7 mincritical
Silver Dragon Targets Organizations in Southeast Asia and Europe
Check Point Research identified Silver Dragon, a Chinese-nexus APT group likely affiliated with APT41, targeting organizations in Southeast Asia and Europe. The group utilizes public-facing server exploits and phishing to deploy custom loaders that establish persistence via AppDomain hijacking and service manipulation. These loaders deliver Cobalt Strike and a novel Google Drive-based backdoor called GearDoor.
Sens:■ ImmediateConf:highAnalyzed:2026-03-03reports
Showing defanged values
- domainonedriveconsole[[.]]comC2 Domain found in Cobalt Strike beacon configuration.
- domainzhydromet[[.]]comC2 Domain associated with Silver Dragon operations.
- filenameC:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\dfsvc.exe.configMalicious configuration file used to trigger AppDomain hijacking of the legitimate dfsvc.exe.
- sha2564f93be0c46a53701b1777ab8df874c837df3d8256e026f138d60fc2932e569a8Hash of the GearDoor backdoor which uses Google Drive for C2.
- sha2565ad857df8976523cb3ad2fdf30e87c0e7daa64135716b139ffdcd209b98e1654Hash of MonikerLoader, a .NET loader utilizing AppDomain hijacking.
- sha256e3b016f2fc865d0f53f635f740eb0203626517425ed9a2908058f96a3bcf470dHash of BamboLoader, a custom shellcode loader used to inject Cobalt Strike.
Key Takeaways
- Silver Dragon, a Chinese-nexus APT likely linked to APT41, is targeting government entities in Southeast Asia and Europe.
- Initial access is achieved via public-facing server exploits and phishing emails delivering malicious LNK files.
- The group utilizes AppDomain Hijacking and Windows Service manipulation to deploy custom loaders (MonikerLoader and BamboLoader) that execute Cobalt Strike.
- A novel .NET backdoor named GearDoor was discovered, which uses Google Drive as a covert Command and Control (C2) channel.
- Custom post-exploitation tools include SilverScreen for stealthy screen monitoring and SSHcmd for remote command execution.
Affected Systems
- Windows OS
- Public-facing internet servers
Attack Chain
Silver Dragon gains initial access by exploiting public-facing servers or delivering phishing emails with malicious LNK attachments. Upon execution, batch scripts deploy custom loaders (MonikerLoader or BamboLoader) that establish persistence via AppDomain hijacking or Windows service manipulation. These loaders decrypt and inject Cobalt Strike beacons into memory for primary C2, often utilizing DNS tunneling. For post-exploitation, the group deploys custom tools including SilverScreen for screen capture, SSHcmd for remote access, and GearDoor, a backdoor that leverages Google Drive for stealthy C2 communication.
Detection Availability
- YARA Rules: No
- Sigma Rules: No
- Snort/Suricata Rules: No
- KQL Queries: No
- Splunk SPL Queries: No
- EQL Queries: No
- Other Detection Logic: No
The article does not provide any ready-to-use detection rules (YARA, Sigma, etc.), but it does provide detailed IOCs and behavioral descriptions for custom rule creation.
Detection Engineering Assessment
EDR Visibility: High — EDR solutions should readily detect service creation/modification, AppDomain hijacking via unexpected .config files in .NET directories, and process injection into taskhost.exe. Network Visibility: Medium — DNS tunneling for Cobalt Strike can be detected via query volume analysis, but GearDoor's use of Google Drive API blends in with legitimate HTTPS traffic. Detection Difficulty: Moderate — While the initial access and persistence mechanisms (service hijacking) are noisy, the use of Google Drive for C2 and heavily obfuscated in-memory loaders makes payload analysis and network detection challenging.
