# Tonto Team: threat group profile

> Tonto Team is a threat group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 14 attack techniques, and to attacks on military, government and private sector organisations, with 5 countries and victims named. This free profile shows how it works and who it targets, so you can judge the risk to you.

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## At a glance

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Attack techniques | 14 (plus 9 sub-techniques) |
| Countries and victims named | 5 |
| Thought to operate from | China |
| Suspected backing | China |
| Other names | 9 |
| Public reports | 11 |

## Who is Tonto Team?

Tonto Team is a threat group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 14 attack techniques, and to attacks on military, government and private sector organisations, with 5 countries and victims named.

### Also known as

CactusPete, KARMA PANDA, BRONZE HUNTLEY, COPPER, Red Beifang, G0131, PLA Unit 65017, Earth Akhlut, TAG-74

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

### What public reporting says

> Tonto Team is a Chinese-speaking APT group that has been active since at least 2013. They primarily target military, diplomatic, and infrastructure organizations in Asia and Eastern Europe. The group has been observed using various malware, including the Bisonal RAT and ShadowPad. They employ spear-phishing emails with malicious attachments as their preferred method of distribution.

## How does Tonto Team attack? Stage by stage

Each technique is a known way attackers research, get in, stay hidden or do damage. Here are the 14 linked to Tonto Team. Some techniques belong to more than one stage. Public reporting also lists 9 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 (1)

- T1566: Phishing

### 4. Running code (4)

- T1059: Command and Scripting Interpreter
- T1203: Exploitation for Client Execution
- T1204: User Execution
- T1574: Hijack Execution Flow

### 5. Staying in (1)

- T1505: Server Software Component

### 6. Taking control (1)

- T1068: Exploitation for Privilege Escalation

### 7. Hiding (1)

- T1574: Hijack Execution Flow

### 8. Disabling defences (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 9. Stealing passwords (2)

- T1003: OS Credential Dumping
- T1056: Input Capture

### 10. Looking around (2)

- T1069: Permission Groups Discovery
- T1135: Network Share Discovery

### 11. Spreading (1)

- T1210: Exploitation of Remote Services

### 12. Gathering data (1)

- T1056: Input Capture

### 13. Keeping contact (2)

- T1090: Proxy
- 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 Tonto Team go after?

**Sectors:** Military, Government, Private sector

**Countries and victims named:** Eastern Europe, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, US

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

## Public reports about Tonto Team

- https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/04/researchers-claim-china-trying-to-hack-south-korea-missile-defense-efforts/
- https://docs.huihoo.com/rsaconference/usa-2014/anf-t07b-the-art-of-attribution-identifying-and-pursuing-your-cyber-adversaries-final.pdf
- https://securelist.com/cactuspete-apt-groups-updated-bisonal-backdoor/97962/
- https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-secret-weapon-in-south-korea-missile-fight-hackers-1492766403
- https://www.pwc.co.uk/cyber-security/pdf/pwc-cyber-threats-2020-a-year-in-retrospect.pdf
- https://www.fireeye.com/content/dam/fireeye-www/summit/cds-2019/presentations/cds19-executive-s08-achievement-unlocked.pdf
- https://www.welivesecurity.com/2021/03/10/exchange-servers-under-siege-10-apt-groups/
- https://www.trendmicro.com/en_us/research/23/g/supply-chain-attack-targeting-pakistani-government-delivers-shad.html
- https://www.sentinelone.com/labs/targets-of-interest-russian-organizations-increasingly-under-attack-by-chinese-apts/
- https://go.recordedfuture.com/hubfs/reports/cta-2023-0919.pdf
- https://www.recordedfuture.com/multi-year-chinese-apt-campaign-targets-south-korean-academic-government-political-entities

## Frequently asked questions

### Who is Tonto Team?

Tonto Team is a threat group thought to operate from China, with suspected state backing. Public reporting links it to 14 attack techniques, and to attacks on military, government and private sector organisations, with 5 countries and victims named.

### Where is Tonto Team thought to be based?

Public reporting places Tonto Team 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 Tonto Team target?

In public reporting, sectors named include military, government and private sector, and 5 countries and victims are named, including Eastern Europe, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

### How does Tonto Team attack?

Public reporting links Tonto Team to 14 attack techniques. Most of them are about running code, stealing passwords and looking around.

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

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