Boot or Logon Autostart Execution: Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder

Adversaries may achieve persistence by adding a program to a startup folder or referencing it with a Registry run key. Adding an entry to the "run keys" in the Registry or startup folder will cause the program referenced to be executed when a user logs in.[1] These programs will be executed under the context of the user and will have the account's associated permissions level.

Placing a program within a startup folder will also cause that program to execute when a user logs in. There is a startup folder location for individual user accounts as well as a system-wide startup folder that will be checked regardless of which user account logs in. The startup folder path for the current user is C:\Users\[Username]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup. The startup folder path for all users is C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp.

The following run keys are created by default on Windows systems:

  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce

Run keys may exist under multiple hives.[2][3] The HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx is also available but is not created by default on Windows Vista and newer. Registry run key entries can reference programs directly or list them as a dependency.[4] For example, it is possible to load a DLL at logon using a "Depend" key with RunOnceEx: reg add HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx\0001\Depend /v 1 /d "C:\temp\evil[.]dll" [5]

The following Registry keys can be used to set startup folder items for persistence:

  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders
  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

The following Registry keys can control automatic startup of services during boot:

  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce
  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce
  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices
  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices

Using policy settings to specify startup programs creates corresponding values in either of two Registry keys:

  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\Run
  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\Run

The Winlogon key controls actions that occur when a user logs on to a computer running Windows 7. Most of these actions are under the control of the operating system, but you can also add custom actions here. The HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Userinit and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell subkeys can automatically launch programs.

Programs listed in the load value of the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows run when any user logs on.

By default, the multistring BootExecute value of the registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager is set to autocheck autochk *. This value causes Windows, at startup, to check the file-system integrity of the hard disks if the system has been shut down abnormally. Adversaries can add other programs or processes to this registry value which will automatically launch at boot.

Adversaries can use these configuration locations to execute malware, such as remote access tools, to maintain persistence through system reboots. Adversaries may also use Masquerading to make the Registry entries look as if they are associated with legitimate programs.

ID: T1547.001
Sub-technique of:  T1547
Platforms: Windows
Permissions Required: Administrator, User
CAPEC ID: CAPEC-270
Contributors: Oddvar Moe, @oddvarmoe
Version: 1.1
Created: 23 January 2020
Last Modified: 20 April 2022

Procedure Examples

ID Name Description
S0045 ADVSTORESHELL

ADVSTORESHELL achieves persistence by adding itself to the HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[6][7][8]

S0331 Agent Tesla

Agent Tesla can add itself to the Registry as a startup program to establish persistence.[9][10]

S0622 AppleSeed

AppleSeed has the ability to create the Registry key name EstsoftAutoUpdate at HKLU\Software\Microsoft/Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce to establish persistence.[11]

G0026 APT18

APT18 establishes persistence via the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key.[12][13]

G0073 APT19

An APT19 HTTP malware variant establishes persistence by setting the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\Windows Debug Tools-%LOCALAPPDATA%\.[14]

G0007 APT28

APT28 has deployed malware that has copied itself to the startup directory for persistence.[15]

G0016 APT29

APT29 added Registry Run keys to establish persistence.[16]

G0022 APT3

APT3 places scripts in the startup folder for persistence.[17]

G0050 APT32

APT32 established persistence using Registry Run keys, both to execute PowerShell and VBS scripts as well as to execute their backdoor directly.[18][19][20]

G0064 APT33

APT33 has deployed a tool known as DarkComet to the Startup folder of a victim, and used Registry run keys to gain persistence.[21][22]

G0067 APT37

APT37's has added persistence via the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\CurrentVersion\Run\.[23][24]

G0087 APT39

APT39 has maintained persistence using the startup folder.[25]

G0096 APT41

APT41 created and modified startup files for persistence.[26][27] APT41 added a registry key in HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost to establish persistence for Cobalt Strike.[28]

S0456 Aria-body

Aria-body has established persistence via the Startup folder or Run Registry key.[29]

S0373 Astaroth

Astaroth creates a startup item for persistence. [30]

S0640 Avaddon

Avaddon uses registry run keys for persistence.[31]

S0414 BabyShark

BabyShark has added a Registry key to ensure all future macros are enabled for Microsoft Word and Excel as well as for additional persistence.[32][33]

S0093 Backdoor.Oldrea

Backdoor.Oldrea adds Registry Run keys to achieve persistence.[34][35]

S0031 BACKSPACE

BACKSPACE achieves persistence by creating a shortcut to itself in the CSIDL_STARTUP directory.[36]

S0128 BADNEWS

BADNEWS installs a registry Run key to establish persistence.[37]

S0337 BadPatch

BadPatch establishes a foothold by adding a link to the malware executable in the startup folder.[38]

S0534 Bazar

Bazar can create or add files to Registry Run Keys to establish persistence.[39][40]

S0127 BBSRAT

BBSRAT has been loaded through DLL side-loading of a legitimate Citrix executable that is set to persist through the Registry Run key location HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\ssonsvr.exe.

S0268 Bisonal

Bisonal has added itself to the Registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\CurrentVersion\Run\ for persistence.[41][42]

S0570 BitPaymer

BitPaymer has set the run key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for persistence.[43]

S0089 BlackEnergy

The BlackEnergy 3 variant drops its main DLL component and then creates a .lnk shortcut to that file in the startup folder.[44]

S0635 BoomBox

BoomBox can establish persistence by writing the Registry value MicroNativeCacheSvc to HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.[45]

S0204 Briba

Briba creates run key Registry entries pointing to malicious DLLs dropped to disk.[46]

G0060 BRONZE BUTLER

BRONZE BUTLER has used a batch script that adds a Registry Run key to establish malware persistence.[47]

S0471 build_downer

build_downer has the ability to add itself to the Registry Run key for persistence.[48]

S0030 Carbanak

Carbanak stores a configuration files in the startup directory to automatically execute commands in order to persist across reboots.[49]

S0484 Carberp

Carberp has maintained persistence by placing itself inside the current user's startup folder.[50]

S0348 Cardinal RAT

Cardinal RAT establishes Persistence by setting the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\Load Registry key to point to its executable.[51]

S0631 Chaes

Chaes has added persistence via the Registry key software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run\microsoft windows html help.[52]

S0144 ChChes

ChChes establishes persistence by adding a Registry Run key.[53]

S0660 Clambling

Clambling can establish persistence by adding a Registry run key.[54][55]

G0080 Cobalt Group

Cobalt Group has used Registry Run keys for persistence. The group has also set a Startup path to launch the PowerShell shell command and download Cobalt Strike.[56]

S0338 Cobian RAT

Cobian RAT creates an autostart Registry key to ensure persistence.[57]

S0244 Comnie

Comnie achieves persistence by adding a shortcut of itself to the startup path in the Registry.[58]

S0608 Conficker

Conficker adds Registry Run keys to establish persistence.[59]

G0142 Confucius

Confucius has dropped malicious files into the startup folder %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup on a compromised host in order to maintain persistence.[60]

S0137 CORESHELL

CORESHELL has established persistence by creating autostart extensibility point (ASEP) Registry entries in the Run key and other Registry keys, as well as by creating shortcuts in the Internet Explorer Quick Start folder.[61]

S0046 CozyCar

One persistence mechanism used by CozyCar is to set itself to be executed at system startup by adding a Registry value under one of the following Registry keys:
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\Run
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\Run[62]

