# APT18: threat group profile

> APT18 is an espionage group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 11 attack techniques, and to attacks on government, private sector and civil society organisations, with 1 country or victim named. This free profile shows how it works and who it targets, so you can judge the risk to you.

Canonical page: https://www.precursorintelligence.com/threat-actors/apt18
Breadcrumb: [Home](https://www.precursorintelligence.com/) > [Threat groups](https://www.precursorintelligence.com/threat-actors) > APT18

## At a glance

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Attack techniques | 11 (plus 7 sub-techniques) |
| Countries and victims named | 1 |
| Thought to operate from | China |
| Suspected backing | China |
| Motive | Espionage |
| Other names | 6 |
| Public reports | 4 |

## Who is APT18?

APT18 is an espionage group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 11 attack techniques, and to attacks on government, private sector and civil society organisations, with 1 country or victim named.

### Also known as

DYNAMITE PANDA, TG-0416, SCANDIUM, PLA Navy, Wekby, G0026

Security companies each give the same group their own name, so one group can have many.

### What public reporting says

> Wekby was described by Palo Alto Networks in a 2015 report as: 'Wekby is a group that has been active for a number of years, targeting various industries such as healthcare, telecommunications, aerospace, defense, and high tech. The group is known to leverage recently released exploits very shortly after those exploits are available, such as in the case of HackingTeams Flash zero - day exploit.'

## How does APT18 attack? Stage by stage

Each technique is a known way attackers research, get in, stay hidden or do damage. Here are the 11 linked to APT18. Some techniques belong to more than one stage. Public reporting also lists 7 more specific variations of them, called sub-techniques.

### 1. Research (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 2. Preparation (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 3. Getting in (2)

- T1078: Valid Accounts
- T1133: External Remote Services

### 4. Running code (2)

- T1053: Scheduled Task/Job
- T1059: Command and Scripting Interpreter

### 5. Staying in (4)

- T1053: Scheduled Task/Job
- T1078: Valid Accounts
- T1133: External Remote Services
- T1547: Boot or Logon Autostart Execution

### 6. Taking control (3)

- T1053: Scheduled Task/Job
- T1078: Valid Accounts
- T1547: Boot or Logon Autostart Execution

### 7. Hiding (3)

- T1027: Obfuscated Files or Information
- T1070: Indicator Removal
- T1078: Valid Accounts

### 8. Disabling defences (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 9. Stealing passwords (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 10. Looking around (2)

- T1082: System Information Discovery
- T1083: File and Directory Discovery

### 11. Spreading (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 12. Gathering data (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 13. Keeping contact (2)

- T1071: Application Layer Protocol
- T1105: Ingress Tool Transfer

### 14. Taking data out (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 15. Causing damage (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

## Who does APT18 go after?

**Sectors:** Government, Private sector, Civil society

**Countries and victims named:** United States

See threats by industry: https://www.precursorintelligence.com/industries

## Public reports about APT18

- https://threatpost.com/apt-gang-branches-out-to-medical-espionage-in-community-health-breach/107828
- https://www.cfr.org/interactive/cyber-operations/apt-18
- https://attack.mitre.org/groups/G0026
- https://www.mandiant.com/resources/insights/apt-groups

## Frequently asked questions

### Who is APT18?

APT18 is an espionage group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 11 attack techniques, and to attacks on government, private sector and civil society organisations, with 1 country or victim named.

### Where is APT18 thought to be based?

Public reporting places APT18 as operating from China, with suspected state backing. Attribution is never certain: it rests on the tools, infrastructure and targets researchers have seen.

### Who does APT18 target?

In public reporting, sectors named include government, private sector and civil society, and 1 countries and victims are named, including United States.

### How does APT18 attack?

Public reporting links APT18 to 11 attack techniques. Most of them are about staying in, taking control and hiding.

### How do I know if APT18 is a risk to my business?

Create an account and tell us the software you run. We match it against known flaws, including those linked to threat groups, rank each one from 0 to 100 and tell you as soon as we spot something that affects you.

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