The PolySwarm Blog

Verticals Targeted: Government, Financial Services, Education, Transportation, Cryptocurrency, Enterprise Environments
Regions Targeted: North America, Europe, Middle East

Executive Summary

ClickFix has evolved from fake CAPTCHA and technical support lures into a broader family of attacks that manipulate trusted intermediaries to cross security boundaries. Based on publicly documented campaigns and independent vendor research, we assess that the most significant evolution is the diversification of trusted workflows being abused rather than the proliferation of named variants. The ClickFix family now spans execution, workflow and identity-focused techniques, demonstrating a flexible methodology adaptable to both cybercriminal and state-sponsored operations while challenging defenders to prioritize behavioral detection over individual malware families.

Verticals Targeted: Cryptocurrency
Regions Targeted: United States, Germany, Romania, Venezuela
Related Families: Starland RAT, WLDR Framework, Remcos RAT, CastleStealer

Executive Summary

Industry researchers identified a financially motivated, Russian-speaking threat actor tracked as UAT-11795 conducting a sophisticated malware campaign targeting users primarily in the United States since at least June 2025. The operation employs suspected ClickFix-style social engineering, trojanized software installers, and a custom Python-based remote access tool, Starland RAT, to establish persistent access and deploy additional malware, including the previously undocumented WLDR PowerShell framework, CastleStealer, and Remcos RAT. The campaign demonstrates a modular architecture, resilient C2 infrastructure, and a strong emphasis on credential theft, cryptocurrency wallet harvesting, and long-term post-compromise access.

Verticals Targeted: Government
Regions Targeted: US
Related Families: StealC, RedLine, NetSupport RAT, DeerStealer, HijackLoader, SectopRAT

Executive Summary

CastleLoader, a versatile malware loader, has infected 469 devices since May 2025, leveraging Cloudflare-themed ClickFix phishing and fake GitHub repositories to deliver information stealers and RATs. Its sophisticated attack chain, high infection rate, and modular design make it a significant threat to organizations, particularly U.S. government entities.

Verticals Targeted: Not specified
Regions Targeted: Not specified
Related Families: None

Executive Summary

EDDIESTEALER is a Rust-based infostealer distributed through deceptive CAPTCHA campaigns, leveraging social engineering to steal sensitive data like credentials and cryptocurrency wallet details. Its advanced obfuscation and ChromeKatz integration highlight the growing sophistication of commodity malware.