S0115 Crimson

Crimson can add Registry run keys for persistence.[63][64]

S0235 CrossRAT

CrossRAT uses run keys for persistence on Windows

G0070 Dark Caracal

Dark Caracal's version of Bandook adds a registry key to HKEY_USERS\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for persistence.[65]

S0334 DarkComet

DarkComet adds several Registry entries to enable automatic execution at every system startup.[66][67]

G0012 Darkhotel

Darkhotel has been known to establish persistence by adding programs to the Run Registry key.[68]

S0186 DownPaper

DownPaper uses PowerShell to add a Registry Run key in order to establish persistence.[69]

G0035 Dragonfly

Dragonfly has added the registry value ntdll to the Registry Run key to establish persistence.[70]

S0062 DustySky

DustySky achieves persistence by creating a Registry entry in HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.[71]

S0081 Elise

If establishing persistence by installation as a new service fails, one variant of Elise establishes persistence for the created .exe file by setting the following Registry key: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\svchost : %APPDATA%\Microsoft\Network\svchost.exe. Other variants have set the following Registry keys for persistence: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\imejp : [self] and HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\IAStorD.[72][73]

S0082 Emissary

Variants of Emissary have added Run Registry keys to establish persistence.[74]

S0367 Emotet

Emotet has been observed adding the downloaded payload to the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key to maintain persistence.[75][76][77]

S0363 Empire

Empire can modify the registry run keys HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for persistence.[78]

S0396 EvilBunny

EvilBunny has created Registry keys for persistence in [HKLM|HKCU]\…\CurrentVersion\Run.[79]

S0152 EvilGrab

EvilGrab adds a Registry Run key for ctfmon.exe to establish persistence.[53]

S0568 EVILNUM

EVILNUM can achieve persistence through the Registry Run key.[80][81]

S0512 FatDuke

FatDuke has used HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\CurrentVersion\Run to establish persistence.[82]

S0267 FELIXROOT

FELIXROOT adds a shortcut file to the startup folder for persistence.[83]

G0051 FIN10

FIN10 has established persistence by using the Registry option in PowerShell Empire to add a Run key.[84][78]

G0037 FIN6

FIN6 has used Registry Run keys to establish persistence for its downloader tools known as HARDTACK and SHIPBREAD.[85]

G0046 FIN7

FIN7 malware has created Registry Run and RunOnce keys to establish persistence, and has also added items to the Startup folder.[86][87]

S0355 Final1stspy

Final1stspy creates a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[88]

S0182 FinFisher

FinFisher establishes persistence by creating the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Run.[89][90]

S0696 Flagpro

Flagpro has dropped an executable file to the startup directory.[91]

S0036 FLASHFLOOD

FLASHFLOOD achieves persistence by making an entry in the Registry's Run key.[36]

G0047 Gamaredon Group

Gamaredon Group tools have registered Run keys in the registry to give malicious VBS files persistence.[92][93][94]

S0168 Gazer

Gazer can establish persistence by creating a .lnk file in the Start menu.[95][96]

S0666 Gelsemium

Gelsemium can set persistence with a Registry run key.[97]

S0032 gh0st RAT

gh0st RAT has added a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[98][99]

S0249 Gold Dragon

Gold Dragon establishes persistence in the Startup folder.[100]

G0078 Gorgon Group

Gorgon Group malware can create a .lnk file and add a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[101]

S0531 Grandoreiro

Grandoreiro can use run keys and create link files in the startup folder for persistence.[102][103]

S0417 GRIFFON

GRIFFON has used a persistence module that stores the implant inside the Registry, which executes at logon.[104]

S0632 GrimAgent

GrimAgent can set persistence with a Registry run key.[105]

S0561 GuLoader

GuLoader can establish persistence via the Registry under HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce.[106]

S0499 Hancitor

Hancitor has added Registry Run keys to establish persistence.[107]

S0170 Helminth

Helminth establishes persistence by creating a shortcut in the Start Menu folder.[108]

S0087 Hi-Zor

Hi-Zor creates a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[109]

G0126 Higaisa

Higaisa added a spoofed binary to the start-up folder for persistence.[110][111]

G0072 Honeybee

Honeybee uses a batch file that configures the ComSysApp service to autostart in order to establish persistence.[112]

S0070 HTTPBrowser

HTTPBrowser has established persistence by setting the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key value for wdm to the path of the executable. It has also used the Registry entry HKEY_USERS\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run vpdn "%ALLUSERPROFILE%\%APPDATA%\vpdn\VPDN_LU.exe" to establish persistence.[113][114]

S0483 IcedID

IcedID has established persistence by creating a Registry run key.[115]

G0100 Inception

Inception has maintained persistence by modifying Registry run key value HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\.[116]

S0259 InnaputRAT

Some InnaputRAT variants establish persistence by modifying the Registry key HKU\\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run:%appdata%\NeutralApp\NeutralApp.exe.[117]

S0260 InvisiMole

InvisiMole can place a lnk file in the Startup Folder to achieve persistence.[118]

S0015 Ixeshe

Ixeshe can achieve persistence by adding itself to the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[119]

S0389 JCry

JCry has created payloads in the Startup directory to maintain persistence. [120]

S0044 JHUHUGIT

JHUHUGIT has used a Registry Run key to establish persistence by executing JavaScript code within the rundll32.exe process.[121]

S0088 Kasidet

Kasidet creates a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[122][123]

S0265 Kazuar

Kazuar adds a sub-key under several Registry run keys.[124]

G0004 Ke3chang

Several Ke3chang backdoors achieved persistence by adding a Run key.[125]

G0094 Kimsuky

Kimsuky has placed scripts in the startup folder for persistence and modified the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce Registry key.[126][33][127][128][129]

S0250 Koadic

Koadic has added persistence to the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[130]

S0669 KOCTOPUS

KOCTOPUS can set the AutoRun Registry key with a PowerShell command.[130]

S0356 KONNI

A version of KONNI has dropped a Windows shortcut into the Startup folder to establish persistence.[131]

G0032 Lazarus Group

Lazarus Group has maintained persistence by loading malicious code into a startup folder or by adding a Registry Run key.[132][133][134][135][136]

G0140 LazyScripter

LazyScripter has achieved persistence via writing a PowerShell script to the autorun registry key.[130]

G0065 Leviathan

Leviathan has used JavaScript to create a shortcut file in the Startup folder that points to its main backdoor.[137][138]

S0513 LiteDuke

LiteDuke can create persistence by adding a shortcut in the CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[82]

S0397 LoJax

LoJax has modified the Registry key ‘HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\BootExecute’ from ‘autocheck autochk to ‘autocheck autoche in order to execute its payload during Windows startup.[139]

S0582 LookBack

LookBack sets up a Registry Run key to establish a persistence mechanism.[140]

S0532 Lucifer

Lucifer can persist by setting Registry key values HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\QQMusic and HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\QQMusic.[141]

S0409 Machete

Machete used the startup folder for persistence.[142][143]

G0059 Magic Hound

Magic Hound malware has used Registry Run keys to establish persistence.[144]

S0652 MarkiRAT

MarkiRAT can drop its payload into the Startup directory to ensure it automatically runs when the compromised system is started.[145]

S0167 Matryoshka

Matryoshka can establish persistence by adding Registry Run keys.[146][147]

S0449 Maze

Maze has created a file named "startup_vrun.bat" in the Startup folder of a virtual machine to establish persistence.[148]

