Qilin and Warlock Ransomware Use Vulnerable Drivers to Disable 300+ EDR Tools
More than 300 Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools and antivirus systems have been rendered useless against a new tactic employed by the Qilin and Warlock ransomware groups. According to the latest report from Zscaler ThreatLabz, cybercriminals are utilizing the Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) technique, which involves loading legitimate but vulnerable drivers into the system to gain kernel-mode privileges. This allows attackers to completely disable security measures before any alarm is raised. A key game-changing factor is artificial intelligence, which has drastically reduced the time required to carry out an attack. AI enables the instantaneous automation of reconnaissance and the exploitation of vulnerabilities in remote access, making VPN connections the fastest route for breaching network structures. For users and organizations, this means that traditional trust in security software installed on endpoints is no longer sufficient. A transition to Zero Trust architecture and rigorous monitoring of system driver integrity has become necessary. The scale of the threat demonstrates that in the era of offensive AI use, human reaction speed is no longer a barrier to malicious code, and the advantage goes to those who most effectively isolate critical assets from publicly accessible entry points.
The modern cyber threat landscape is evolving at a pace that outstrips traditional defense mechanisms, and the latest security reports from Cisco Talos and Trend Micro shed light on an exceptionally effective method used by ransomware groups. Operators associated with Qilin and Warlock operations have begun mass-exploiting a technique known as BYOVD (Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver). The goal is to completely blind protection systems by disabling over 300 EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) tools, opening the way for hackers to engage in unhindered data exfiltration and asset encryption.
The scale of the problem is massive because this technique strikes at the foundation of trust in operating systems. By utilizing legitimate but vulnerable drivers, attackers gain kernel-level privileges, allowing them to manipulate processes that theoretically should not be touched by any external program. According to the Zscaler ThreatLabz 2026 VPN Risk Report, the progressive integration of artificial intelligence into offensive tools has drastically shortened human reaction time, making remote access the fastest path to breaching corporate infrastructure.
Anatomy of the Qilin attack and the msimg32.dll library
Analysis conducted by experts from Cisco Talos showed that Qilin group attacks are characterized by precise preparation of the environment for future infection. A key element of the arsenal is a malicious DLL library named msimg32.dll. Once injected into the system, the malware initiates a procedure to identify installed security solutions. This is not a random action – the target list includes hundreds of products from leading defense technology providers.
The application of AI by cybercriminals further complicates the situation. Automatic scanning of systems for specific driver versions that can be used for a BYOVD attack drastically accelerates the reconnaissance phase. According to Zscaler ThreatLabz, the time window in which a human can react to a breach has practically ceased to exist. The attack occurs at machine speed, and disabling EDR is only one of the first steps in a long attack chain.
The crisis of trust in signed drivers
The problem facing IT departments is structural in nature. Operating system architecture relies on trust in digital signatures. If a driver is signed by a recognized manufacturer, the system assumes it is safe. The Qilin and Warlock groups ruthlessly exploit this fact. They do not need to create their own suspicious drivers – it is enough to find an old version of legitimate software (e.g., a driver for an old network card or a CPU overclocking tool) that has a documented buffer overflow bug or the ability for arbitrary memory writes.
"AI has drastically shortened the human reaction window, turning remote access into the fastest path to data security breaches in 2026." — Zscaler ThreatLabz 2026 VPN Risk Report
This approach means that the fight against Qilin is no longer just about blocking malicious IP addresses or removing known viruses. It requires a rigorous driver management policy and blocking those found on vulnerability blacklists. Unfortunately, on a global scale, many organizations do not have the appropriate tools to verify every loaded driver for historical security vulnerabilities, making the BYOVD technique one of the most destructive methods in the arsenal of modern ransomware.
The evolution of the Qilin and Warlock groups toward such advanced defense neutralization methods indicates the professionalization of cybercrime. The focus on disabling 300+ EDR tools proves that attackers are no longer afraid of confrontation with top security solutions – they simply remove them from the equation before proceeding with the actual attack. In a world where AI assists the network penetration process, the only effective defense becomes a Zero Trust model at the kernel level, which prevents the loading of any vulnerable drivers, regardless of their certification.