Careto, The Mask
Description
(Kaspersky) The Mask is an advanced threat actor that has been involved in cyber-espionage operations since at least 2007. The name “Mask” comes from the Spanish slang word “Careto” (“Ugly Face” or “Mask”) which the authors included in some of the malware modules.
More than 380 unique victims in 31 countries have been observed to date. What makes “The Mask” special is the complexity of the toolset used by the attackers. This includes an extremely sophisticated malware, a rootkit, a bootkit, 32-and 64-bit Windows versions, Mac OS X and Linux versions and possibly versions for Android and iPad/iPhone (Apple iOS).
Names
| Name | Name-Giver |
|---|---|
| Careto | Kaspersky |
| The Mask | Kaspersky |
| Mask | Kaspersky |
| Ugly Face | Kaspersky |
Country
Sponsor
State-sponsored
Motivation
- Information theft and espionage
First Seen
2007
Observed Sectors
Observed Countries
- Brazil
- France
- Germany
- Iran
- Libya
- Morocco
- Poland
- South Africa
- Spain
- Switzerland
- Tunisia
- UK
- USA
- Venezuela
Tools
Operations
- 2022: Careto is back: what’s new after 10 years of silence? https://securelist.com/careto-is-back/114942/
Counter Operations
- 2014-02: At the moment, all known Careto C&C servers are offline. The attackers began taking them offline in January 2014. We were also able to sinkhole several C&C servers, which allowed us to gather statistics on the operation. https://securelist.com/the-caretomask-apt-frequently-asked-questions/58254/
Information
- https://d2538mqrb7brka.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/43/2018/03/20133638/unveilingthemask_v1.0.pdf
- https://securelist.com/the-caretomask-apt-frequently-asked-questions/58254/
- https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/23/mysterious-hacking-group-careto-was-run-by-the-spanish-government-sources-say/
Other Information
Uuid
3d291611-962c-42b8-88e8-3db17f464f9b
Last Card Change
2025-06-27