APPEALS ---------------------------------------------------------------- Full HTML report: https://phishdestroy.io/domain/cardanodesktopinstall.xyz/ JSON API: https://api.destroy.tools/v1/check?domain=cardanodesktopinstall.xyz Appeal a flag: https://phishdestroy.io/appeals/ (responded to within 48 hours, FP rate <0.01%) Submit a report: https://t.me/PhishDestroy_bot About PhishDestroy: volunteer-driven open-source threat-intelligence platform. Tracked: 173,410 domains (13,246 alive under monitoring, 159,488 confirmed takedowns/dead). Site: https://phishdestroy.io