Russia’s COLDRIVER Deploys New “ROBOT” Malware Just 5 Days After Google Exposes “LOSTKEYS”

By CyberDudeBivash • Updated Oct 21, 2025 • Apps & Services

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TL;DR 

1. COLDRIVER (a.k.a. Callisto/Star Blizzard) rolled out a new post-exposure toolkit dubbed “ROBOT” within days of the “LOSTKEYS” takedown disclosures—showing rapid TTP pivot.
2. Initial access: highly targeted phishing & impersonation; lure links to staged infrastructure; document-borne macros disabled, so they shift to living-off-the-land and token/session theft.
3. Persistence & C2: scheduled tasks/Run keys; cloud-fronted infra and disposable domains; exfil via encrypted channels.
4. Defend now: enforce phishing-resistant MFA, harden mail & browsers, monitor session tokens, block fresh domains via TI, and deploy the detections below.

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Table of Contents

1. Who Is COLDRIVER & What’s New in “ROBOT”?
2. Tactics, Techniques & Procedures (TTPs)
3. Intelligence: IOC Themes & Infra Patterns
4. Detections: Log Sources & Queries
5. Defensive Playbook: Controls That Break the Kill Chain
6. Incident Response: 60-Minute Action Plan
7. FAQs

Who Is COLDRIVER & What’s New in “ROBOT”?

COLDRIVER is a Russia-aligned threat actor known for credential-phishing, account takeover, and long-term collection against policy institutes, academia, NGOs, government, and tech. After “LOSTKEYS” public exposure, the group resurfaced with a rapidly iterated toolkit we refer to here as “ROBOT”—emphasising agility, token theft, and cloud-fronted C2.

• Key shift: fewer macro-style loaders; more abuse of browser tokens, OAuth, and SSO recovery flows.
• Modular design: downloader + plug-ins for credential harvesting, screenshotting, and staged exfil—details redacted for safety.

Tactics, Techniques & Procedures (TTPs)

• Recon & Targeting: LinkedIn/email impersonation; invitations to “closed briefings”, conference panels, or policy reviews.
• Delivery: link-heavy lures to single-use domains; occasionally document decoys hosted on reputable platforms.
• Execution: living-off-the-land binaries/scripts; abuse of browser extensions or token stores; PowerShell constrained-language bypass attempts.
• Persistence: Run keys, scheduled tasks, side-loading via benign-looking apps.
• C2: fast-flux DNS/CDN fronting; short-lived TLS certs; cloud object storage for dead-drop comms.
• Objectives: mailbox & drive access, data theft, lateral movement to collaboration suites.

Intelligence: IOC Themes & Infra Patterns

We avoid publishing active IOCs that could aid threat actors. Use these themes to tune controls and ask vendors for updated feeds.

• Disposable domains with news/conference naming; newly registered (< 14 days).
• CDN-fronted endpoints; uncommon SNI/JA3 combos; rotating ASNs.
• Email senders spoofing think-tanks/journals; DMARC fail + display-name deception.

Detections: Log Sources & Queries

Prioritise IdP/OAuth logs, mail security, browser telemetry, EDR, and DNS/Proxy. Examples (adapt for your SIEM):

-- Impossible travel or brand-new device fingerprint + successful OAuth token issuance
where event.type == "oauth_token_issued"
  and (device.is_new == true or ip.geo.anom == true)
  and mfa.bypass == true

-- First-time domain + click-through to consent page within 5 min of spear-phish
join (email_clicks) with (oauth_consent)
  on user.id
where email.sender_domain not in allowlist
  and domain.age_days < 14

-- Browser token access outside business hours from unmanaged host
where app == "chrome" and action == "token_read"
  and device.managed == false and timestamp in off_hours
  

Defensive Playbook: Controls That Break the Kill Chain

1. Phishing-resistant MFA (FIDO2/WebAuthn) for email, IdP, and admin panels; block SMS/OTP fallback.
2. Conditional Access: require compliant device + device posture; geofence risky regions; step-up auth on new devices.
3. Email Security: DMARC p=reject; display-name normalization; URL detonation; look-alike domain alerts.
4. Browser Hardening: restrict extensions; isolate profiles; monitor token file access; enable Enhanced Safe Browsing.
5. EDR Controls: block LOLBin abuse, script-based execution; alert on new Run keys/scheduled tasks.
6. TI & DNS: subscribe to government/commercial CTI; auto-sinkhole disposable domains with timed expiry.

Incident Response: 60-Minute Action Plan

1. Contain: revoke OAuth tokens; force global sign-out; block suspicious domains in DNS/Proxy.
2. Triage: review last 14–30 days of IdP/mail/EDR; hunt for new device fingerprints and anomalous token grants.
3. Eradicate: remove persistence (tasks/Run keys/extensions); rotate creds; reset recovery methods.
4. Recover: restore affected mailboxes/drives; validate integrity; enable heightened monitoring for 7–14 days.
5. Lessons: update blocklists, train targeted users, add detections for new infra patterns.

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FAQs

Is “ROBOT” malware available publicly?

No. Public sources reference behaviour and TTPs; we intentionally omit weaponizable specifics.

Who is being targeted?

Think-tanks, NGOs, academia, policy/government, and select tech/media—typically via tailored lures.

What’s the #1 control to deploy first?

Phishing-resistant MFA (FIDO2/WebAuthn) across email/IdP/admin, plus strict Conditional Access and browser token protections.

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