Asylum Ambuscade

Asylum Ambuscade is a threat actor that has been operational since at least 2020, primarily engaging in cybercrime and cyberespionage. The group has shown a particular focus on small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and individuals across North America and Europe. Asylum Ambuscade's activities are distinctive due to the breadth of scripting languages they utilize, including JavaScript, Lua, AutoHotkey, Tcl, Python, and Visual Basic. This diverse set of tools indicates a high level of technical sophistication and adaptability. It's unusual for a cybercrime group to run dedicated cyberespionage operations, making Asylum Ambuscade an entity of interest for cybersecurity researchers. The group has developed custom malware implants, demonstrating advanced resource development capabilities (T1583.003). They have also acquired infrastructure such as Virtual Private Servers (VPS) to facilitate their operations. The use of multiple command and scripting interpreters, including JavaScript (NODEBOT), Python, and Visual Basic, reveals their broad attack surface (T1059, T1059.007, T1059.006, T1059.005). The group's use of a screenshotter written in Python shows their ability to capture sensitive information from targeted systems. Asylum Ambuscade has been implicated in several notable incidents. A Proofpoint article from 2022 highlighted an instance where the group used Lua-based Sunseed Malware to target European governments and refugee movements. The group reportedly compromised private Ukrainian military emails, further illustrating their interest in governmental entities and geopolitical issues. Given these activities, it is recommended that researchers closely monitor Asylum Ambuscade's activities to better understand their evolving tactics and strategies.