# PhishDestroy threat dossier — download-rufus.com ================================================================ Fetched: 2026-07-10 15:14:32 UTC Canonical: https://phishdestroy.io/domain/download-rufus.com/ ## VERDICT ---------------------------------------------------------------- CRITICAL THREAT — DO NOT VISIT Composite threat score: 93/100 (PhishDestroy scoring — see methodology below) ## DETECTION EVIDENCE ---------------------------------------------------------------- VirusTotal: 17/95 security vendors flagged this domain Flagging vendors: ADMINUSLabs, alphaMountain.ai, BitDefender, Chong Lua Dao, CRDF, CyRadar, ESET, Forcepoint ThreatSeeker, Fortinet, G-Data, Google Safebrowsing, Gridinsoft, Lionic, SOCRadar, Sophos, VIPRE, Webroot Public blocklists: listed on 3 independent blocklists Google Safe Browsing: FLAGGED ## INFRASTRUCTURE ---------------------------------------------------------------- IP address: 188.114.96.3 (CA, Toronto) ASN: AS13335 Cloudflare, Inc. Hosting org: CloudFlare, Inc. Registrar: Dynadot Inc Nameservers: brady.ns.cloudflare.com, elle.ns.cloudflare.com Registered: 2026-04-19 Expires: 2027-04-19 Page title: Download Rufus 4.13 Free — Bootable USB Creator for Windows HTTP response: 200 ## TLS CERTIFICATE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Issuer: Let's Encrypt / YE2 Expires: 2026-09-15 Status: INVALID chain Fingerprint: e51ca01c842d11030bf3704895c31e7e656b6182b3ec2d196b68a037cd9495d2 ## 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: 2026-04-19 (per WHOIS / CT — may reflect a renewal or transfer date, not first-ever registration) First detected: 2026-07-10 14:50:36 UTC (by PhishDestroy tracker) Last verified: 2026-07-10 17:01:37 UTC Current status: ACTIVE / observable ## EXTERNAL CORROBORATION (third-party evidence) ---------------------------------------------------------------- URLScan.io: https://urlscan.io/result/019f4c13-9794-778c-909c-a02d50f11b13/ Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/*/download-rufus.com crt.sh CT logs: https://crt.sh/?q=%25.download-rufus.com Google transparency: https://transparencyreport.google.com/safe-browsing/search?url=download-rufus.com AlienVault OTX: https://otx.alienvault.com/indicator/domain/download-rufus.com URLhaus: https://urlhaus.abuse.ch/host/download-rufus.com/ ## ANALYST NARRATIVE ---------------------------------------------------------------- [Generated: 2026-07-10 14:55:38 UTC — narrative may predate facts above. Treat fields in TIMELINE / DETECTION EVIDENCE / INFRASTRUCTURE as authoritative if they differ from the prose below.] This domain, download-rufus.com, is identified as a high-risk phishing site impersonating the legitimate Rufus bootable USB creation tool. The site presents itself as an official source for downloading Rufus 4.13, a widely used utility for Windows, but analysis indicates it is designed to distribute malicious payloads under the guise of software installation. No specific drainer kit or cryptocurrency-related fraud has been confirmed at this time, but the site’s infrastructure and behavioral indicators align with generic phishing tactics targeting users seeking legitimate software downloads. Infrastructure analysis reveals multiple technical indicators of compromise. The domain was registered on April 19, 2026, through Dynadot Inc, a registrar frequently associated with malicious domains. It resolves to the IP address 188.114.96.3 and uses a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate, which, while common for legitimate sites, is also routinely exploited by threat actors to lend false credibility. Google Safe Browsing has flagged the domain with a SOCIAL_ENGINEERING classification, and it appears on two security blocklists: InversionDNS and BLP-Malware. VirusTotal reports that 17 out of 95 security vendors detect the domain as malicious, further corroborating its fraudulent nature. As of the latest assessment, download-rufus.com remains active and continues to pose a significant risk to end users. The domain’s persistence, despite its presence on multiple blocklists and detection by security vendors, suggests ongoing malicious intent. Users are advised to avoid interacting with the site and to obtain Rufus software exclusively from the official developer’s website or verified distribution channels. Organizations should update their security policies to block access to this domain and monitor for related indicators of compromise, including the associated IP address and SSL certificate patterns. ## EVIDENCE HASHES ---------------------------------------------------------------- Favicon MD5: b09f06b4d420057b975a2cca79d12fc0 TLS cert SHA-256: e51ca01c842d11030bf3704895c31e7e656b6182b3ec2d196b68a037cd9495d2 ## 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 (operator 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/download-rufus.com/ JSON API: https://api.destroy.tools/v1/check?domain=download-rufus.com 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: independent open-source threat-intelligence platform. Tracked: 177,085 domains (24,293 alive under monitoring, 152,255 confirmed takedowns/dead). Site: https://phishdestroy.io