Threat Actors Database

Caliente Bandits is a highly active threat group that targets multiple industries, including finance and entertainment. They distribute the Bandook remote access trojan using Spanish-language lures through low-volume email campaigns. The group primarily impacts individuals with Spanish surnames and conducts reconnaissance to obtain employee data. They masquerade as companies in South America and use Hotmail or Gmail email addresses.

Dragos has identified a new activity group targeting access operations in the electric utility sector. We call this activity group RASPITE. Analysis of RASPITE tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) indicate the group has been active in some form since early- to mid-2017. RASPITE targeting includes entities in the US, Middle East, Europe, and East Asia. Operations against electric utility organizations appear limited to the US at this time. RASPITE leverages strategic website compromise to gain initial access to target networks. RASPITE uses the same methodology as DYMALLOY and ALLANITE in embedding a link to a resource to prompt an SMB connection, from which it harvests Windows credentials. The group then deploys install scripts for a malicious service to beacon back to RASPITE-controlled infrastructure, allowing the adversary to remotely access the victim machine.

The Cyber Partisans, a hacktivist group based in Belarus, has been involved in various cyber-attacks targeting organizations and infrastructure in Belarus and Ukraine. They have hacked and wiped the network of the Belarusian Telegraph Agency, targeted the Belarusian Red Cross, and conducted ransomware attacks on the Belarusian Railway and Belarusian State University. The group aims to expose alleged crimes committed by pro-government organizations and disrupt operations supporting the Russian military operation against Ukraine. They have also leaked stolen data to journalists and expressed support for Ukraine.

UNC4736 is a North Korean threat actor that has been involved in supply chain attacks targeting software chains of 3CX and X_TRADER. They have used malware strains such as TAXHAUL, Coldcat, and VEILEDSIGNAL to compromise Windows and macOS systems. UNC4736 has been linked to financially motivated cybercrime operations, particularly focused on cryptocurrency and fintech-related services. They have also demonstrated infrastructure overlap with other North Korean and APT43 activity.

Microsoft threat intelligence teams have been tracking multiple ransomware campaigns and have tied these attacks to DEV-0270, also known as Nemesis Kitten, a sub-group of Iranian actor PHOSPHORUS. Microsoft assesses with moderate confidence that DEV-0270 conducts malicious network operations, including widespread vulnerability scanning, on behalf of the government of Iran.

UNC2717 is a threat actor that engages in espionage activities aligned with Chinese government priorities. They demonstrate advanced tradecraft and take measures to avoid detection, making it challenging for network defenders to identify their tools and intrusion methods. UNC2717, along with other Chinese APT actors, has been observed stealing credentials, email communications, and intellectual property. They have targeted global government agencies using malware such as HARDPULSE, QUIETPULSE, and PULSEJUMP.

WeRedEvils is a hacking group that has claimed responsibility for multiple cyber attacks. They targeted the Iranian Electric Grid and the Tasnimnews website, causing the latter to go offline. The group also claimed to have hacked into Iran's oil infrastructure, causing significant damage. They emerged in response to the Hamas massacre and are believed to be a group of Israeli cyber experts.

Storm-1113 is a threat actor that acts both as an access broker focused on malware distribution through search advertisements and as an “as-a-service” entity providing malicious installers and landing page frameworks. In Storm-1113 malware distribution campaigns, users are directed to landing pages mimicking well-known software that host installers, often MSI files, that lead to the installation of malicious payloads. Storm-1113 is also the developer of EugenLoader, a commodity malware first observed around November 2022.

Pearl Sleet is a nation state activity group based in North Korea that has been active since at least 2012. They primarily target defectors from North Korea, media organizations in carrying out their cyber espionage activities.

UNC4990 is a financially motivated threat actor that has been active since at least 2020. They primarily target users in Italy and rely on USB devices for initial infection. The group has evolved their tactics over time, using encoded text files on popular websites like GitHub and Vimeo to host payloads. They have been observed using sophisticated backdoors like QUIETBOARD and EMPTYSPACE, and have targeted organizations in various industries, particularly in Italy.

GoldFactory is a threat actor group attributed to developing sophisticated mobile banking malware targeting victims primarily in the Asia-Pacific region, specifically Vietnam and Thailand. They utilize social engineering to deliver malware to victims' devices and have close connections to the Gigabud malware family. GoldFactory's Trojans, such as GoldPickaxe and GoldDigger, employ tactics like smishing, phishing, and fake login screens to compromise victims' phones and steal sensitive information. Their evolving malware suite demonstrates a high level of operational maturity and ingenuity, requiring a proactive and multi-faceted cybersecurity approach to detect and mitigate their threats.

SPIKEDWINE is a threat actor targeting European officials with a new backdoor called WINELOADER. They use a bait PDF document posing as an invitation letter from the Ambassador of India to lure diplomats. The attack is characterized by advanced tactics, techniques, and procedures in the malware and command and control infrastructure. The motivation behind the attacks seems to be exploiting the geopolitical relations between India and European nations.

UNC1549 is an Iranian threat actor linked to Tortoiseshell and potentially the IRGC. They have been active since at least June 2022, targeting entities worldwide with a focus on the Middle East. UNC1549 uses spear-phishing and credential harvesting for initial access, deploying custom malware like MINIBIKE and MINIBUS backdoors. They have also been observed using evasion techniques and a tunneler named LIGHTRAIL in their operations.

UAC-0184 is a threat actor targeting Ukrainian organizations in Finland, using the Remcos Remote Access Trojan in their attacks. They have been observed utilizing steganographic image files and the IDAT Loader to deliver the malware. The group has targeted the Armed Forces of Ukraine and impersonated military recruitment processes to infect systems with the Remcos RAT.

Mogilevich is a ransomware group known for claiming to breach organizations like Epic Games and Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs, offering stolen data for sale without providing proof of the attacks. They operate as an extortion group, targeting high-profile victims and demanding payment for the data they claim to have stolen. Despite their claims, security researchers have noted that Mogilevich's tactics and website design suggest they may not be a sophisticated threat actor.

Lilac Typhoon is a threat actor attributed to China. They have been identified as exploiting the Atlassian Confluence RCE vulnerability CVE-2022-26134, which allows for remote code execution. This vulnerability has been used in cryptojacking campaigns and is included in commercial exploit frameworks. Lilac Typhoon has also been involved in deploying various payloads such as Cobalt Strike, web shells, botnets, coin miners, and ransomware.

GALLIUM, is a threat actor believed to be targeting telecommunication providers over the world, mostly South-East Asia, Europe and Africa. To compromise targeted networks, GALLIUM target unpatched internet-facing services using publicly available exploits and have been known to target vulnerabilities in WildFly/JBoss.

Water Orthrus is a threat actor known for distributing CopperStealer and CopperPhish malware. They target Microsoft 365 users with phishing campaigns to steal credit card information. The actor has evolved their malware to include rootkits for stealthy installations and has shifted their focus from personal information to cryptocurrency and credit card data. Water Orthrus has been linked to the Scranos campaign reported in 2019.

PhantomCore is a threat actor group known for using a remote access malware called PhantomRAT. They have been observed executing malicious code through specially crafted RAR archives, different from previous attacks exploiting vulnerabilities. The attribution of their campaign to Ukraine is uncertain due to limited visibility inside Russian networks. PhantomCore's use of RAR archives in their attack chain has been previously observed in other threat actor groups like Forest Blizzard.