Required Log Sources
- Event ID 4688 (Process Creation)
- Event ID 4697 (Service Installed)
- Event ID 7045 (New Service Installed)
- Event ID 11 (FileCreate)
- Event ID 13 (RegistryEvent)
Hunting Hypotheses
copy:
| Hypothesis | Telemetry | ATT&CK Stage | FP Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Look for unexpected creation or modification of .config files in the C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\ directory, specifically dfsvc.exe.config, indicating potential AppDomain hijacking. | File Creation Events (Sysmon Event ID 11) | Persistence | Low |
| Monitor for sc.exe or reg.exe commands modifying existing legitimate services (like bthsrv or wuausrv) to point to unexpected DLLs in C:\Windows\System32\wbem. | Process Creation (Event ID 4688) and Registry Modifications (Sysmon Event ID 13) | Persistence | Low |
| Hunt for cmd.exe spawning PowerShell with obfuscated command lines containing 'pow%comspec:~-1%rshell', indicative of LNK file payload extraction. | Process Creation (Event ID 4688) | Execution | Low |
| Analyze DNS query logs for high volumes of TXT or A record requests to unknown or newly registered domains, which may indicate Cobalt Strike DNS tunneling. | DNS Query Logs | Command and Control | Medium |
Control Gaps
- Network inspection of Google Drive traffic
- Static analysis of Brainfuck-obfuscated .NET binaries
Key Behavioral Indicators
- dfsvc.exe loading unexpected DLLs
- taskhost.exe spawned as a child process with injected memory
- High frequency of .png, .cab, .bak file extensions being written/deleted by a single process (GearDoor behavior)
False Positive Assessment
- Low. The IOCs and behaviors described, such as AppDomain hijacking of dfsvc.exe with malicious configs and specific obfuscated command lines, are highly specific to this threat actor and unlikely to occur in benign environments.
Recommendations
Immediate Mitigation
- Block known C2 domains and IPs at the perimeter.
- Search endpoints for the provided file hashes and file paths (e.g., backup.sdb, OLDENGL.fon).
Infrastructure Hardening
- Patch public-facing internet servers to prevent initial access.
- Implement strict AppLocker or Windows Defender Application Control (WDAC) policies to restrict unauthorized DLL loads.
User Protection
- Deploy EDR solutions configured to block process injection and unauthorized service modifications.
- Block execution of LNK files originating from email attachments or web downloads.
Security Awareness
- Train employees to recognize phishing emails, particularly those targeting government entities with LNK attachments.
MITRE ATT&CK Mapping
- T1574.014 - Hijack Execution Flow: AppDomain Manager Injection
- T1543.003 - Create or Modify System Process: Windows Service
- T1566.001 - Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment
- T1055 - Process Injection
- T1102.002 - Web Service: Bidirectional Communication
- T1113 - Screen Capture
- T1071.004 - Application Layer Protocol: DNS
- T1027 - Obfuscated Files or Information
Additional IOCs
- Ips:
104[.]21[.]51[.]8- DNS_Idle IP address found in Cobalt Strike beacon configuration.
- Domains:
ampolice[[.]]org- C2 Domaincopilot-cloud[[.]]net- C2 Domaindrivefrontend[.]pa-clients[.]workers[[.]]dev- C2 Domainrevitpourtous[[.]]com- C2 Domainwikipedla[[.]]blog- C2 Domainprotacik[[.]]com- C2 Domainoicm[[.]]org- C2 Domainmindssurpass[[.]]com- C2 Domainexchange4study[[.]]com- C2 Domainsplunkds[[.]]com- C2 Domainbigflx[[.]]net- C2 Domain
- File Hashes:
