• Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
MUST READ

Operation CargoTalon targets Russia’s aerospace with EAGLET malware,

 | 

Unpatched flaw in EoL LG LNV5110R cameras lets hackers gain Admin access

 | 

Koske, a new AI-Generated Linux malware appears in the threat landscape

 | 

Mitel patches critical MiVoice MX-ONE Auth bypass flaw

 | 

Coyote malware is first-ever malware abusing Windows UI Automation

 | 

SonicWall fixed critical flaw in SMA 100 devices exploited in Overstep malware attacks

 | 

DSPM & AI Are Booming: $17.87B and $4.8T Markets by 2033

 | 

Stealth backdoor found in WordPress mu-Plugins folder

 | 

U.S. CISA adds CrushFTP, Google Chromium, and SysAid flaws to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

U.S. CISA urges FCEB agencies to fix two Microsoft SharePoint flaws immediately and added them to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

Sophos fixed two critical Sophos Firewall vulnerabilities

 | 

French Authorities confirm XSS.is admin arrested in Ukraine

 | 

Microsoft linked attacks on SharePoint flaws to China-nexus actors

 | 

Cisco confirms active exploitation of ISE and ISE-PIC flaws

 | 

SharePoint under fire: new ToolShell attacks target enterprises

 | 

CrushFTP zero-day actively exploited at least since July 18

 | 

Hardcoded credentials found in HPE Aruba Instant On Wi-Fi devices

 | 

MuddyWater deploys new DCHSpy variants amid Iran-Israel conflict

 | 

U.S. CISA urges to immediately patch Microsoft SharePoint flaw adding it to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

Microsoft issues emergency patches for SharePoint zero-days exploited in "ToolShell" attacks

 | 
  • Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
  • Home
  • Breaking News
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Hacktivist group Twelve is back and targets Russian entities

Hacktivist group Twelve is back and targets Russian entities

Pierluigi Paganini September 23, 2024

Hacktivist group Twelve is back and targets Russian entities to destroy critical assets and disrupt their operations.

The hacktivist group Twelve has been active since at least April 2023, it was formed in the wake of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

The threat actor focuses on destroying critical assets, disrupting target business, and stealing sensitive data.

In spring 2024, the Telegram channel -=TWELVE=- was blocked for posting personal data in violation of Telegram’s terms. Although the hacktivist group disappeared for several months, in June 2024, Kaspersky observed an attack using identical techniques and C2 servers, suggesting that the Twelve group is still active and likely to reemerge soon.

Interestingly, the group’s infrastructure and TTPs are the same as the DARKSTAR ransomware group, formerly known as Shadow or COMET, which suggests that the two actors might belong to the same syndicate or activity cluster. However, the motivation behind Twelve’s operations is the hacktivism.

The group targets Russian entities, it encrypts victims’ data without demanding a ransom and then destroy their infrastructure with a wiper to destroy its operations.

The group relies on publicly available tools and malware, making it possible to detect and prevent Twelve’s attacks in due time. In the arsenal of the group, there are tools for credential theft, network discovery, and privilege escalation. Some of the tools used by the group are Cobalt Strike, mimikatz, chisel, BloodHound, PowerView, adPEAS, CrackMapExec, Advanced IP Scanner and PsExec.

The threat actor gains initial access by abusing valid local or domain accounts, VPN or SSH certificates. Then the threat actor relies on the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to facilitate lateral movement.

The attackers also compromised the victim’s infrastructure targeting some of its contractors. Once compromised the contractor’s infrastructure, the attackers used its certificate to connect to its customer’s VPN.

Twelve group

The Twelve group deploys web shells to the compromised web servers to carry out malicious activities, including executing arbitrary commands, lateral movements, data exfiltration, and creating and sending email.

Kaspersky investigated an attack involving the FaceFish backdoor, attackers exploited the VMware vCenter server flaws CVE-2021-21972 and CVE-2021-22005 to deploy the webshell used to load their implant.

The group maintains persistence using PowerShell to add domain users and groups, and to modify ACLs (Access Control Lists) for Active Directory objects.

“Twelve is mainly driven by hacktivism rather than financial gain. This shows in their modus operandi: rather than demand a ransom for decrypting data, Twelve prefers to encrypt victims’ data and then destroy their infrastructure with a wiper to prevent recovery. The approach is indicative of a desire to cause maximum damage to target organizations without deriving direct financial benefit.” concludes the report.

Follow me on Twitter: @securityaffairs and Facebook and Mastodon

Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, Twelve group)


facebook linkedin twitter

Hacking hacking news Hacktivism information security news IT Information Security Pierluigi Paganini Russia Security Affairs Security News Twelve group Ukraine

you might also like

Pierluigi Paganini July 25, 2025
Operation CargoTalon targets Russia’s aerospace with EAGLET malware,
Read more
Pierluigi Paganini July 25, 2025
Unpatched flaw in EoL LG LNV5110R cameras lets hackers gain Admin access
Read more

leave a comment

newsletter

Subscribe to my email list and stay
up-to-date!

    recent articles

    Operation CargoTalon targets Russia’s aerospace with EAGLET malware,

    Intelligence / July 25, 2025

    Unpatched flaw in EoL LG LNV5110R cameras lets hackers gain Admin access

    Security / July 25, 2025

    Koske, a new AI-Generated Linux malware appears in the threat landscape

    Malware / July 25, 2025

    Mitel patches critical MiVoice MX-ONE Auth bypass flaw

    Security / July 25, 2025

    Coyote malware is first-ever malware abusing Windows UI Automation

    Malware / July 24, 2025

    To contact me write an email to:

    Pierluigi Paganini :
    pierluigi.paganini@securityaffairs.co

    LEARN MORE

    QUICK LINKS

    • Home
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber warfare
    • APT
    • Data Breach
    • Deep Web
    • Digital ID
    • Hacking
    • Hacktivism
    • Intelligence
    • Internet of Things
    • Laws and regulations
    • Malware
    • Mobile
    • Reports
    • Security
    • Social Networks
    • Terrorism
    • ICS-SCADA
    • POLICIES
    • Contact me

    Copyright@securityaffairs 2024

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities...
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT