# Ferocious Kitten: threat group profile

> Ferocious Kitten is a threat group thought to operate from Iran. Public reporting links it to 5 attack techniques. This free profile shows how it works, stage by stage, so you can judge the risk to you. It lists the other names the group goes by and links to every public report behind it.

Canonical page: https://www.edgeprotect.io/threat-actors/ferocious-kitten
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## At a glance

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Attack techniques | 5 (plus 6 sub-techniques) |
| Thought to operate from | Iran |
| Other names | 0 |
| Public reports | 1 |

## Who is Ferocious Kitten?

Ferocious Kitten is a threat group thought to operate from Iran. Public reporting links it to 5 attack techniques.

### What public reporting says

> Ferocious Kitten is an APT group that has been active against Persian-speaking individuals since 2015 and appears to be based in Iran. Although it has been active over a large timespan, the group has mostly operated under the radar until a lure document was uploaded to VirusTotal and was brought to public knowledge by researchers on Twitter. Subsequently, one of its implants was analyzed by a Chinese intelligence firm. Kaspersky then expanded some of the findings on the group and provided insights on additional variants. The malware dropped from the aforementioned document is dubbed MarkiRAT and is used to record keystrokes and clipboard content, provide file download and upload capabilities as well as the ability to execute arbitrary commands on the victims machine. Kaspersky were able to trace the implant back to at least 2015, along with variants intended to hijack the execution of the Telegram and Chrome applications as a persistence method. Interestingly, some of the TTPs used by this threat actor are reminiscent of other groups operating in the domain of dissident surveillance. For example, it used the same C2 domains across its implants for years, which was witnessed in the activity of Domestic Kitten. In the same vein, the Telegram execution hijacking technique observed in this campaign by Ferocious Kitten was also observed being used by Rampant Kitten, as covered by Check Point.

## How does Ferocious Kitten attack? Stage by stage

Each technique is a known way attackers research, get in, stay hidden or do damage. Here are the 5 linked to Ferocious Kitten. Some techniques belong to more than one stage. Public reporting also lists 6 more specific variations of them, called sub-techniques.

### 1. Research (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 2. Preparation (2)

- T1583: Acquire Infrastructure
- T1588: Obtain Capabilities

### 3. Getting in (1)

- T1566: Phishing

### 4. Running code (1)

- T1204: User Execution

### 5. Staying in (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 6. Taking control (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 7. Hiding (1)

- T1036: Masquerading

### 8. Disabling defences (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 9. Stealing passwords (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 10. Looking around (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 11. Spreading (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 12. Gathering data (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 13. Keeping contact (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 14. Taking data out (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

### 15. Causing damage (0)

- None linked in public reporting.

## Public reports about Ferocious Kitten

- https://securelist.com/ferocious-kitten-6-years-of-covert-surveillance-in-iran/102806/

## Frequently asked questions

### Who is Ferocious Kitten?

Ferocious Kitten is a threat group thought to operate from Iran. Public reporting links it to 5 attack techniques.

### Where is Ferocious Kitten thought to be based?

Public reporting places Ferocious Kitten as operating from Iran. Attribution is never certain: it rests on the tools, infrastructure and targets researchers have seen.

### How does Ferocious Kitten attack?

Public reporting links Ferocious Kitten to 5 attack techniques. Most of them are about preparation, getting in and running code.

### How do I know if Ferocious Kitten 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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