Secret Blizzard

Secret Blizzard, also known as Turla, KRYPTON, and UAC-0003, is a threat actor group linked to Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB). This Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) group has been active since the early 2000s, primarily targeting government organizations worldwide. The group's activities were emulated in this year's ATT&CK® Evaluations, highlighting their sophisticated techniques. They have recently gained notoriety for targeted attacks against the defense sector in Ukraine and Eastern Europe, leveraging DeliveryCheck, a novel .NET backdoor used to deliver various second-stage payloads. In July 2023, Microsoft Threat Intelligence reported that Secret Blizzard had initiated targeted attacks on Microsoft Exchange servers. Post initial infection, the group deploys open-source tools such as rclone to collect and exfiltrate files. In some instances, they deploy a fully-featured Secret Blizzard implant known as Kazuar. This cyberespionage tool enables the threat actors to execute JavaScript, extract data from event logs, and steal credentials from various programs including browsers, FTP clients, VPN software, KeePass, Azure, AWS, and Outlook. The group's tactics, techniques, and use of Kazuar malware link them confidently to Russia's FSB-led group. These distinctive characteristics were noted by CERT-UA, reinforcing the association between Secret Blizzard and Russia's FSB. Furthermore, Secret Blizzard, along with another hacker group Forest Blizzard, attempted to access an IT provider in Poland that serves sensitive sectors. This highlights the group's ongoing threats to global cybersecurity, necessitating vigilant monitoring and robust countermeasures.