Analysis of ndfltr.sys: suspicious verdict, risk score 35/100. 0 YARA matches, 0/75 multi-engine detections. SHA256 b712379ca3ece73e. Kernel imports, IOCTL codes, MITRE ATT&CK, and code-signing details.
DriverShield analyzed the Windows kernel driver ndfltr.sys and assigned a verdict of Suspicious with a composite risk score of 35/100, indicating some risk signals warranting review (30-59 band).
| Verdict | Suspicious (35/100) |
| YARA matches | 0 |
| Multi-engine detections | 0 / 75 |
| File size | 147248 bytes |
| Code-signing signer | Microsoft Windows |
| Analyzed | 2026-10-11 |
| SHA256 | b712379ca3ece73efe1a9dd1bb94bc7ca0c4e3d68fcca9a99888f67e11af00e8 |
| SHA1 | 6b6be7f9764c7101279a187bb3d9f207c3128335 |
| MD5 | 6f4dfc6d493e49fc0fec69a01cb3577e |
Version resource data embedded in the ndfltr.sys PE header, as extracted by the analysis engine.
| File description | NetworkDirect Support Filter Driver |
|---|---|
| Product | OpenFabrics Windows |
| Company | Mellanox |
| Original filename | ndfltr.sys |
| Internal name | ndfltr.sys |
| File version | 5.50.14695 |
| Copyright | Copyright© 2009 Mellanox Technologies Ltd |
Each component is scored 0-100 and then weighted into the composite. See the analysis methodology for the exact formula.
| Component | Sub-score |
|---|---|
| Multi-engine consensus | 0 / 100 |
| YARA signature matches | 0 / 100 |
| Dangerous kernel imports | 100 / 100 |
| IOCTL dispatch surface | 100 / 100 |
| Known-vulnerable corpus | 0 / 100 |
| Code-signing state | 80 / 100 |
| Packing and entropy | 0 / 100 |
| Dynamic behaviour | 0 / 100 |
| CVE cross-reference | 0 / 100 |
Kernel-mode APIs resolved from the Import Address Table of ndfltr.sys, ranked by exploitation relevance.
| API | Risk | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| MmMapLockedPagesSpecifyCache | critical | Highly dangerous - potential for arbitrary code execution, memory corruption, or process termination |
| MmGetSystemRoutineAddress | high | Potentially dangerous - could be used for privilege escalation or security bypass |
| ObReferenceObjectByHandle | medium | Moderate risk - system modification capability |
| KeInitializeEvent | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| IoCreateSymbolicLink | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| ExAllocatePoolWithTag | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| IoDeleteSymbolicLink | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| RtlInitUnicodeString | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| KeWaitForSingleObject | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
| KeSetEvent | low | Standard kernel API - generally benign |
Control codes reachable through the driver dispatch routine. Codes tied to published exploit code are flagged, since they are the primary Bring Your Own Vulnerable Driver (BYOVD) entry points.
| Code | Severity | Transfer | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0x0080A383 | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2272 |
| 0x0080878B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #482 |
| 0x0080880F | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #515 |
| 0x0080968B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #1442 |
| 0x0080868B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #418 |
| 0x0080808B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #34 |
| 0x0080A583 | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2400 |
| 0x0080818B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #98 |
| 0x0080858B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #354 |
| 0x0080890F | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #579 |
| 0x00808A8B | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #674 |
| 0x00227427 | high | METHOD_NEITHER | FILE_DEVICE_UNKNOWN Function #3337 |
| 0x002200F0 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_UNKNOWN Function #60 |
| 0x0080EC81 | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2848 |
| 0x0034BA00 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_DISK Function #3712 |
| 0x0022BAC0 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_UNKNOWN Function #3760 |
| 0x0080E9C0 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2672 |
| 0x00809E89 | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #1954 |
| 0x0080BB89 | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #3810 |
| 0x0080868D | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #419 |
| 0x00809F8D | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2019 |
| 0x0080B841 | medium | METHOD_IN_DIRECT | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #3600 |
| 0x0080A3E8 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #2298 |
| 0x0080BE38 | medium | METHOD_BUFFERED | FILE_DEVICE_CUSTOM Function #3982 |
Showing 24 of 40 extracted control codes.
Section layout and Shannon entropy. High entropy in a code section is a packing or encryption indicator.
| Section | Virtual size | Raw size | Entropy | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .text | 0x1C088 | 0x1C200 | 6.18 | CODE, EXEC, READ |
| .rdata | 0x2384 | 0x2400 | 5.25 | IDATA, READ |
| .data | 0x1128 | 0x0400 | 2.38 | IDATA, READ, WRITE |
| .pdata | 0x12C0 | 0x1400 | 4.9 | IDATA, READ |
| PAGE | 0x052C | 0x0600 | 5.49 | CODE, EXEC, READ |
| INIT | 0x09AC | 0x0A00 | 5.02 | CODE, EXEC, READ, DISCARD |
| .rsrc | 0x05B8 | 0x0600 | 3.27 | IDATA, READ, DISCARD |
| .reloc | 0x014C | 0x0200 | 3.9 | IDATA, READ, DISCARD |
| Control Flow Guard | Enabled |
|---|---|
| ASLR | Enabled |
| DEP | Enabled |
| Integrity check | Not enforced |
| Mitigation score | 85 / 100 |
Techniques this driver could enable if loaded by an adversary.
| ID | Technique | Tactic |
|---|---|---|
| T1003.001 | OS Credential Dumping: LSASS Memory | Credential Access |
| T1055.001 | Process Injection: DLL Injection | Defense Evasion |
| T1055.012 | Process Hollowing | Defense Evasion |
| T1068 | Exploitation for Privilege Escalation | Privilege Escalation |
| T1071 | Application Layer Protocol | Command and Control |
| T1112 | Modify Registry | Defense Evasion |
| T1211 | Exploitation for Defense Evasion | Defense Evasion |
| T1489 | Service Stop | Impact |
| T1543.003 | Windows Service | Persistence |
| T1547.001 | Registry Run Keys | Persistence |
| T1553.002 | Subvert Trust Controls: Code Signing | Defense Evasion |
| T1562.001 | Impair Defenses: Disable/Modify Tools | Defense Evasion |
| T1569.002 | Service Execution | Execution |
| T1652 | Device Driver Discovery | Discovery |
| Signer | Microsoft Windows |
|---|---|
| Signer organisation | Microsoft Corporation |
| Issuer | Microsoft Windows Production PCA 2011 |
| Serial | 3300000460CF42A912315F6FB3000000000460 |
| Valid from | 2023-11-16 19:20 UTC |
| Valid until | 2024-11-14 19:20 UTC (expired) |
| Signature validity | Not verified |
Engine angr, status completed, 58 paths explored at a maximum depth of 58. Vulnerability classes reached: 0. Exploitable paths: 4.
Based on DriverShield static and dynamic analysis, ndfltr.sys shows some suspicious signals and warrants manual review. Its composite risk score is 35/100 (verdict: suspicious). Always validate findings independently before acting.
ndfltr.sys has a DriverShield composite risk score of 35/100, placing it in the suspicious verdict band. SHA256: b712379ca3ece73efe1a9dd1bb94bc7ca0c4e3d68fcca9a99888f67e11af00e8.
ndfltr.sys is a Windows kernel-mode driver (.sys) analyzed by DriverShield for vulnerabilities, BYOVD abuse potential, and malware indicators. It is code-signed by Microsoft Windows.
Related: Other drivers signed by Microsoft Windows · What an IOCTL dispatch code is · BYOVD research index · full driver database · CVE library · code signing atlas