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APT43: North Korean Group Uses Cybercrime to Fund Espionage Operations

High
Vulnerabilitymisp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="phishing - t1566"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="spearphishing attachment - t1566.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="spearphishing link - t1566.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="virtual private server - t1583.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="compromise infrastructure - t1584"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="code signing certificates - t1588.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="digital certificates - t1588.004"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="install digital certificate - t1608.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="link target - t1608.005"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="windows management instrumentation - t1047"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="scheduled task - t1053.005"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="command and scripting interpreter - t1059"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="powershell - t1059.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="windows command shell - t1059.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="visual basic - t1059.005"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="javascript - t1059.007"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="javascript/jscript - t1059.007"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="shared modules - t1129"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="exploitation for client execution - t1203"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="malicious link - t1204.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="malicious file - t1204.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="service execution - t1569.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="web protocols - t1071.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="dns - t1071.004"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="multi-hop proxy - t1090.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="non-application layer protocol - t1095"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="web service - t1102"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="bidirectional communication - t1102.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="ingress tool transfer - t1105"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="standard encoding - t1132.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="asymmetric cryptography - t1573.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system service discovery - t1007"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="application window discovery - t1010"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="query registry - t1012"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system network configuration discovery - t1016"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system owner/user discovery - t1033"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="process discovery - t1057"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system information discovery - t1082"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="file and directory discovery - t1083"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="account discovery - t1087"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="software discovery - t1518"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system language discovery - t1614.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="keylogging - t1056.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="screen capture - t1113"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="clipboard data - t1115"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="data from information repositories - t1213"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="archive collected data - t1560"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="archive via utility - t1560.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="service stop - t1489"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system shutdown/reboot - t1529"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="automated exfiltration - t1020"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="brute force - t1110"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="credentials from web browsers - t1555.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="office application startup - t1137"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="web shell - t1505.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="windows service - t1543.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="registry run keys / startup folder - t1547.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="winlogon helper dll - t1547.004"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="shortcut modification - t1547.009"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="binary padding - t1027.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="obfuscated files or information - t1027"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="software packing - t1027.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="indicator removal from tools - t1027.005"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="embedded payloads - t1027.009"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="masquerading - t1036"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="invalid code signature - t1036.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="double file extension - t1036.007"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="process injection - t1055"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="dynamic-link library injection - t1055.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="thread execution hijacking - t1055.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="file deletion - t1070.004"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="timestomp - t1070.006"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="modify registry - t1112"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="access token manipulation - t1134"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="deobfuscate/decode files or information - t1140"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="mshta - t1218.005"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="virtualization/sandbox evasion - t1497"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="system checks - t1497.001"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="bypass user access control - t1548.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="bypass user account control - t1548.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="code signing - t1553.002"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="hidden window - t1564.003"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="vba stomping - t1564.007"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="reflective code loading - t1620"misp-galaxy:mitre-attack-pattern="debugger evasion - t1622"misp-galaxy:threat-actor="kimsuky"misp-galaxy:threat-actor="apt43"type:osintosint:lifetime="perpetual"osint:certainty="50"tlp:whitetlp:clear
Published: Tue Mar 28 2023 (03/28/2023, 00:00:00 UTC)
Source: CIRCL
Vendor/Project: misp-galaxy
Product: mitre-attack-pattern

Description

APT43: North Korean Group Uses Cybercrime to Fund Espionage Operations

AI-Powered Analysis

AILast updated: 06/19/2025, 14:18:40 UTC

Technical Analysis

APT43, also known as Kimsuky, is a North Korean advanced persistent threat (APT) group that has been observed leveraging cybercrime activities to fund its espionage operations. This threat actor employs a sophisticated and multi-faceted attack methodology primarily centered around social engineering techniques such as phishing and spearphishing (MITRE ATT&CK T1566, T1566.001, T1566.002). The group uses malicious links and attachments to gain initial access to targeted systems. Once inside, APT43 utilizes a wide range of tactics and techniques to maintain persistence, escalate privileges, and conduct reconnaissance. These include the use of scheduled tasks (T1053.005), Windows Management Instrumentation (T1047), command and scripting interpreters such as PowerShell and Windows command shell (T1059.001, T1059.003), and code injection methods (T1055 series). APT43 also compromises infrastructure by leveraging virtual private servers (T1583.003) and multi-hop proxies (T1090.003) to obfuscate command and control (C2) communications, which often use web protocols (T1071.001) and DNS tunneling (T1071.004). The group employs digital and code signing certificates (T1588.003, T1588.004) to sign malware and evade detection, and installs these certificates (T1608.003) to masquerade malicious payloads as legitimate software. They also use obfuscation techniques such as binary padding, software packing, and indicator removal (T1027 series) to avoid signature-based detection. APT43 conducts extensive discovery activities (T1007, T1010, T1012, T1016, T1033, T1057, T1082, T1083, T1087, T1518) to map out the environment and identify valuable targets. They capture sensitive data through keylogging (T1056.001), screen capture (T1113), clipboard data collection (T1115), and exfiltrate data via automated methods (T1020). The group also employs brute force attacks (T1110) and steals credentials from web browsers (T1555.003) to expand access. Persistence is maintained through registry run keys, startup folders, Windows services, and Winlogon helper DLLs (T1547 series, T1543.003). They also use advanced evasion techniques such as virtualization/sandbox evasion (T1497), debugger evasion (T1622), and reflective code loading (T1620). This threat actor is known to exploit client execution vulnerabilities (T1203) and uses malicious files and links (T1204.001, T1204.002) to deliver payloads. They manipulate system processes and tokens (T1134) and modify system registries (T1112) to maintain control. The group’s operations are perpetual and ongoing, with known exploits in the wild, and no patches are currently available for the vulnerabilities exploited. The threat level is high due to the combination of espionage objectives and cybercrime funding activities, making it a persistent and dangerous actor.