S0500 MCMD

MCMD can use Registry Run Keys for persistence.[149]

S0455 Metamorfo

Metamorfo has configured persistence to the Registry ket HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, Spotify =% APPDATA%\Spotify\Spotify.exe and used .LNK files in the startup folder to achieve persistence.[150][151][152][153]

S0080 Mivast

Mivast creates the following Registry entry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\Micromedia.[154]

S0553 MoleNet

MoleNet can achieve persitence on the infected machine by setting the Registry run key.[155]

G0021 Molerats

Molerats saved malicious files within the AppData and Startup folders to maintain persistence.[156]

S0256 Mosquito

Mosquito establishes persistence under the Registry key HKCU\Software\Run auto_update.[157]

G0069 MuddyWater

MuddyWater has added Registry Run key KCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\SystemTextEncoding to establish persistence.[158][159][160][161][162]

G0129 Mustang Panda

Mustang Panda has created the registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\AdobelmdyU to maintain persistence.[163]

G0019 Naikon

Naikon has modified a victim's Windows Run registry to establish persistence.[164]

S0228 NanHaiShu

NanHaiShu modifies the %regrun% Registry to point itself to an autostart mechanism.[165]

S0336 NanoCore

NanoCore creates a RunOnce key in the Registry to execute its VBS scripts each time the user logs on to the machine.[166]

S0247 NavRAT

NavRAT creates a Registry key to ensure a file gets executed upon reboot in order to establish persistence.[167]

S0630 Nebulae

Nebulae can achieve persistence through a Registry Run key.[164]

S0034 NETEAGLE

The "SCOUT" variant of NETEAGLE achieves persistence by adding itself to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[36]

S0198 NETWIRE

NETWIRE creates a Registry start-up entry to establish persistence.[168][169][106][170]

S0385 njRAT

njRAT has added persistence via the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\CurrentVersion\Run\ and dropped a shortcut in %STARTUP%.[171][172]

S0353 NOKKI

NOKKI has established persistence by writing the payload to the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run.[173]

S0644 ObliqueRAT

ObliqueRAT can gain persistence by a creating a shortcut in the infected user's Startup directory.[174]

S0340 Octopus

Octopus achieved persistence by placing a malicious executable in the startup directory and has added the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key to the Registry.[175]

S0439 Okrum

Okrum establishes persistence by creating a .lnk shortcut to itself in the Startup folder.[176]

G0040 Patchwork

Patchwork has added the path of its second-stage malware to the startup folder to achieve persistence. One of its file stealers has also persisted by adding a Registry Run key.[177][178]

S0124 Pisloader

Pisloader establishes persistence via a Registry Run key.[179]

S0254 PLAINTEE

PLAINTEE gains persistence by adding the Registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce.[180]

S0013 PlugX

PlugX adds Run key entries in the Registry to establish persistence.[181][53][182]

S0428 PoetRAT

PoetRAT has added a registry key in the hive for persistence.[183]

S0012 PoisonIvy

PoisonIvy creates run key Registry entries pointing to a malicious executable dropped to disk.[184]

S0139 PowerDuke

PowerDuke achieves persistence by using various Registry Run keys.[185]

S0441 PowerShower

PowerShower sets up persistence with a Registry run key.[186]

S0145 POWERSOURCE

POWERSOURCE achieves persistence by setting a Registry Run key, with the path depending on whether the victim account has user or administrator access.[187]

S0194 PowerSploit

PowerSploit's New-UserPersistenceOption Persistence argument can be used to establish via the HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key.[188][189]

S0371 POWERTON

POWERTON can install a Registry Run key for persistence.[190]

S0113 Prikormka

Prikormka adds itself to a Registry Run key with the name guidVGA or guidVSA.[191]

G0056 PROMETHIUM

PROMETHIUM has used Registry run keys to establish persistence.[192]

S0147 Pteranodon

Pteranodon copies itself to the Startup folder to establish persistence.[193]

S0196 PUNCHBUGGY

PUNCHBUGGY has been observed using a Registry Run key.[194][195]

S0192 Pupy

Pupy adds itself to the startup folder or adds itself to the Registry key SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for persistence.[196]

G0024 Putter Panda

A dropper used by Putter Panda installs itself into the ASEP Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run with a value named McUpdate.[197]

S0650 QakBot

QakBot can maintain persistence by creating an auto-run Registry key.[198][199][200][201]

S0458 Ramsay

Ramsay has created Registry Run keys to establish persistence.[202]

S0662 RCSession

RCSession has the ability to modify a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[54][203]

S0172 Reaver

Reaver creates a shortcut file and saves it in a Startup folder to establish persistence.[204]

S0153 RedLeaves

RedLeaves attempts to add a shortcut file in the Startup folder to achieve persistence. If this fails, it attempts to add Registry Run keys.[53][205]

S0332 Remcos

Remcos can add itself to the Registry key HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run for persistence.[206]

S0375 Remexi

Remexi utilizes Run Registry keys in the HKLM hive as a persistence mechanism.[207]

S0379 Revenge RAT

Revenge RAT creates a Registry key at HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell to survive a system reboot.[208]

S0433 Rifdoor

Rifdoor has created a new registry entry at HKEY_CURRENT_USERS\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\Graphics with a value of C:\ProgramData\Initech\Initech.exe /run.[209]

G0106 Rocke

Rocke's miner has created UPX-packed files in the Windows Start Menu Folder.[210]

S0270 RogueRobin

RogueRobin created a shortcut in the Windows startup folder to launch a PowerShell script each time the user logs in to establish persistence.[211]

S0090 Rover

Rover persists by creating a Registry entry in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\.[212]

S0148 RTM

RTM tries to add a Registry Run key under the name "Windows Update" to establish persistence.[213]

G0048 RTM

RTM has used Registry run keys to establish persistence for the RTM Trojan and other tools, such as a modified version of TeamViewer remote desktop software.[213][214]

S0253 RunningRAT

RunningRAT adds itself to the Registry key Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run to establish persistence upon reboot.[100]

S0446 Ryuk

Ryuk has used the Windows command line to create a Registry entry under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run to establish persistence.[215]

S0085 S-Type

S-Type may create a .lnk file to itself that is saved in the Start menu folder. It may also create the Registry key HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\ IMJPMIJ8.1{{3 characters of Unique Identifier}}.[216]

S0074 Sakula

Most Sakula samples maintain persistence by setting the Registry Run key SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\ in the HKLM or HKCU hive, with the Registry value and file name varying by sample.[217]

S0461 SDBbot

SDBbot has the ability to add a value to the Registry Run key to establish persistence if it detects it is running with regular user privilege. [218][219]

S0053 SeaDuke

SeaDuke is capable of persisting via the Registry Run key or a .lnk file stored in the Startup directory.[220]

S0345 Seasalt

Seasalt creates a Registry entry to ensure infection after reboot under HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\currentVersion\Run.[221]

S0382 ServHelper

ServHelper may attempt to establish persistence via the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\ run key.[222]

G0104 Sharpshooter

Sharpshooter's first-stage downloader installed Rising Sun to the startup folder %Startup%\mssync.exe.[223]

S0546 SharpStage

SharpStage has the ability to create persistence for the malware using the Registry autorun key and startup folder.[155]

S0444 ShimRat

ShimRat has installed a registry based start-up key HKCU\Software\microsoft\windows\CurrentVersion\Run to maintain persistence should other methods fail.[224]

