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Security researchers have uncovered two major global malware campaigns that deliver the Gh0st RAT remote access trojan through large-scale software impersonation tactics. Attackers use trojanized installers mimicking legitimate applications such as Microsoft Teams and Google Chrome to distribute the RONINGLOADER loader, which in turn deploys an updated version of Gh0st RAT. The campaigns primarily target Chinese-speaking users and employ advanced evasion techniques, including DLL injection, removal of userland hooks, and anti-virus termination, to maintain persistence and avoid detection.
The updated Gh0st RAT malware enables attackers to execute commands, manipulate Windows Registry keys, capture clipboard data, inject shell code, and log keystrokes and window titles. These campaigns highlight the increasing sophistication of threat actors in leveraging multi-stage loaders and social engineering to compromise victims at scale. The findings are supported by analyses from both Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 and Elastic Security Labs, emphasizing the need for heightened vigilance against software impersonation and loader-based malware delivery.
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SC Media reported that Dragon Breath APT attacks leveraged a previously unreported loader called RONINGLOADER. No additional timing details are provided in the reference, so the publication date is used as the estimated date.
Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 reported uncovering two large-scale global malware campaigns delivering Gh0st RAT through software impersonation. The reference provides no earlier event date, so the publication date is used as the estimated date.
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Multiple security firms reported ongoing campaigns targeting Chinese-speaking Windows users with fake or trojanized installers for popular software, including **Google Chrome**, **Microsoft Teams**, **Surfshark**, **Signal**, **Telegram**, **Zoom**, **DeepSeek**, **Quark Cloud**, and activation tools. The attacks rely on spoofed download sites and malicious `MSI` or `NSIS` packages that decrypt payloads in memory and ultimately deploy remote-access malware tied to the **Gh0st RAT** ecosystem, including modified Gh0st variants and **Atlas RAT**. Researchers linked the activity to Chinese-speaking threat actors including **Dragon Breath** and **Silver Fox**, noting refreshed infrastructure, low detection rates, and lures designed to appear legitimate, in some cases using AI-generated web pages and valid code-signing certificates. The intrusion chains emphasize defense evasion before full payload delivery. Reported techniques include abuse of signed or vulnerable kernel drivers to terminate or disable more than 200 security products, unsigned `WDAC` policies to block Chinese antivirus tools, **Protected Process Light** abuse to corrupt **Microsoft Defender**'s `MsMpEng.exe`, phantom DLL side-loading, thread-pool-based process injection, in-memory reflective loading, and persistence through services, scheduled tasks, and watchdog scripts. Once installed, the malware supports encrypted command-and-control, command execution, keylogging, clipboard theft, active-window logging, RDP session hijacking, and additional payload delivery, underscoring a sustained pattern of installer-based malware operations aimed at users seeking trusted software from unofficial sources.
Aug 14, 2026
The Dragon Breath APT group has been observed deploying a sophisticated multi-stage loader known as RoningLoader to deliver a modified variant of Gh0st RAT, primarily targeting Chinese-speaking users. The campaign utilizes trojanized NSIS installers that impersonate legitimate software such as Google Chrome and Microsoft Teams, leveraging a variety of evasion techniques including the use of a legitimately signed kernel driver, custom Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) policies, and Protected Process Light (PPL) abuse to disable Microsoft Defender and other endpoint security products. These techniques allow the attackers to bypass security controls and establish persistent remote access on compromised systems. Elastic Security Labs researchers have detailed how the infection chain involves multiple embedded installers, with one acting as a decoy and the other initiating the attack sequence. The loader attempts to remove userland hooks by reloading `ntdll.dll` and uses a DLL to extract and execute shellcode from an encrypted file disguised as a PNG image. Dragon Breath, also known as APT-Q-27 and Golden Eye, has a history of targeting the online gaming and gambling industries across East Asia, and this latest campaign demonstrates their continued evolution in defense evasion and malware delivery tactics.
Jul 12, 2026
Recent reporting highlights multiple **social-engineering-driven malware delivery** efforts that culminate in remote access and persistent compromise. In South Korea, attackers distributed **counterfeit adult games** via popular “webhard” file-sharing services; victims received a ZIP containing a decoy `Game.exe` launcher that stages additional components (`Data1.Pak`, `Data2.Pak`, `Data3.Pak`) and ultimately injects **QuasarRAT** (aka **xRAT**), enabling host profiling, keylogging, and unauthorized file transfer. The execution chain included masqueraded artifacts such as `GoogleUpdate.exe` and `WinUpdate.db`, with AES used to decrypt/extract shellcode prior to privilege escalation and RAT injection. Separately, a spear-phishing campaign weaponized news about a purported **Nicolás Maduro arrest** to deliver a **backdoor**: emails carried a ZIP with a lure executable (`Maduro to be taken to New York.exe`) alongside a malicious DLL (`kuguo.dll`) that abuses a legitimate KuGuo binary for execution. Post-run behavior included replication to `C:\ProgramData\Technology360NB`, persistence via an auto-start renamed binary (`DataTechnology.exe`), and C2 beaconing for tasking and configuration updates; researchers noted tradecraft consistent with **Mustang Panda** but said attribution was not yet confirmed. A separate research note described **GravityRAT** reemerging as a multi-platform RAT with expanded **Android** targeting (in addition to Windows/macOS), emphasizing mobile endpoints as increasingly high-value targets for data theft and persistent access, though it did not describe the same specific campaigns as the Windows-focused lures above.
Jun 29, 2026