Raccoon Stealer

April 10, 2023

In a recent cyberattack, eight Central government entities, including central paramilitary forces and the Income Tax department, were targeted by the Raccoon Stealer malware. The attack was brought to the attention of the affected agencies by the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), a specialized intelligence agency under the National Security Advisor.

What is Raccoon Stealer?

Raccoon Stealer is an information stealing malware that is usually delivered through email. It retrieves sensitive data from infected machines and is available as Malware-as-a-service (MaaS). This means that anyone can buy this malware and use it for malicious purposes.

Attack on Central Government Entities

The NTRO wrote to the affected agencies on March 24 to inform them of the attack. According to the intelligence agency, recent analysis revealed that a malicious campaign was launched “by an unknown threat actor using Raccoon malware” to target computer systems of the Central Board of Direct Taxes of the Income Tax department, the pay and accounts department of the Central Public Works Department, the office of the IG of CRPF, the DG of the NSG, the assistant director (admin) of the Sashastra Seema Bal, the Centre for Social Tech of NCERT, a joint director of the National Institute of Disaster Management, and a call center of the Sports Authority of India at JLN Stadium.

Impact on Government Agencies

The attack on these government agencies has raised concerns about the security of sensitive data. The Raccoon Stealer malware can retrieve sensitive data, such as personal information, financial data, and login credentials. The attack has also highlighted the need for better cybersecurity measures in government agencies.

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