S0028 SHIPSHAPE

SHIPSHAPE achieves persistence by creating a shortcut in the Startup folder.[36]

G0121 Sidewinder

Sidewinder has added paths to executables in the Registry to establish persistence.[225][226][227]

G0091 Silence

Silence has used HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, and the Startup folder to establish persistence.[228]

S0692 SILENTTRINITY

SILENTTRINITY can establish a LNK file in the startup folder for persistence.[229]

S0226 Smoke Loader

Smoke Loader adds a Registry Run key for persistence and adds a script in the Startup folder to deploy the payload.[230]

S0649 SMOKEDHAM

SMOKEDHAM has used reg.exe to create a Registry Run key.[231]

S0159 SNUGRIDE

SNUGRIDE establishes persistence through a Registry Run key.[232]

S0035 SPACESHIP

SPACESHIP achieves persistence by creating a shortcut in the current user's Startup folder.[36]

S0058 SslMM

To establish persistence, SslMM identifies the Start Menu Startup directory and drops a link to its own executable disguised as an "Office Start," "Yahoo Talk," "MSN Gaming Z0ne," or "MSN Talk" shortcut.[233]

S0491 StrongPity

StrongPity can use the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run Registry key for persistence.[192]

S0018 Sykipot

Sykipot has been known to establish persistence by adding programs to the Run Registry key.[234]

S0663 SysUpdate

SysUpdate can use a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[235]

S0011 Taidoor

Taidoor has modified the HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key for persistence.[236]

S0586 TAINTEDSCRIBE

TAINTEDSCRIBE can copy itself into the current user’s Startup folder as "Narrator.exe" for persistence.[237]

G0139 TeamTNT

TeamTNT has added batch scripts to the startup folder.[238]

G0027 Threat Group-3390

A Threat Group-3390 tool can add the binary’s path to the Registry key Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run to add persistence.[239]

S0665 ThreatNeedle

ThreatNeedle can be loaded into the Startup folder (%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\OneDrives.lnk) as a Shortcut file for persistence.[240]

S0131 TINYTYPHON

TINYTYPHON installs itself under Registry Run key to establish persistence.[37]

S0004 TinyZBot

TinyZBot can create a shortcut in the Windows startup folder for persistence.[241]

S0266 TrickBot

TrickBot establishes persistence in the Startup folder.[242]

S0094 Trojan.Karagany

Trojan.Karagany can create a link to itself in the Startup folder to automatically start itself upon system restart.[34][243]

G0081 Tropic Trooper

Tropic Trooper has created shortcuts in the Startup folder to establish persistence.[244][245]

S0178 Truvasys

Truvasys adds a Registry Run key to establish persistence.[246]

S0647 Turian

Turian can establish persistence by adding Registry Run keys.[247]

G0010 Turla

A Turla Javascript backdoor added a local_update_check value under the Registry key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run to establish persistence. Additionally, a Turla custom executable containing Metasploit shellcode is saved to the Startup folder to gain persistence.[157][248]

S0199 TURNEDUP

TURNEDUP is capable of writing to a Registry Run key to establish.[249]

S0386 Ursnif

Ursnif has used Registry Run keys to establish automatic execution at system startup.[250][251]

S0136 USBStealer

USBStealer registers itself under a Registry Run key with the name "USB Disk Security."[252]

S0207 Vasport

Vasport copies itself to disk and creates an associated run key Registry entry to establish.[253]

S0442 VBShower

VBShower used HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\[a-f0-9A-F]{{8}} to maintain persistence.[254]

S0670 WarzoneRAT

WarzoneRAT can add itself to the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\UIF2IS20VK Registry keys.[255]

G0112 Windshift

Windshift has created LNK files in the Startup folder to establish persistence.[256]

S0141 Winnti for Windows

Winnti for Windows can add a service named wind0ws to the Registry to achieve persistence after reboot.[257]

G0102 Wizard Spider

Wizard Spider has established persistence via the Registry key HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and a shortcut within the startup folder.[258][259]

S0341 Xbash

Xbash can create a Startup item for persistence if it determines it is on a Windows system.[260]

S0251 Zebrocy

Zebrocy creates an entry in a Registry Run key for the malware to execute on startup.[261][262][263]

S0330 Zeus Panda

Zeus Panda adds persistence by creating Registry Run keys.[264][265]

G0128 ZIRCONIUM

ZIRCONIUM has created a Registry Run key named Dropbox Update Setup to establish persistence for a malicious Python binary.[266]

Mitigations

This type of attack technique cannot be easily mitigated with preventive controls since it is based on the abuse of system features.

Detection

ID Data Source Data Component
DS0017 Command Command Execution
DS0022 File File Modification
DS0024 Windows Registry Windows Registry Key Creation
Windows Registry Key Modification

Monitor Registry for changes to run keys that do not correlate with known software, patch cycles, etc. Monitor the start folder for additions or changes. Tools such as Sysinternals Autoruns may also be used to detect system changes that could be attempts at persistence, including listing the run keys' Registry locations and startup folders. [267] Suspicious program execution as startup programs may show up as outlier processes that have not been seen before when compared against historical data.

Changes to these locations typically happen under normal conditions when legitimate software is installed. To increase confidence of malicious activity, data and events should not be viewed in isolation, but as part of a chain of behavior that could lead to other activities, such as network connections made for Command and Control, learning details about the environment through Discovery, and Lateral Movement.

