{
	"id": "3f892c38-90ad-4e73-8dd8-9e02acd44377",
	"created_at": "2026-04-06T00:18:11.374108Z",
	"updated_at": "2026-04-10T03:34:22.546953Z",
	"deleted_at": null,
	"sha1_hash": "9ac1c834deb4153a488ee0c76f02893da83a0c0d",
	"title": "The Kittens Are Back in Town Charming Kitten – Campaign Against Academic Researchers – ClearSky Cyber Security",
	"llm_title": "",
	"authors": "",
	"file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_modification_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_size": 36772,
	"plain_text": "The Kittens Are Back in Town Charming Kitten – Campaign\r\nAgainst Academic Researchers – ClearSky Cyber Security\r\nPublished: 2019-09-15 · Archived: 2026-04-05 12:44:09 UTC\r\nIn 2019 ClearSky Cyber Security observed a sharp increase in Charming Kitten attacks, after an absence of a few\r\nmonths and after 2019 Microsoft official complaint against the group for “establishing an internet-based\r\ncybertheft operation referred to as ‘Phosphorus’“.\r\nRead the full report: The Kittens Are Back in Town Charming Kitten – Campaign Against Academic\r\nResearchers\r\nIt appears that the group has initiated a new cyber espionage campaign comprised of two stages, pointing at two\r\ndifferent targets:\r\nNon-Iranian Researchers from the US, Middle East, and France, focusing on academic research of Iran.\r\nIranian dissidents in the US.\r\nDespite the considerable unrest in the Iranian cybersphere, it appears that similarly to the MuddyWater APT,\r\nCharming Kitten was unaffected[1].\r\nIn August, the campaign has progressed, and unlike July, it seems like the APT group is now expanding its\r\nactivities toward influential public figures around the world, rather than academic researchers state organizations.\r\nAdditionally, in August 2019, we found that the group had begun adding a tracker to their email correspondences,\r\nenabling them to follow an email message forwarded to additional accounts and obtain geolocation information.\r\nIndicators of compromise are available for subscribers of the ClearSky threat intelligence service in MISP\r\nevents 1682 and 1438.\r\n[1] https://www.clearskysec.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Clearsky-Iranian-APT-group-\r\n%E2%80%98MuddyWater%E2%80%99-Adds-Exploits-to-Their-Arsenal.pdf\r\nSource: https://www.clearskysec.com/the-kittens-are-back-in-town/\r\nhttps://www.clearskysec.com/the-kittens-are-back-in-town/\r\nPage 1 of 1",
	"extraction_quality": 1,
	"language": "EN",
	"sources": [
		"ETDA"
	],
	"references": [
		"https://www.clearskysec.com/the-kittens-are-back-in-town/"
	],
	"report_names": [
		"the-kittens-are-back-in-town"
	],
	"threat_actors": [
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			"id": "82b92285-4588-48c9-8578-bb39f903cf62",
			"created_at": "2022-10-25T15:50:23.850506Z",
			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:05.418577Z",
			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "Charming Kitten",
			"aliases": [
				"Charming Kitten"
			],
			"source_name": "MITRE:Charming Kitten",
			"tools": [
				"DownPaper"
			],
			"source_id": "MITRE",
			"reports": null
		},
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			"created_at": "2023-01-06T13:46:38.748929Z",
			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:03.087356Z",
			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "APT35",
			"aliases": [
				"COBALT MIRAGE",
				"Agent Serpens",
				"Newscaster Team",
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			"created_at": "2022-10-25T15:50:23.308924Z",
			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:05.298591Z",
			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "MuddyWater",
			"aliases": [
				"MuddyWater",
				"Earth Vetala",
				"Static Kitten",
				"Seedworm",
				"TEMP.Zagros",
				"Mango Sandstorm",
				"TA450"
			],
			"source_name": "MITRE:MuddyWater",
			"tools": [
				"STARWHALE",
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				"Out1",
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				"Small Sieve",
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				"RemoteUtilities",
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			"created_at": "2023-01-06T13:46:38.730137Z",
			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:03.08136Z",
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			"aliases": [
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				"Seedworm",
				"COBALT ULSTER",
				"G0069",
				"ATK51",
				"Mango Sandstorm",
				"TA450",
				"Static Kitten",
				"Boggy Serpens",
				"Earth Vetala"
			],
			"source_name": "MISPGALAXY:MuddyWater",
			"tools": [],
			"source_id": "MISPGALAXY",
			"reports": null
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		{
			"id": "029625d2-9734-44f9-9e10-b894b4f57f08",
			"created_at": "2023-01-06T13:46:38.364105Z",
			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:02.944092Z",
			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "Charming Kitten",
			"aliases": [
				"iKittens",
				"Group 83",
				"NewsBeef",
				"G0058",
				"CharmingCypress",
				"Mint Sandstorm",
				"Parastoo"
			],
			"source_name": "MISPGALAXY:Charming Kitten",
			"tools": [],
			"source_id": "MISPGALAXY",
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			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "Magic Hound",
			"aliases": [
				"Magic Hound",
				"TA453",
				"COBALT ILLUSION",
				"Charming Kitten",
				"ITG18",
				"Phosphorus",
				"APT35",
				"Mint Sandstorm"
			],
			"source_name": "MITRE:Magic Hound",
			"tools": [
				"Impacket",
				"CharmPower",
				"FRP",
				"Mimikatz",
				"Systeminfo",
				"ipconfig",
				"netsh",
				"PowerLess",
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			"deleted_at": null,
			"main_name": "COBALT ILLUSION",
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				"UNC788 ",
				"Yellow Garuda "
			],
			"source_name": "Secureworks:COBALT ILLUSION",
			"tools": [
				"Browser Exploitation Framework (BeEF)",
				"MagicHound Toolset",
				"PupyRAT"
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			"source_name": "Secureworks:COBALT ULSTER",
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				"FORELORD",
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			"updated_at": "2026-04-10T02:00:03.611225Z",
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				"Nemesis Kitten ",
				"PHOSPHORUS ",
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				"UNC2448 "
			],
			"source_name": "Secureworks:COBALT MIRAGE",
			"tools": [
				"BitLocker",
				"Custom powershell scripts",
				"DiskCryptor",
				"Drokbk",
				"FRPC",
				"Fast Reverse Proxy (FRP)",
				"Impacket wmiexec",
				"Ngrok",
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			],
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				"Charming Kitten",
				"CharmingCypress",
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				"Operation Sponsoring Access",
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				"Timberworm",
				"TunnelVision",
				"UNC788",
				"Yellow Garuda"
			],
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				"AnvilEcho",
				"BASICSTAR",
				"CORRUPT KITTEN",
				"CWoolger",
				"CharmPower",
				"ChromeHistoryView",
				"CommandCam",
				"DistTrack",
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				"FRP",
				"Fast Reverse Proxy",
				"FireMalv",
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				"GorjolEcho",
				"HYPERSCRAPE",
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				"Operation Earth Vetala",
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				"TA450",
				"TEMP.Zagros",
				"Yellow Nix"
			],
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				"BugSleep",
				"CLOUDSTATS",
				"ChromeCookiesView",
				"Cobalt Strike",
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				"CrackMapExec",
				"DCHSpy",
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				"EmpireProject",
				"FruityC2",
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				"LOLBins",
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				"PowGoop",
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				"PowerSploit",
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				"SHARPSTATS",
				"SSF",
				"Secure Socket Funneling",
				"Shootback",
				"Smbmap",
				"Valyria",
				"chrome-passwords",
				"cobeacon",
				"prb_backdoor"
			],
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