Full Report
The Russian state-sponsored threat actor known as APT29 has been linked to an advanced phishing campaign that's targeting diplomatic entities across Europe with a new variant of WINELOADER and a previously unreported malware loader codenamed GRAPELOADER. "While the improved WINELOADER variant is still a modular backdoor used in later stages, GRAPELOADER is a newly observed initial-stage tool
Analysis Summary
# Threat Actor: APT29 (Cozy Bear / Midnight Blizzard)
## Attribution & Identity
Attributed to the Russian state, affiliated with Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
**Known Aliases and Associated Groups:** APT29, Cozy Bear, Midnight Blizzard. Previously associated with the activity cluster named SPIKEDWINE regarding the WINELOADER campaign.
## Activity Summary
APT29 has been conducting an advanced phishing campaign targeting diplomatic entities across Europe. The campaign uses sophisticated lures involving fake wine-tasting event email invites, impersonating an unspecified European Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These emails lead targets to download a malware-laced ZIP archive ("wine.zip"). This activity involves the deployment of a newly observed initial-stage malware loader, GRAPELOADER, which appears designed to ultimately deliver the WINELOADER backdoor.
*(The article also details activities of Gamaredon, another Russian group, but this summary focuses on APT29 based on the primary attribution mentioned in the context of WINELOADER/GRAPELOADER.)*
## Tactics, Techniques & Procedures
- **Initial Access:** Spearphishing via emails disguised as wine-tasting event invitations.
- **Execution:** DLL side-loading using a legitimate executable (`wine.exe`) to launch a malicious DLL (`ppcore.dll`), which functions as the GRAPELOADER.
- **Defense Evasion:** GRAPELOADER incorporates advanced anti-analysis techniques, including string obfuscation and runtime API resolving.
- **Persistence:** Modifying the Windows Registry to ensure the exploited executable (`wine.exe`) launches upon system reboot.
- **Credential/Info Stealing:** GRAPELOADER collects basic host information for exfiltration to retrieve the next-stage shellcode.
## Targeting
- **Sectors:** Diplomatic entities, specifically Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
- **Geography:** Primarily multiple European countries, including embassies located in Europe. Indications suggest possible targeting of diplomats in the Middle East.
- **Victims:** Diplomatic staff systems.
## Tools & Infrastructure
- **Malware Families Used:**
- **GRAPELOADER:** Newly observed initial-stage loader used for fingerprinting, persistence, and payload delivery. Replaced the HTA downloader ROOTSAW.
- **WINELOADER:** A modular backdoor used in later stages (implied delivery via GRAPELOADER).
- **Infrastructure (C2, domains, IPs):**
- Sending domains used for phishing: `bakenhof[.]com` and `silry[.]com` (Defanged).
## Implications
APT29 continues to employ highly targeted, sophisticated social engineering campaigns to gain initial access into sensitive government and diplomatic networks. The introduction of GRAPELOADER, which refines anti-analysis techniques over its predecessors, indicates persistent efforts to evade detection systems while maintaining reliable staging for their established secondary payloads like WINELOADER.
## Mitigations
- Increased vigilance against highly tailored spearphishing emails, especially those utilizing lures related to non-standard external events (like wine-tasting events).
- Enhance detection capabilities for DLL side-loading activity targeting legitimate executables.
- Monitor for registry modifications intended for persistence via common Windows executables.
- Strict controls and scrutiny on macro-enabled files originating from external sources, particularly when the infection chain involves exploiting legitimate application execution paths.