References

  1. Microsoft. (n.d.). Run and RunOnce Registry Keys. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  2. Microsoft. (2018, May 31). 32-bit and 64-bit Application Data in the Registry. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  3. Arntz, P. (2016, March 30). Hiding in Plain Sight. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  4. Microsoft. (2018, August 20). Description of the RunOnceEx Registry Key. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  5. Moe, O. (2018, March 21). Persistence using RunOnceEx - Hidden from Autoruns.exe. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  6. Kaspersky Lab's Global Research and Analysis Team. (2015, December 4). Sofacy APT hits high profile targets with updated toolset. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  7. ESET. (2016, October). En Route with Sednit - Part 2: Observing the Comings and Goings. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  8. Bitdefender. (2015, December). APT28 Under the Scope. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  9. Zhang, X. (2018, April 05). Analysis of New Agent Tesla Spyware Variant. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  10. Walter, J. (2020, August 10). Agent Tesla | Old RAT Uses New Tricks to Stay on Top. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  11. Jazi, H. (2021, June 1). Kimsuky APT continues to target South Korean government using AppleSeed backdoor. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
  12. Shelmire, A. (2015, July 06). Evasive Maneuvers by the Wekby group with custom ROP-packing and DNS covert channels. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  13. Grunzweig, J., et al. (2016, May 24). New Wekby Attacks Use DNS Requests As Command and Control Mechanism. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  14. Grunzweig, J., Lee, B. (2016, January 22). New Attacks Linked to C0d0so0 Group. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  15. Hacquebord, F., Remorin, L. (2020, December 17). Pawn Storm’s Lack of Sophistication as a Strategy. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  16. Dunwoody, M. and Carr, N.. (2016, September 27). No Easy Breach DerbyCon 2016. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  17. Moran, N., et al. (2014, November 21). Operation Double Tap. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  18. Dahan, A. (2017, May 24). OPERATION COBALT KITTY: A LARGE-SCALE APT IN ASIA CARRIED OUT BY THE OCEANLOTUS GROUP. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  19. Dahan, A. (2017). Operation Cobalt Kitty. Retrieved December 27, 2018.
  20. Dumont, R. (2019, March 20). Fake or Fake: Keeping up with OceanLotus decoys. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  21. Security Response attack Investigation Team. (2019, March 27). Elfin: Relentless Espionage Group Targets Multiple Organizations in Saudi Arabia and U.S.. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  22. Microsoft Threat Protection Intelligence Team. (2020, June 18). Inside Microsoft Threat Protection: Mapping attack chains from cloud to endpoint. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  23. FireEye. (2018, February 20). APT37 (Reaper): The Overlooked North Korean Actor. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  24. Mercer, W., Rascagneres, P. (2018, January 16). Korea In The Crosshairs. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
  25. Hawley et al. (2019, January 29). APT39: An Iranian Cyber Espionage Group Focused on Personal Information. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  26. Fraser, N., et al. (2019, August 7). Double DragonAPT41, a dual espionage and cyber crime operation APT41. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  27. Rostovcev, N. (2021, June 10). Big airline heist APT41 likely behind a third-party attack on Air India. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
  28. Glyer, C, et al. (2020, March). This Is Not a Test: APT41 Initiates Global Intrusion Campaign Using Multiple Exploits. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
  29. CheckPoint. (2020, May 7). Naikon APT: Cyber Espionage Reloaded. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  30. Doaty, J., Garrett, P.. (2018, September 10). We’re Seeing a Resurgence of the Demonic Astaroth WMIC Trojan. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  31. Yuste, J. Pastrana, S. (2021, February 9). Avaddon ransomware: an in-depth analysis and decryption of infected systems. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  32. Unit 42. (2019, February 22). New BabyShark Malware Targets U.S. National Security Think Tanks. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  33. CISA, FBI, CNMF. (2020, October 27). https://us-cert.cisa.gov/ncas/alerts/aa20-301a. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  34. Symantec Security Response. (2014, July 7). Dragonfly: Cyberespionage Attacks Against Energy Suppliers. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  35. Slowik, J. (2021, October). THE BAFFLING BERSERK BEAR: A DECADE’S ACTIVITY TARGETING CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
  36. FireEye Labs. (2015, April). APT30 AND THE MECHANICS OF A LONG-RUNNING CYBER ESPIONAGE OPERATION. Retrieved May 1, 2015.
  37. Settle, A., et al. (2016, August 8). MONSOON - Analysis Of An APT Campaign. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  38. Bar, T., Conant, S. (2017, October 20). BadPatch. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  39. Cybereason Nocturnus. (2020, July 16). A BAZAR OF TRICKS: FOLLOWING TEAM9’S DEVELOPMENT CYCLES. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
  40. Pantazopoulos, N. (2020, June 2). In-depth analysis of the new Team9 malware family. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  41. Hayashi, K., Ray, V. (2018, July 31). Bisonal Malware Used in Attacks Against Russia and South Korea. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  42. Mercer, W., et al. (2020, March 5). Bisonal: 10 years of play. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  43. Frankoff, S., Hartley, B. (2018, November 14). Big Game Hunting: The Evolution of INDRIK SPIDER From Dridex Wire Fraud to BitPaymer Targeted Ransomware. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
  44. F-Secure Labs. (2014). BlackEnergy & Quedagh: The convergence of crimeware and APT attacks. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  45. MSTIC. (2021, May 28). Breaking down NOBELIUM’s latest early-stage toolset. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
  46. Ladley, F. (2012, May 15). Backdoor.Briba. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  47. Counter Threat Unit Research Team. (2017, October 12). BRONZE BUTLER Targets Japanese Enterprises. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  48. Chen, J. et al. (2019, November). Operation ENDTRADE: TICK’s Multi-Stage Backdoors for Attacking Industries and Stealing Classified Data. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  49. Bennett, J., Vengerik, B. (2017, June 12). Behind the CARBANAK Backdoor. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  50. Giuliani, M., Allievi, A. (2011, February 28). Carberp - a modular information stealing trojan. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  51. Grunzweig, J.. (2017, April 20). Cardinal RAT Active for Over Two Years. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  52. Salem, E. (2020, November 17). CHAES: Novel Malware Targeting Latin American E-Commerce. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  53. PwC and BAE Systems. (2017, April). Operation Cloud Hopper: Technical Annex. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
  54. Lunghi, D. et al. (2020, February). Uncovering DRBControl. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  55. Chen, T. and Chen, Z. (2020, February 17). CLAMBLING - A New Backdoor Base On Dropbox. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  56. Matveeva, V. (2017, August 15). Secrets of Cobalt. Retrieved October 10, 2018.
  57. Yadav, A., et al. (2017, August 31). Cobian RAT – A backdoored RAT. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  58. Grunzweig, J. (2018, January 31). Comnie Continues to Target Organizations in East Asia. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  59. Trend Micro. (2014, March 18). Conficker. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  60. Uptycs Threat Research Team. (2021, January 12). Confucius APT deploys Warzone RAT. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  61. Anthe, C. et al. (2015, October 19). Microsoft Security Intelligence Report Volume 19. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
