Naikon

Overview

Naikon is assessed to be a state-sponsored cyber espionage group attributed to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Chengdu Military Region Second Technical Reconnaissance Bureau (Military Unit Cover Designator 78020). Active since at least 2010, Naikon has primarily conducted operations against government, military, and civil organizations in Southeast Asia, as well as against international bodies such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). While Naikon shares some characteristics with APT30, the two groups do not appear to be exact matches.

Naming & attribution

Naikon is tracked under 1 names across the industry. It uses 14 documented ATT&CK techniques — more than 40% of the 174 groups tracked here. Activity attributed since at least 2010.

Distinctive techniques

Techniques this group uses that are rare across the other 173 tracked groups — these carry more signal than the near-universal ones.

• T1137.006 Add-ins — used by 1 of 174 groups

Closest groups by technique overlap

Computed from shared ATT&CK techniques. Overlap is not attribution — distinct actors converge on the same tradecraft — but a high share is a useful pivot.

• SideCopy Pakistan — 6 shared techniques (25% overlap)
• RTM Russia — 4 shared techniques (24% overlap)
• Higaisa South Korea — 7 shared techniques (20% overlap)
• TA2541 — 7 shared techniques (20% overlap)
• Sidewinder India — 7 shared techniques (19% overlap)
• Darkhotel South Korea — 6 shared techniques (19% overlap)

Targets

Government · Private sector

Regions

Cambodia · China · India · Indonesia · Laos · Malaysia · Myanmar · Philippines · Saudi Arabia · Singapore · South Korea · Thailand · United States · Vietnam

Capabilities

• Custom malware/implant development — ATT&CK: 8 attributed custom malware families

TTPs — 14 techniques across 5 tactics

Tools & malware (15)

ftp · Net · Ping · netsh · WinMM · Systeminfo · RainyDay · Nebulae · RARSTONE · HDoor · Sys10 · SslMM · PsExec · Tasklist · Aria-body

Reporting (3)

• (2015, September 23). Project CameraShy: Closing the Aperture on China's Unit 78020 — ThreatConnect Inc. and Defense Group Inc
• The Naikon APT — Baumgartner, K., Golovkin, M.
• The MsnMM Campaigns: The Earliest Naikon APT Campaigns — Baumgartner, K., Golovkin, M.