What public reporting says
This threat actor targets South Korean think tanks, industry, nuclear power operators, and the Ministry of Unification for espionage purposes.
Kimsuky threat group
Kimsuky is an espionage group thought to operate from North Korea, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 66 attack techniques, and to attacks on government and private sector organisations, with 4 countries and victims named. This free profile shows how it works and who it targets, so you can judge the risk to you.
- Attack techniques
- 66
- Countries and victims named
- 4
- Thought to operate from
- North Korea
- Suspected backing
- North Korea
- Motive
- Espionage
- Other names
- 10
Built from public reporting, with every source listed below.
Overview
Who is Kimsuky?
Kimsuky has 10 other names in security research. Below is what published reporting says about it, with a link to every report so you can check the detail yourself.
Also known as
Velvet ChollimaBlack BansheeThalliumOperation Stolen PencilG0086APT43Emerald SleetTHALLIUMSpringtailSparkling Pisces
Security companies each give the same group their own name, so one group can have many.
Public reports about Kimsuky (19)
- The Kimsuky Operation a North Korean APTsecurelist.com (opens in a new tab)
- Kimsukycfr.org (opens in a new tab)
- Tracking Kimsuky North Korea Based Cyber Espionage Group Part 2pwc.co.uk (opens in a new tab)
- hAsKp43AZmMyoutu.be (opens in a new tab)
- X67FPNDOUBV9VOPS35A4864BFIUbloomberglaw.com (opens in a new tab)
- Stolen Pencil Campaign Targets Academianetscout.com (opens in a new tab)
- New Babyshark Malware Targets US National Security Think Tankspaloaltonetworks.com (opens in a new tab)
- Groupsmitre.org (opens in a new tab)
How it works
How does Kimsuky attack? Stage by stage.
Each technique is a known way attackers research, get in, stay hidden or do damage. Here are the 66 linked to Kimsuky, laid out from first look to final blow. Some techniques belong to more than one stage. Pick a stage to see them. Public reporting also lists 62 more specific variations of them, called sub-techniques.
Stage 5 of 15
11 techniquesStaying in
Making sure they keep access after a restart or a password change.
- T1053Scheduled Task/Job
- T1078Valid Accounts
- T1098Account Manipulation
- T1112Modify Registry
- T1133External Remote Services
- T1136Create Account
- T1176Software Extensions
- T1505Server Software Component
- T1543Create or Modify System Process
- T1546Event Triggered Execution
- T1547Boot or Logon Autostart Execution
Targets
Who does Kimsuky go after?
The sectors and places named in public reporting about this group. If yours is on the list, it is worth knowing how they work and which flaws they use.
Countries and victims named (4)
- 01Ministry of Unification
- 02Sejong Institute
- 03Korea Institute for Defense Analyses
- 04Germany
Free account
Is Kimsuky a risk to you?
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Kimsuky is an espionage group thought to operate from North Korea, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 66 attack techniques, and to attacks on government and private sector organisations, with 4 countries and victims named.
Public reporting places Kimsuky as operating from North Korea, with suspected state backing. Attribution is never certain: it rests on the tools, infrastructure and targets researchers have seen.
In public reporting, sectors named include government and private sector, and 4 countries and victims are named, including Ministry of Unification, Sejong Institute, Korea Institute for Defense Analyses and Germany.
Public reporting links Kimsuky to 66 attack techniques. Most of them are about staying in, hiding and looking around.
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