7f89a4d5af47bc00a9ad58f0bcbe8a7be2662953dcd03f0e881cc5cbf6b7bca8(sha256) - GearDoor backdoorbcbe2f0a8134c0e7fce18d0394ababc1d910e6f7b77b8c07643434cd14f4c5d6(sha256) - SSHcmd utility44e769efed3e4f9f04c52dcd13f15cead251a1a08827a2cb6ea68427522c7fbb(sha256) - SilverScreen screen-monitoring tool85a03d2e74ae84093a74699057693d11e5c61f85b62e741778cbc5fc9f89022f(sha256) - SilverScreen screen-monitoring tool51684a0e356513486489986f5832c948107ff687c8501d64846cdc4307429413(sha256) - Phishing LNK file166e777cb72a7c4e126f8ed97e0a82e7ca9e87df7793fea811daf34e1e7e47a6(sha256) - Phishing LNK file948468aba5c851952ebe56a5bf37904ed83a6c8cb520304db6938d79892f0a1b(sha256) - Phishing LNK file967b5c611d304385807ea2d865fa561c15cde0473dd63e768679a4f29f0e4563(sha256) - BamboLoader43f8f94ca5aa0af7bfb0cc1d2f664a46500a161b2d082b48b516d084ef485348(sha256) - BamboLoader3128bdb8efaaa04c0ba96337252f4cc2dc795021cbc410f74ace9dde958bac1d(sha256) - BamboLoaderb93560c4d18120e113fb8b04a8aa05f66a12116d1fbf18a93186f6314381e97e(sha256) - BamboLoaderddaca57f3d5f4986da052ca172631b351410d6f5831f6af351699c6201cc011b(sha256) - BamboLoaderc4de1f1a8cb3b0392802ee56096ddb25b6f51c51350ce7c45e14d8c285765300(sha256) - BamboLoader7384462d420bdc9683a4cac2a8ad19353a2aa7d2244c91e9182345777e811e33(sha256) - BamboLoader74a11a07d167f8f5c0baa724d1f7708985c81d0ac3d0e4d7ef3f3220c335e009(sha256) - BamboLoader740a09fcdefa5a5f79355b720f54ff09efa64062229fb388adbccd9c829e9ff0(sha256) - MonikerLoader5341c7256542405abdd01ee288b08e49dcb6d1782be6b7bea63b459d80f9a8f5(sha256) - MonikerLoader3a2df7a2cfeca5ba315a29cf313268a53a22316c925e6b9760ead8f4df0d1f75(sha256) - MonikerLoader2f787c1454891b242ab221b8b8b420373c3eb1a0c1fdcb624dd800c50758bbb0(sha256) - MonikerLoader stage 2568c67564d62b09d1a1bc29a494cf4bf31afddcafcf78592b178c63f23ccfcae(sha256) - MonikerLoader stage 219139a525ee9c22efd6a4842c4cd50ab2c5f9ee391e5531071df0bb4e685f55d(sha256) - MonikerLoader stage 272e4b6540e32b8b7aac850055609bc5afc19e29834e9aa6be29a8ea59a2c9785(sha256) - MonikerLoader stage 216b9a7358be88632378ba20ba1430786f3b844694b1f876211ecdbecf5cccbc2(sha256) - Installation batch script37b485ed8d150d022c41e5e307b8c54c34ef806625b44d0c940b18be7d5b29ce(sha256) - Installation batch script3e2a0bafbd44e24b17fd7b17c9f2b2a3727349971d42612d55bbc1732082619a(sha256) - Installation batch script8c29f9189a9ad75a959024f59e68c62d42a6fd42f9eacf847128c7efe4ef7578(sha256) - Installation batch scriptbd699ed720e2bd7085b3444cb8f4d36870b5b48df1055ec6cc1553db3eef7faf(sha256) - Installation batch scripta6b5448ba45f3f352f5f4c5376024891adda1ef8ebf62a8fe63424fa230c691d(sha256) - Installation batch script
- Registry Keys:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SvcHost- Modified to register malicious DLLs as services.HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\bthsrv- Hijacked Bluetooth Update Service for persistence.HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\bthsrv\Parameters- Modified to point ServiceDll to the malicious payload.
- File Paths:
C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\ComponentModel.dll- Encrypted second-stage loader or SilverScreen payload.C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\ServiceMoniker.dll- MonikerLoader malicious .NET DLL.C:\Windows\AppPatch\backup.sdb- Encrypted Cobalt Strike payload.C:\Windows\System32\wbem\WinSync.dll- BamboLoader DLL dropped for service hijacking.C:\Windows\Fonts\OLDENGL.fon- Encrypted Cobalt Strike shellcode disguised as a font file.C:\Windows\Debug\wiatrace.bak- GearDoor self-update package drop location.
- Command Lines:
- Purpose: Creates a new service to execute the hijacked AppDomain sequence. | Tools:
sc.exe| Stage: Persistence - Purpose: Modifies registry to hijack an existing service (e.g., bthsrv) to load a malicious DLL. | Tools:
reg.exe| Stage: Persistence |reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SvcHost" /v "bthsrv" - Purpose: Executes obfuscated PowerShell to extract and run payloads embedded within a malicious LNK file. | Tools:
cmd.exe,powershell.exe| Stage: Execution |cmd.exe /c pow%comspec:~-1%rshell -windowstyle hidden -c
- Purpose: Creates a new service to execute the hijacked AppDomain sequence. | Tools:
