Citrus Ransomware: tactics, techniques, procedures, and links to Toy Ghouls
Source AlienVault OTX General
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.8 High.
Data as of 11 Nov 2026, 17:03 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (microsoft) | CVSS 3.1 | 8.8 |
|---|
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:U/RL:O/RC:CExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 14 Jul 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors
A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 11 Nov 2026.
What to do
Upgrade to a fixed release listed under Affected software.
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| MicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1607 | Affected
| Fixed in
|
| MicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1809 | Affected
| Fixed in
|
| MicrosoftWindows Server 2012 | Affected
| Fixed in
|
| MicrosoftWindows Server 2012 (Server Core installation) | Affected
| Fixed in
|
| MicrosoftWindows Server 2012 R2 | Affected
| Fixed in
|
| MicrosoftWindows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation) | Affected
| Fixed in
|
Description
Citrus Ransomware is a hybrid malware threat that combines traditional infrastructure compromise techniques with AI-driven automation and evasion methods. It gains initial access through compromised contractor accounts using stolen VPN or RDP credentials. The attackers exploit vulnerabilities such as CVE-2026-54121 for privilege escalation and use tools like mimikatz and Snaffler for credential theft. The ransomware, deployed via Group Policy Objects, encrypts files using RSA-2048 and ChaCha20 algorithms, appending a .citrus extension. The operation includes disabling security solutions, clearing logs, and harvesting Telegram session data. There are links suggesting connections to the Russian-speaking Toy Ghouls group, targeting Russian organizations exclusively.
Indicators of compromise
Hashes 10
CVEs 2
- CVE-2020-1337
- CVE-2026-54121