TeamTNT: Latest TTPs targeting Kubernetes
In April 2020, MalwareHunterTeam found a number of suspicious files in an open directory and posted about them in a series of tweets. Trend Micro later confirmed that these files were part of the first cryptojacking malware by TeamTNT, a cybercrime group that specializes in attacking the cloud—typically using a malicious Docker image—and has proven itself to be both resourceful and creative.
Since this first attack, TeamTNT has continuously evolved its tactics and added capabilities to expand and capture more available cloud attack surfaces. They started with targeting exposed Docker instances and quickly added support for different C2 mechanisms, encryption, DDoS, evasion, persistence and more. Now, their latest variant is targeting the most popular container orchestrator, Kubernetes. Let’s take a closer look.
Evolving Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs)
TeamTNT’s initial attack targeted an exposed, unprotected Docker API on the internet in order to run an Alpine Linux container. Once the container started running on the unprotected Docker API, a series of scripts were downloaded to facilitate the installation of a Monero cryptominer (to carry out scanning and cleaning activities). A notable script used in the attack was <clean.sh>, which removed a bit of technically advanced Kinsing malware. Kinsing is Continue reading
