Strontium- a Cyber Espionage Group

Strontium- a Cyber Espionage Group

Subject: Science and Tech

Section: Cyber Security

Context: Recently,Microsoft said it had disrupted cyber attacks from a Russian nation-state hacking group. The group called ‘Strontium’ by the software company targeted Ukrainian firms, media organisations, government bodies, and think tanks in the U.S. and the EU.

Concept:

What is Strontium?

• Strontium, also known as Fancy Bear, Tsar Team, Pawn Storm, Sofacy, Sednit or Advanced Persistent Threat 28 (APT28) group, is a highly active and prolific cyber-espionage group.
• It is one of the most active APT groups and has been operating since at least the mid-2000s, making it one of the world’s oldest cyber-spy groups.
• It has access to highly sophisticated tools to conduct spy operations, and has been attacking targets in the U.S., Europe, Central Asia and West Asia. The group is said to be connected to the GRU, the Russian Armed Forces’ main military intelligence wing. The GRU’s cyber units are believed to have been responsible for several cyberattacks over the years and its unit 26165 is identified as Fancy Bear.

How does it attack networks?

• The group deploys diverse malware and malicious tools to breach networks. In the past, it has used X-Tunnel, SPLM (or CHOPSTICK and X-Agent), GAMEFISH and Zebrocy to attack targets.
• These tools can be used as hooks in system drivers to access local passwords, and can track keystroke, mouse movements, and control webcam and USB drives. They can also search and replace local files and stay connected to the network.
• APT28 uses spear-phishing (targeted campaigns to gain access to an individual’s account) and zero-day exploits (taking advantage of unknown computer-software vulnerabilities) to target specific individuals and organisations.
• A watering hole attack compromises a site that a targeted victim visits to gain access to the victim’s computer and network. For high volume attacks, the group has used Zebrocy, which is also primarily deployed through spear-phishing emails.
• Fancy Bear has also used VPN Filter malware to target hundreds of thousands of routers and network-access storage devices worldwide. The infection allows attackers to potentially control infected devices, make them inoperable and intercept or block network traffic.
• More recently, APT28 deployed a malware called Drovorub, designed for Linux systems. When deployed on a victim machine, it provides file download and upload capabilities; execution of arbitrary commands; and implements hiding technique to evade detection.

Which organisations have been targeted?

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) hack during the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the global television network TV5Monde cyberattack, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) email leak, and several other high-profile breaches are said to be the work of APT28.