  62. F-Secure Labs. (2015, April 22). CozyDuke: Malware Analysis. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  63. Huss, D. (2016, March 1). Operation Transparent Tribe. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  64. Dedola, G. (2020, August 20). Transparent Tribe: Evolution analysis, part 1. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  65. Blaich, A., et al. (2018, January 18). Dark Caracal: Cyber-espionage at a Global Scale. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  66. TrendMicro. (2014, September 03). DARKCOMET. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  67. Kujawa, A. (2018, March 27). You dirty RAT! Part 1: DarkComet. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  68. Kaspersky Lab's Global Research and Analysis Team. (2014, November). The Darkhotel APT A Story of Unusual Hospitality. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  69. ClearSky Cyber Security. (2017, December). Charming Kitten. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  70. US-CERT. (2018, March 16). Alert (TA18-074A): Russian Government Cyber Activity Targeting Energy and Other Critical Infrastructure Sectors. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  71. ClearSky. (2016, January 7). Operation DustySky. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  72. Falcone, R., et al.. (2015, June 16). Operation Lotus Blossom. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  73. Accenture Security. (2018, January 27). DRAGONFISH DELIVERS NEW FORM OF ELISE MALWARE TARGETING ASEAN DEFENCE MINISTERS’ MEETING AND ASSOCIATES. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  74. Falcone, R. and Miller-Osborn, J. (2016, February 3). Emissary Trojan Changelog: Did Operation Lotus Blossom Cause It to Evolve?. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  75. Symantec. (2018, July 18). The Evolution of Emotet: From Banking Trojan to Threat Distributor. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  76. US-CERT. (2018, July 20). Alert (TA18-201A) Emotet Malware. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  77. Özarslan, S. (2018, December 21). The Christmas Card you never wanted - A new wave of Emotet is back to wreak havoc. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
  78. Schroeder, W., Warner, J., Nelson, M. (n.d.). Github PowerShellEmpire. Retrieved April 28, 2016.
  79. Marschalek, M.. (2014, December 16). EvilBunny: Malware Instrumented By Lua. Retrieved June 28, 2019.
  80. Porolli, M. (2020, July 9). More evil: A deep look at Evilnum and its toolset. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  81. Adamitis, D. (2020, May 6). Phantom in the Command Shell. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  82. Faou, M., Tartare, M., Dupuy, T. (2019, October). OPERATION GHOST. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  83. Cherepanov, A. (2018, October). GREYENERGY A successor to BlackEnergy. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  84. FireEye iSIGHT Intelligence. (2017, June 16). FIN10: Anatomy of a Cyber Extortion Operation. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  85. FireEye Threat Intelligence. (2016, April). Follow the Money: Dissecting the Operations of the Cyber Crime Group FIN6. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  86. Carr, N., et al. (2017, April 24). FIN7 Evolution and the Phishing LNK. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  87. Carr, N., et al. (2018, August 01). On the Hunt for FIN7: Pursuing an Enigmatic and Evasive Global Criminal Operation. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  88. Grunzweig, J. (2018, October 01). NOKKI Almost Ties the Knot with DOGCALL: Reaper Group Uses New Malware to Deploy RAT. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  89. FinFisher. (n.d.). Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  90. Allievi, A.,Flori, E. (2018, March 01). FinFisher exposed: A researcher’s tale of defeating traps, tricks, and complex virtual machines. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  91. Hada, H. (2021, December 28). Flagpro The new malware used by BlackTech. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
  92. Kakara, H., Maruyama, E. (2020, April 17). Gamaredon APT Group Use Covid-19 Lure in Campaigns. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  93. Boutin, J. (2020, June 11). Gamaredon group grows its game. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
  94. CERT-EE. (2021, January 27). Gamaredon Infection: From Dropper to Entry. Retrieved February 17, 2022.
  95. ESET. (2017, August). Gazing at Gazer: Turla’s new second stage backdoor. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
  96. Kaspersky Lab's Global Research & Analysis Team. (2017, August 30). Introducing WhiteBear. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  97. Dupuy, T. and Faou, M. (2021, June). Gelsemium. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  98. Pantazopoulos, N. (2018, April 17). Decoding network data from a Gh0st RAT variant. Retrieved November 2, 2018.
  99. Quinn, J. (2019, March 25). The odd case of a Gh0stRAT variant. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  100. Sherstobitoff, R., Saavedra-Morales, J. (2018, February 02). Gold Dragon Widens Olympics Malware Attacks, Gains Permanent Presence on Victims’ Systems. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  101. Falcone, R., et al. (2018, August 02). The Gorgon Group: Slithering Between Nation State and Cybercrime. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  102. Abramov, D. (2020, April 13). Grandoreiro Malware Now Targeting Banks in Spain. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  103. ESET. (2020, April 28). Grandoreiro: How engorged can an EXE get?. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
  104. Namestnikov, Y. and Aime, F. (2019, May 8). FIN7.5: the infamous cybercrime rig “FIN7” continues its activities. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  105. Priego, A. (2021, July). THE BROTHERS GRIM: THE REVERSING TALE OF GRIMAGENT MALWARE USED BY RYUK. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  106. Duncan, B. (2020, April 3). GuLoader: Malspam Campaign Installing NetWire RAT. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  107. Anubhav, A., Jallepalli, D. (2016, September 23). Hancitor (AKA Chanitor) observed using multiple attack approaches. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  108. Falcone, R. and Lee, B.. (2016, May 26). The OilRig Campaign: Attacks on Saudi Arabian Organizations Deliver Helminth Backdoor. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  109. Fidelis Cybersecurity. (2015, December 16). Fidelis Threat Advisory #1020: Dissecting the Malware Involved in the INOCNATION Campaign. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  110. Malwarebytes Threat Intelligence Team. (2020, June 4). New LNK attack tied to Higaisa APT discovered. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  111. Singh, S. Singh, A. (2020, June 11). The Return on the Higaisa APT. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  112. Sherstobitoff, R. (2018, March 02). McAfee Uncovers Operation Honeybee, a Malicious Document Campaign Targeting Humanitarian Aid Groups. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
  113. Desai, D.. (2015, August 14). Chinese cyber espionage APT group leveraging recently leaked Hacking Team exploits to target a Financial Services Firm. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  114. Shelmire, A.. (2015, July 6). Evasive Maneuvers. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  115. Kessem, L., et al. (2017, November 13). New Banking Trojan IcedID Discovered by IBM X-Force Research. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  116. GReAT. (2014, December 10). Cloud Atlas: RedOctober APT is back in style. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  117. ASERT Team. (2018, April 04). Innaput Actors Utilize Remote Access Trojan Since 2016, Presumably Targeting Victim Files. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  118. Hromcova, Z. and Cherpanov, A. (2020, June). INVISIMOLE: THE HIDDEN PART OF THE STORY. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  119. Sancho, D., et al. (2012, May 22). IXESHE An APT Campaign. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  120. Lee, S.. (2019, May 14). JCry Ransomware. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  121. ESET. (2016, October). En Route with Sednit - Part 1: Approaching the Target. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  122. Yadav, A., et al. (2016, January 29). Malicious Office files dropping Kasidet and Dridex. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  123. Manuel, J. and Plantado, R.. (2015, August 9). Win32/Kasidet. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  124. Levene, B, et al. (2017, May 03). Kazuar: Multiplatform Espionage Backdoor with API Access. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  125. Smallridge, R. (2018, March 10). APT15 is alive and strong: An analysis of RoyalCli and RoyalDNS. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
  126. Tarakanov , D.. (2013, September 11). The “Kimsuky” Operation: A North Korean APT?. Retrieved August 13, 2019.
  127. Crowdstrike. (2020, March 2). 2020 Global Threat Report. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  128. An, J and Malhotra, A. (2021, November 10). North Korean attackers use malicious blogs to deliver malware to high-profile South Korean targets. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  129. KISA. (n.d.). Phishing Target Reconnaissance and Attack Resource Analysis Operation Muzabi. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  130. Jazi, H. (2021, February). LazyScripter: From Empire to double RAT. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  131. Rascagneres, P. (2017, May 03). KONNI: A Malware Under The Radar For Years. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  132. Novetta Threat Research Group. (2016, February 24). Operation Blockbuster: Unraveling the Long Thread of the Sony Attack. Retrieved February 25, 2016.
  133. Novetta Threat Research Group. (2016, February 24). Operation Blockbuster: Remote Administration Tools & Content Staging Malware Report. Retrieved March 16, 2016.
  134. Sherstobitoff, R. (2018, February 12). Lazarus Resurfaces, Targets Global Banks and Bitcoin Users. Retrieved February 19, 2018.
