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Windows XP Horror Edition
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This article contains spoilers! |
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Windows XP Horror Edition (also known as WinXP.Horror.Destructive) is a screamer application created by WobbyChip. It was first distributed to YouTube user Siam Alam to showcase on his channel.
Payload
Windows XP Horror Edition is a program that disguises itself as a Windows XP update, but instead installs malware onto the user's computer. Once launched, the program presents a fake update for Windows XP accompanied by title.wma, better known as Velkommen or the Windows Welcome Music. The update progresses to 66% completion before issuing an error message that reads:
Setup cannot copy the file ntdll.dll Setup will use the file 666.sys
When the user clicks "OK", the background turns red, and the Windows XP logo changes to an monochromatic eye with the text "Don't Look Behind You" accompanied by the song "Creepy Music Box" by Shane Keen. At 100% completion, the screen switches to glitchy static before turning black, with the cursor still visible. After a brief pause, the screen displays a red Windows XP startup animation where the logo is replaced with a red skull with eyes looking towards the user. After the animation finishes, it proceeds to the Welcome screen which is now red and has a black, crying eye.
Once the user boots into Windows XP Horror Edition, they are greeted by a desktop wallpaper full of skulls, the Start button replaced with text reading "DEAD" and a bloody white hand, and four icons labeled "My Computer," "NOTHING," "DON'T OPEN ME.txt," and "Recycle Bin." The desktop background changes to various creepy pictures and glitchy effects, accompanied by "Thresh, the Chain Warden" from League of Legends. The malware also changes the default cursor to a bloody cursor, and when hovering over certain assets, it changes to an eyeball cursor.
Clicking the button labeled "DEAD" opens the Start menu, which appears in red and shows that the username has been changed to "666" and the user icon has been changed. There are two lines of gibberish text with blood splatters, and clicking on them causes them to disappear. Clicking the user icon greets the user with a wooden door, which opens after a few moments with a loud squeaking sound. The user is then jumpscared by Lisa from the Silent Hills demo, P.T., and then is greeted with the text "GO TO SLEEP" written in blood on the screen. From this point forward, the user icon appears to twitch in a glitchy manner whenever the Start menu is opened.
Opening the "DON'T OPEN ME.txt" file opens a fake Notepad window with bloody text that reads:
CONGRATULATION YOU OPENED ME DO YOU WANNA PLAY A GAME OKEY THEN LOOK BEHIND YOU
The screen then switches to a jumpscare from the video game Granny with a very loud screech, followed by text that reads "Game Over". The Notepad icon then twitches in a glitchy fashion and cannot be opened again.
The file labeled "NOTHING" displays the animation "The Sad Man" by Jake Lava upon launching. Similar to DON'T OPEN ME.txt, after the animation finishes, the icon then twitches in a glitchy manner and cannot be opened again.
Clicking Recycle Bin merely causes the icon to glitch in a similar manner to DON'T OPEN ME.txt and NOTHING.
At certain points during use, the screen may change to a Half-Life 3 image with a Trollface version of Gabe Newell accompanied by the "Valve Theme" or to other screamers. Additionally, after displaying several error messages that read "Task Manager has been disabled by your administrator." the program will emit the "nope.avi" soundbite before returning to the desktop.
When the user clicks the My Computer icon, a message will appear reading:
DO YOU SERIOUSLY WANT TRASH YOUR COMPUTER FOREVER?
Selecting "Yes" will result in the My Computer icon moving to the Recycle Bin. Then, the screen will then turn black and display a Phantom Balloon Boy jumpscare from Five Nights at Freddy's 3 accompanied by the scream from Five Night's at Freddy's. Then, a fake red Screen of Death (RSoD) will appear with the message:
A problem has been detected and windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. The problem seems to be caused by the following file: 666.SYS PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA If this is the first time you've seen this stop error screen, restart your computer. If this screen appears again, follow these steps: Check to make sure any new hardware or software is properly installed. If this is a new installation, ask your hardware or software maufacturer for any windows Updates you might need. If problems continue, disable or remove any newly installed hardware or software. Disable BIOS memory options such as caching or shadowing. If you need to use Safe Mode to remove or disable components, restart your computer, press F6 to select Advanced Startup Options, and then select Safe Mode. Technical information: ***STOP 0x666666666 (0x6666666666,0x66666666,0x66666666,0x66666666)
This message will repeat several times in a line-by-line fashion. Finally, the computer will display a real Blue Screen of Death (BSoD) and reboot. Upon rebooting, the program's final payload overwrites the Master Boot Record (MBR) with an image displaying a monochromatic eye along with the message:
I'M WATCHING YOU Created by WobbyChip
Restore Solution
The program disables Task Manager upon launch, making it impossible to end the process using this tool. To fix the overwritten MBR, the user may use the Windows Setup loader on the installation media, access the Command Prompt through Repair Your Computer, and enter the commands bootrec /fixboot and bootrec /fixmbr. Alternatively, the MBR can be repaired using NeoSmart's Easy Recovery Essentials, a recovery and diagnostic tool designed to restore non-functioning Windows computers.
Peaceful Version
The Peaceful version of the software differs from the Destructive version in that after the Phantom Balloon Boy jumpscare and fake RSoD, the application simply closes instead of triggering a BSoD and overwriting the MBR.
Gallery
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The bloody cursor.
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The eyeball cursor.
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The update screen payload.
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The Welcome screen.
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The desktop change payload.
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The Start menu.
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The wooden door.
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The GO TO SLEEP text after the Lisa jumpscare.
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The Notepad message.
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The Half-Life 3 image.
Showcases
Links
NOTE: The following applications contain multiple screamers, as well as a malicious script that will harm your computer!
- Destructive Version: archive.org/details/WinXP.Horror.DestructiveCreatedByWobbyChip_201903
- Destructive & Peaceful Versions: archive.org/details/winxp.horror.destructive
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