Potential Impact

European organizations face significant risks from APT43 due to the group's sophisticated attack techniques and espionage motivations. The impact includes potential compromise of sensitive intellectual property, government secrets, and critical infrastructure data, which could undermine national security and economic competitiveness. The use of phishing and spearphishing makes any organization with email communication vulnerable, especially those in sectors such as defense, energy, finance, research, and government. The ability of APT43 to maintain persistence and evade detection means that breaches could remain undetected for extended periods, allowing extensive data exfiltration and operational disruption. Additionally, the group's cybercrime activities to fund espionage may lead to financial losses and increased operational costs for affected organizations. The compromise of code signing certificates and digital certificates also threatens the software supply chain integrity, potentially affecting software vendors and their customers across Europe. The threat to availability through service stoppage and system shutdown techniques could disrupt critical services. Overall, the impact spans confidentiality, integrity, and availability, posing a high risk to European entities.

Mitigation Recommendations

1. Implement advanced email security solutions with targeted phishing and spearphishing detection capabilities, including sandboxing and URL detonation, to identify and block malicious attachments and links. 2. Enforce strict digital certificate management policies, including monitoring for unauthorized issuance or installation of code signing and digital certificates, and employ certificate pinning where feasible. 3. Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools capable of detecting script-based attacks, code injection, and persistence mechanisms such as registry run keys and scheduled tasks. 4. Conduct regular threat hunting exercises focusing on indicators of compromise related to APT43 tactics, including unusual PowerShell usage, WMI activity, and network traffic anomalies involving multi-hop proxies and DNS tunneling. 5. Harden systems by disabling unnecessary scripting environments and restricting the use of PowerShell and Windows command shell to trusted administrators. 6. Implement network segmentation and strict egress filtering to limit data exfiltration paths and isolate critical assets. 7. Regularly update and patch all software and systems, and maintain an inventory of digital certificates and code signing keys to detect anomalies. 8. Provide targeted user awareness training emphasizing spearphishing risks and reporting procedures. 9. Monitor for brute force attempts and implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) to reduce credential compromise risks. 10. Establish incident response plans specifically addressing APT tactics, including rapid containment and forensic analysis capabilities.

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Technical Details

Threat Level
1
Analysis
0
Uuid
68690840-5104-4c1a-9223-6d0a35c52704
Original Timestamp
1687420054

Indicators of Compromise

Link

ValueDescriptionCopy
linkhttps://mandiant.widen.net/s/zvmfw5fnjs/apt43-report

Text

ValueDescriptionCopy
textMandiant assesses with high confidence that APT43 is a moderately-sophisticated cyber operator that supports the interests of the North Korean regime. Campaigns attributed to APT43 include strategic intelligence collection aligned with Pyongyang’s geopolitical interests, credential harvesting and social engineering to support espionage activities, and financially-motivated cybercrime to fund operations. Tracked since 2018, APT43 collection priorities align with the mission of the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), North Korea's main foreign intelligence service. The group’s focus on foreign policy and nuclear security issues supports North Korea’s strategic and nuclear ambitions. However, the group’s focus on health-related verticals throughout the majority of 2021, likely in support of pandemic response efforts, highlights its responsiveness to shifting priorities from Pyongyang.
textReport

File

ValueDescriptionCopy
fileAPT43 Report.pdf

Hash

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Threat ID: 682c7adae3e6de8ceb777cc6

Added to database: 5/20/2025, 12:51:38 PM

Last enriched: 6/19/2025, 2:18:40 PM

Last updated: 7/26/2025, 9:16:21 AM

Views: 11

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