  1. Cashman, M. (2020, July 29). Operation North Star Campaign. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  2. Saini, A. and Hossein, J. (2022, January 27). North Korea’s Lazarus APT leverages Windows Update client, GitHub in latest campaign. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
  3. Axel F, Pierre T. (2017, October 16). Leviathan: Espionage actor spearphishes maritime and defense targets. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  4. FireEye. (2018, March 16). Suspected Chinese Cyber Espionage Group (TEMP.Periscope) Targeting U.S. Engineering and Maritime Industries. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  5. ESET. (2018, September). LOJAX First UEFI rootkit found in the wild, courtesy of the Sednit group. Retrieved July 2, 2019.
  6. Raggi, M. Schwarz, D.. (2019, August 1). LookBack Malware Targets the United States Utilities Sector with Phishing Attacks Impersonating Engineering Licensing Boards. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  7. Hsu, K. et al. (2020, June 24). Lucifer: New Cryptojacking and DDoS Hybrid Malware Exploiting High and Critical Vulnerabilities to Infect Windows Devices. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  8. Kaspersky Global Research and Analysis Team. (2014, August 20). El Machete. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  9. The Cylance Threat Research Team. (2017, March 22). El Machete's Malware Attacks Cut Through LATAM. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  10. Lee, B. and Falcone, R. (2017, February 15). Magic Hound Campaign Attacks Saudi Targets. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  11. GReAT. (2021, June 16). Ferocious Kitten: 6 Years of Covert Surveillance in Iran. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  12. ClearSky Cyber Security and Trend Micro. (2017, July). Operation Wilted Tulip: Exposing a cyber espionage apparatus. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  13. Minerva Labs LTD and ClearSky Cyber Security. (2015, November 23). CopyKittens Attack Group. Retrieved September 11, 2017.
  14. Brandt, A., Mackenzie, P.. (2020, September 17). Maze Attackers Adopt Ragnar Locker Virtual Machine Technique. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
  15. Secureworks. (2019, July 24). MCMD Malware Analysis. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
  16. Erlich, C. (2020, April 3). The Avast Abuser: Metamorfo Banking Malware Hides By Abusing Avast Executable. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  17. Sierra, E., Iglesias, G.. (2018, April 24). Metamorfo Campaigns Targeting Brazilian Users. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  18. Zhang, X. (2020, February 4). Another Metamorfo Variant Targeting Customers of Financial Institutions in More Countries. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  19. ESET Research. (2019, October 3). Casbaneiro: peculiarities of this banking Trojan that affects Brazil and Mexico. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  20. Stama, D.. (2015, February 6). Backdoor.Mivast. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  21. Cybereason Nocturnus Team. (2020, December 9). MOLERATS IN THE CLOUD: New Malware Arsenal Abuses Cloud Platforms in Middle East Espionage Campaign. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  22. GReAT. (2019, April 10). Gaza Cybergang Group1, operation SneakyPastes. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
  23. ESET, et al. (2018, January). Diplomats in Eastern Europe bitten by a Turla mosquito. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  24. Singh, S. et al.. (2018, March 13). Iranian Threat Group Updates Tactics, Techniques and Procedures in Spear Phishing Campaign. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  25. Kaspersky Lab's Global Research & Analysis Team. (2018, October 10). MuddyWater expands operations. Retrieved November 2, 2018.
  26. Adamitis, D. et al. (2019, May 20). Recent MuddyWater-associated BlackWater campaign shows signs of new anti-detection techniques. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  27. Reaqta. (2017, November 22). A dive into MuddyWater APT targeting Middle-East. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  28. Peretz, A. and Theck, E. (2021, March 5). Earth Vetala – MuddyWater Continues to Target Organizations in the Middle East. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  29. Proofpoint Threat Research Team. (2020, November 23). TA416 Goes to Ground and Returns with a Golang PlugX Malware Loader. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  30. Vrabie, V. (2021, April 23). NAIKON – Traces from a Military Cyber-Espionage Operation. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
  31. F-Secure Labs. (2016, July). NANHAISHU RATing the South China Sea. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  32. Patel, K. (2018, March 02). The NanoCore RAT Has Resurfaced From the Sewers. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
  33. Mercer, W., Rascagneres, P. (2018, May 31). NavRAT Uses US-North Korea Summit As Decoy For Attacks In South Korea. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  34. McAfee. (2015, March 2). Netwire RAT Behind Recent Targeted Attacks. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  35. Lambert, T. (2020, January 29). Intro to Netwire. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  36. Proofpoint. (2020, December 2). Geofenced NetWire Campaigns. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  37. Fidelis Cybersecurity. (2013, June 28). Fidelis Threat Advisory #1009: "njRAT" Uncovered. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  38. Pascual, C. (2018, November 27). AutoIt-Compiled Worm Affecting Removable Media Delivers Fileless Version of BLADABINDI/njRAT Backdoor. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  39. Grunzweig, J., Lee, B. (2018, September 27). New KONNI Malware attacking Eurasia and Southeast Asia. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  40. Malhotra, A. (2021, March 2). ObliqueRAT returns with new campaign using hijacked websites. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  41. Kaspersky Lab's Global Research & Analysis Team. (2018, October 15). Octopus-infested seas of Central Asia. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  42. Hromcova, Z. (2019, July). OKRUM AND KETRICAN: AN OVERVIEW OF RECENT KE3CHANG GROUP ACTIVITY. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  43. Cymmetria. (2016). Unveiling Patchwork - The Copy-Paste APT. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  44. Lunghi, D., et al. (2017, December). Untangling the Patchwork Cyberespionage Group. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  45. Grunzweig, J., et al. (2016, May 24). New Wekby Attacks Use DNS Requests As Command and Control Mechanism. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
  46. Ash, B., et al. (2018, June 26). RANCOR: Targeted Attacks in South East Asia Using PLAINTEE and DDKONG Malware Families. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  47. Vasilenko, R. (2013, December 17). An Analysis of PlugX Malware. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  48. Computer Incident Response Center Luxembourg. (2013, March 29). Analysis of a PlugX variant. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  49. Mercer, W, et al. (2020, April 16). PoetRAT: Python RAT uses COVID-19 lures to target Azerbaijan public and private sectors. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  50. Hayashi, K. (2005, August 18). Backdoor.Darkmoon. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  51. Adair, S.. (2016, November 9). PowerDuke: Widespread Post-Election Spear Phishing Campaigns Targeting Think Tanks and NGOs. Retrieved January 11, 2017.
  52. Lancaster, T. (2018, November 5). Inception Attackers Target Europe with Year-old Office Vulnerability. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  53. Brumaghin, E. and Grady, C.. (2017, March 2). Covert Channels and Poor Decisions: The Tale of DNSMessenger. Retrieved March 8, 2017.
  54. PowerShellMafia. (2012, May 26). PowerSploit - A PowerShell Post-Exploitation Framework. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
  55. PowerSploit. (n.d.). PowerSploit. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
  56. Ackerman, G., et al. (2018, December 21). OVERRULED: Containing a Potentially Destructive Adversary. Retrieved January 17, 2019.
  57. Cherepanov, A.. (2016, May 17). Operation Groundbait: Analysis of a surveillance toolkit. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
  58. Mercer, W. et al. (2020, June 29). PROMETHIUM extends global reach with StrongPity3 APT. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  59. Kasza, A. and Reichel, D. (2017, February 27). The Gamaredon Group Toolset Evolution. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  60. Elovitz, S. & Ahl, I. (2016, August 18). Know Your Enemy: New Financially-Motivated & Spear-Phishing Group. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  61. Gorelik, M.. (2019, June 10). SECURITY ALERT: FIN8 IS BACK IN BUSINESS, TARGETING THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  62. Nicolas Verdier. (n.d.). Retrieved January 29, 2018.
