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Koadic

Koadic, also known as COM Command & Control, is an open-source Windows post-exploitation framework and remote-access tool.

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Koadic

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Koadic, also known as COM Command & Control, is an open-source Windows post-exploitation framework and remote-access tool. Its server component is written in Python, while its agents use JScript and VBScript executed primarily through Windows Script Host. Koadic supports command execution, shellcode execution, reflective DLL-based process injection, user and domain-session discovery, routing-table and Windows-domain discovery, and local SMB scanning. It can transfer files from compromised hosts to its command-and-control infrastructure, execute additional payloads through signed Windows utilities including Regsvr32, Mshta, and Rundll32, and establish persistence through PowerShell, scheduled tasks, Registry Run keys, and WMI event subscriptions. It can bypass UAC through Event Viewer and sdclt-based methods, and may hide PowerShell execution windows. Koadic has been used by threat actors and intrusion campaigns including MuddyWater and ChessMaster, and has also appeared in ransomware-affiliate post-compromise toolsets. It targets Windows systems.

Capabilities

  • Defense Evasion
  • Exfiltration
  • Persistence
  • Privilege Escalation
  • Process Injection
  • Reconnaissance
  • Scanning

Reported operators

Threat actors

6 named in public reporting
LazyScripter

Koadic can use mshta to serve additional payloads and to help schedule tasks for persistence.

MuddyWater

Since the emergence of MuddyWater, we found that its operators used multiple open source post-exploitation tools... Koadic

ChessMaster

ChessMaster can utilize any of these methods to download the next malware in the chain, the open source post-exploitation tool known as “Koadic,” which the previous campaign also used.

APT28

APT28 has obtained and used open-source tools like Koadic, Mimikatz, and Responder.

UNC2198

UNC2198 has used Cobalt Strike BEACON, Metasploit METERPRETER, KOADIC, and PowerShell EMPIRE offensive security tools during this phase as well.

Exploited software

Vulnerabilities linked to Koadic

2 CVEs

MITRE ATT&CK

Koadic in ATT&CK

47 distinct techniques

Reporting

Research mentioning Koadic

Aug 3
Securelist

Incident response statistics and cases at educational institutions in Brazil | Securelist

Brazilian educational institutions faced a sustained wave of cyber incidents in incident-response cases reviewed from January 2025 through June 2026, with attackers most often gaining access through valid accounts, exploitation of public-facing applications, insider activity, and weak patch management. High-severity cases were dominated by ransomware, particularly DragonForce and LockBit 3, and private institutions were more frequently affected than public ones. Investigators also found that outdated and unpatched systems, including Windows 10 deployments kept past end of support and unpatched Windows Server 2016 hosts, materially increased exposure. Representative intrusions showed attackers relying on common but effective techniques rather than novel tradecraft. One LockBit case involved a custom deployment built from the leaked builder and spread with PsExec, aligning with the well-documented abuse of Windows service execution for lateral movement and payload launch. Another DragonForce intrusion used AnyDesk and log wiping to maintain access and hinder response, while a separate insider case involved a Python keylogger installed on a shared machine to capture credentials. The findings underscore the need for MFA, least privilege, removal of shared accounts, tighter control of remote-access tools, stronger backups, centralized logging, longer EDR retention, and faster patching.

Jul 30
Splunk Research

Detection: Windows Suspicious Child Process of Consent.EXE | Splunk Security Content

Splunk published a Windows endpoint analytic that detects suspicious child processes launched by consent.exe, a behavior strongly associated with User Account Control (UAC) bypass and privilege escalation. Because consent.exe normally displays the UAC elevation prompt rather than spawning executables, the detection treats such process creation as anomalous, excluding WerFault.exe as a known crash-related exception. The analytic maps to MITRE ATT&CK techniques T1548.002, T1068, and T1059, and is designed for telemetry from Sysmon, Windows Security Event ID 4688, and CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2 data normalized into Splunk's Endpoint data model. The release aligns with MITRE ATT&CK documentation showing UAC bypass remains a widely used post-compromise technique across ransomware operators, commodity malware, and state-linked intrusion groups. ATT&CK lists methods including COM abuse through CMSTPLUA, scheduled task abuse such as SilentCleanup, registry hijacks involving ms-settings and mscfile, and abuse of trusted Windows binaries including fodhelper.exe, eventvwr.exe, and sdclt.exe. Splunk also published supporting attack simulation data for suspicious child processes of consent.exe, giving defenders a way to test visibility for this privilege-escalation pattern, although the analytic is disabled by default and generates intermediate risk events rather than direct notable alerts.

Jul 22
Splunk Research

Windows Suspicious Child Of Consent.exe | Splunk Security Content

Jul 15
Esentire

DinDoor, DenoRAT, and NightshadeC2: Analyzing TAG-150's Evolving Tradecraft | eSentire

eSentire reported that a June 2026 intrusion against a finance-sector customer began with a ClickFix-style social engineering lure that triggered a malicious command, an MSI installer, and a multi-stage malware chain attributed to TAG-150. The infection sequence used an apparently AI-generated PowerShell script, Griffin20.ps1, to install the Deno runtime and launch the Deno-based loader DinDoor, which then deployed DenoRAT and ultimately NightshadeC2. Investigators said the malware communicated with command-and-control infrastructure including webstizkgao[.]com and used hard-coded JWTs carrying campaign identifiers such as buildId 0def066f14754be9 and buildNote LearnV7msi. The tooling provided broad post-compromise capability, with DenoRAT functioning as a RAT, loader, and stealer that supported command execution, persistence, host fingerprinting, file operations, screenshots, PTY and VNC-style remote control, and theft from browsers and cryptocurrency wallets. eSentire said the malware could also bypass Chromium App-Bound Encryption through DLL injection, a technique widely associated with in-memory execution, evasion, and abuse of legitimate Windows processes in ATT&CK T1055.001. The final NightshadeC2 payload was delivered through a PowerShell-driven Python in-memory loader, decrypted from an encrypted container using AES-256-CBC with a key derived from MoscauHighSmoke, and reflectively mapped into a Python process before the affected host was isolated and remediated.

Mar 9
Mitre Attack Website

Compromise Accounts, Technique T1586 - Enterprise | MITRE ATT&CK®

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