  63. Crowdstrike Global Intelligence Team. (2014, June 9). CrowdStrike Intelligence Report: Putter Panda. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  64. Mendoza, E. et al. (2020, May 25). Qakbot Resurges, Spreads through VBS Files. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  65. CS. (2020, October 7). Duck Hunting with Falcon Complete: A Fowl Banking Trojan Evolves, Part 2. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  66. Trend Micro. (2020, December 17). QAKBOT: A decade-old malware still with new tricks. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  67. Group IB. (2020, September). LOCK LIKE A PRO. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  68. Antiy CERT. (2020, April 20). Analysis of Ramsay components of Darkhotel's infiltration and isolation network. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  69. Global Threat Center, Intelligence Team. (2020, December). APT27 Turns to Ransomware. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  70. Grunzweig, J. and Miller-Osborn, J. (2017, November 10). New Malware with Ties to SunOrcal Discovered. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
  71. Accenture Security. (2018, April 23). Hogfish Redleaves Campaign. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  72. Bacurio, F., Salvio, J. (2017, February 14). REMCOS: A New RAT In The Wild. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  73. Legezo, D. (2019, January 30). Chafer used Remexi malware to spy on Iran-based foreign diplomatic entities. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  74. Livelli, K, et al. (2018, November 12). Operation Shaheen. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  75. Knight, S.. (2020, April 16). VMware Carbon Black TAU Threat Analysis: The Evolution of Lazarus. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  76. Liebenberg, D.. (2018, August 30). Rocke: The Champion of Monero Miners. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  77. Falcone, R., et al. (2018, July 27). New Threat Actor Group DarkHydrus Targets Middle East Government. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  78. Ray, V., Hayashi, K. (2016, February 29). New Malware ‘Rover’ Targets Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
  79. Faou, M. and Boutin, J. (2017, February). Read The Manual: A Guide to the RTM Banking Trojan. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  80. Skulkin, O. (2019, August 5). Following the RTM Forensic examination of a computer infected with a banking trojan. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  81. Hanel, A. (2019, January 10). Big Game Hunting with Ryuk: Another Lucrative Targeted Ransomware. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  82. Gross, J. (2016, February 23). Operation Dust Storm. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  83. Dell SecureWorks Counter Threat Unit Threat Intelligence. (2015, July 30). Sakula Malware Family. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  84. Schwarz, D. et al. (2019, October 16). TA505 Distributes New SDBbot Remote Access Trojan with Get2 Downloader. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  85. Frydrych, M. (2020, April 14). TA505 Continues to Infect Networks With SDBbot RAT. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  86. Grunzweig, J.. (2015, July 14). Unit 42 Technical Analysis: Seaduke. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  87. Sherstobitoff, R., Malhotra, A. (2018, October 18). ‘Operation Oceansalt’ Attacks South Korea, U.S., and Canada With Source Code From Chinese Hacker Group. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  88. Vilkomir-Preisman, S. (2019, April 2). New ServHelper Variant Employs Excel 4.0 Macro to Drop Signed Payload. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  89. Sherstobitoff, R., Malhotra, A., et. al.. (2018, December 18). Operation Sharpshooter Campaign Targets Global Defense, Critical Infrastructure. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  90. Yonathan Klijnsma. (2016, May 17). Mofang: A politically motivated information stealing adversary. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  91. Rewterz. (2020, April 20). Sidewinder APT Group Campaign Analysis. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  92. Rewterz. (2020, June 22). Analysis on Sidewinder APT Group – COVID-19. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  93. Cyble. (2020, September 26). SideWinder APT Targets with futuristic Tactics and Techniques. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  94. Group-IB. (2018, September). Silence: Moving Into the Darkside. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  95. Salvati, M. (2019, August 6). SILENTTRINITY Modules. Retrieved March 24, 2022.
  96. Hasherezade. (2016, September 12). Smoke Loader – downloader with a smokescreen still alive. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  97. FireEye. (2021, June 16). Smoking Out a DARKSIDE Affiliate’s Supply Chain Software Compromise. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  98. FireEye iSIGHT Intelligence. (2017, April 6). APT10 (MenuPass Group): New Tools, Global Campaign Latest Manifestation of Longstanding Threat. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
  99. Baumgartner, K., Golovkin, M.. (2015, May). The MsnMM Campaigns: The Earliest Naikon APT Campaigns. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  100. Blasco, J. (2013, March 21). New Sykipot developments [Blog]. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  101. Lunghi, D. and Lu, K. (2021, April 9). Iron Tiger APT Updates Toolkit With Evolved SysUpdate Malware. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  102. Trend Micro. (2012). The Taidoor Campaign. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  103. USG. (2020, May 12). MAR-10288834-2.v1 – North Korean Trojan: TAINTEDSCRIBE. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  104. AT&T Alien Labs. (2021, September 8). TeamTNT with new campaign aka Chimaera. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  105. Pantazopoulos, N., Henry T. (2018, May 18). Emissary Panda – A potential new malicious tool. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  106. Vyacheslav Kopeytsev and Seongsu Park. (2021, February 25). Lazarus targets defense industry with ThreatNeedle. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  107. Cylance. (2014, December). Operation Cleaver. Retrieved September 14, 2017.
  108. Boutin, J. (2020, October 12). ESET takes part in global operation to disrupt Trickbot. Retrieved March 15, 2021.
  109. Secureworks. (2019, July 24). Updated Karagany Malware Targets Energy Sector. Retrieved August 12, 2020.
  110. Moore, S. et al. (2020, April 30). Anomali Suspects that China-Backed APT Pirate Panda May Be Seeking Access to Vietnam Government Data Center. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  111. Chen, J.. (2020, May 12). Tropic Trooper’s Back: USBferry Attack Targets Air gapped Environments. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  112. Microsoft. (2017, September 15). Backdoor:Win32/Truvasys.A!dha. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  113. Adam Burgher. (2021, June 10). BackdoorDiplomacy: Upgrading from Quarian to Turian. Retrieved September 1, 2021
  114. ESET Research. (2018, May 22). Turla Mosquito: A shift towards more generic tools. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  115. Gavriel, H. & Erbesfeld, B. (2018, April 11). New ‘Early Bird’ Code Injection Technique Discovered. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
  116. Trend Micro. (2014, December 11). PE_URSNIF.A2. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  117. Sioting, S. (2013, June 15). BKDR_URSNIF.SM. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  118. Calvet, J. (2014, November 11). Sednit Espionage Group Attacking Air-Gapped Networks. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  119. Zhou, R. (2012, May 15). Backdoor.Vasport. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  120. GReAT. (2019, August 12). Recent Cloud Atlas activity. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  121. Harakhavik, Y. (2020, February 3). Warzone: Behind the enemy lines. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  122. The BlackBerry Research & Intelligence Team. (2020, October). BAHAMUT: Hack-for-Hire Masters of Phishing, Fake News, and Fake Apps. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  123. Novetta Threat Research Group. (2015, April 7). Winnti Analysis. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
  124. DHS/CISA. (2020, October 28). Ransomware Activity Targeting the Healthcare and Public Health Sector. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
  125. Kimberly Goody, Jeremy Kennelly, Joshua Shilko, Steve Elovitz, Douglas Bienstock. (2020, October 28). Unhappy Hour Special: KEGTAP and SINGLEMALT With a Ransomware Chaser. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
  126. Xiao, C. (2018, September 17). Xbash Combines Botnet, Ransomware, Coinmining in Worm that Targets Linux and Windows. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  127. ESET. (2018, November 20). Sednit: What’s going on with Zebrocy?. Retrieved February 12, 2019.
  128. ESET Research. (2019, May 22). A journey to Zebrocy land. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  129. Accenture Security. (2018, November 29). SNAKEMACKEREL. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  130. Brumaghin, E., et al. (2017, November 02). Poisoning the Well: Banking Trojan Targets Google Search Results. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  131. Ebach, L. (2017, June 22). Analysis Results of Zeus.Variant.Panda. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  132. Singh, S. and Antil, S. (2020, October 27). APT-31 Leverages COVID-19 Vaccine Theme and Abuses Legitimate Online Services. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  133. Russinovich, M. (2016, January 4). Autoruns for Windows v13.51. Retrieved June 6, 2016.