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MITRE ATT&CK® Malware

S0274: Calisto

Calisto is a macOS Trojan that opens a backdoor on the compromised machine. Calisto is believed to have first been developed in 2016. [1] [2]

EnterpriseS0274MalwareObject v1.1Modified
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Glexia's Take · Automated analysis

Security context for executives and security teams

Automation confidenceMedium

S0274: Calisto describes [Calisto](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0274) is a macOS Trojan that opens a backdoor on the compromised machine. [Calisto](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0274) is believed to have first been developed in 2016. (Citation: Securelist Calisto July 2018) (Citation: Symantec Calisto July 2018)

Executive priority

S0274: Calisto is an official MITRE ATT&CK software. Glexia treats it as defensive behavior context for prioritizing monitoring, control validation, and response planning without using the object by itself as an attribution claim.

Technical view

Security teams should validate S0274: Calisto by reviewing the official ATT&CK relationships, mapped tactics (the mapped ATT&CK tactic context), supported platforms (macOS), and available local telemetry before making detection or mitigation decisions.

Likely telemetry

  • Official ATT&CK relationships and object metadata
  • Network, endpoint, and security-tool telemetry

Detection direction

  • Validate whether S0274: Calisto appears in your detection coverage and tabletop scenarios.
  • Use the object to align executive risk language with SOC, incident response, and detection engineering work.
  • Do not treat ATT&CK relationship context as attribution without corroborating evidence.

Mitigation priorities

  • Map the object to existing controls and identify missing telemetry or response ownership.
  • Prioritize mitigations that reduce exposure on the listed platforms and tactics.
  • Review adjacent ATT&CK relationships before changing policy, detections, or reporting language.
Additional notes and limits

Baseline Glexia take generated from the official MITRE ATT&CK STIX object, source hash, tactics, platforms, and detection fields. It is safe to replace with a richer model-generated take for the same source hash later.

This baseline take is source-grounded and schema-validated, but it does not include environment-specific telemetry, incident evidence, or threat-intelligence corroboration.

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Official MITRE ATT&CK definition

Calisto

Calisto is a macOS Trojan that opens a backdoor on the compromised machine. Calisto is believed to have first been developed in 2016. [1] [2]

View the same entry on attack.mitre.org (MITRE-hosted reference; in-page links above use the Glexia ATT&CK library.)

Glexia analysis

How security teams should use this page

Treat this object as behavior context, not an attribution claim. Validate the related groups, software, data sources, and mitigations against official ATT&CK relationships and your own telemetry before making control-coverage decisions.

ATT&CK relationship table

Techniques used

This mirrors the MITRE pattern of making group, software, campaign, and technique relationships scannable. Relationship notes come from mirrored ATT&CK relationship text when available.

15 rows
DomainIDNameRelationship / procedure
EnterpriseT1543.001Launch AgentSub-technique

Calisto adds a .plist file to the /Library/LaunchAgents folder to maintain persistence.[1]

EnterpriseT1217Browser Information Discovery

Calisto collects information on bookmarks from Google Chrome.[1]

EnterpriseT1016System Network Configuration Discovery

Calisto runs the ifconfig command to obtain the IP address from the victim’s machine.[1]

EnterpriseT1105Ingress Tool Transfer

Calisto has the capability to upload and download files to the victim's machine.[2]

EnterpriseT1056.002GUI Input CaptureSub-technique

Calisto presents an input prompt asking for the user's login and password.[2]

EnterpriseT1005Data from Local System

Calisto can collect data from user directories.[1]

EnterpriseT1070.004File DeletionSub-technique

Calisto has the capability to use rm -rf to remove folders and files from the victim's machine.[1]

EnterpriseT1569.001LaunchctlSub-technique

Calisto uses launchctl to enable screen sharing on the victim’s machine.[1]

EnterpriseT1560.001Archive via UtilitySub-technique

Calisto uses the zip -r command to compress the data collected on the local system.[1][2]

EnterpriseT1036.005Match Legitimate Resource Name or LocationSub-technique

Calisto's installation file is an unsigned DMG image under the guise of Intego’s security solution for mac.[1]

EnterpriseT1555.001KeychainSub-technique

Calisto collects Keychain storage data and copies those passwords/tokens to a file.[1][2]

EnterpriseT1564.001Hidden Files and DirectoriesSub-technique

Calisto uses a hidden directory named .calisto to store data from the victim’s machine before exfiltration.[1][2]

EnterpriseT1074.001Local Data StagingSub-technique

Calisto uses a hidden directory named .calisto to store data from the victim’s machine before exfiltration.[1][2]

EnterpriseT1098Account Manipulation

Calisto adds permissions and remote logins to all users.[2]

EnterpriseT1136.001Local AccountSub-technique

Calisto has the capability to add its own account to the victim's machine.[2]

Relationship explorer

All related ATT&CK context

uses · TechniqueT1543.001: Launch AgentEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1217: Browser Information DiscoveryEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1016: System Network Configuration DiscoveryEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1105: Ingress Tool TransferEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1056.002: GUI Input CaptureEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1005: Data from Local SystemEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1070.004: File DeletionEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1569.001: LaunchctlEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1560.001: Archive via UtilityEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1036.005: Match Legitimate Resource Name or LocationEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1555.001: KeychainEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1564.001: Hidden Files and DirectoriesEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1074.001: Local Data StagingEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1098: Account ManipulationEnterpriseuses · TechniqueT1136.001: Local AccountEnterprise
Change history

Object version and sync metadata

The fields below describe the current mirrored snapshot. When Glexia retains multiple ATT&CK source imports, you can open the table to compare the same object across releases (hashes and MITRE timestamps). For MITRE’s own release notes and roadmap, see ATT&CK resources — Updates.

ATT&CK release
20.0
Object version
1.1
Created
Modified
Raw hash
0a59c4aa836cc06d...
Imported snapshots across ATT&CK releases(3)
ReleaseBundle importedObject versionModifiedStatusRaw hash
20.01.1Current bundle0a59c4aa836c…
19.21.1Older bundle0a59c4aa836c…
19.11.1Older bundle0a59c4aa836c…
Raw source

Mirrored ATT&CK source object

The raw object is retained through the mirrored ATT&CK source bundle and object hash. The raw endpoint returns the exact object from the mirrored bundle when available.

Open mirrored raw JSONOpen MITRE-hosted copy
Source references

External references and citations

MITRE external references are preserved separately from Glexia analysis so citations remain traceable to their original source records.

  1. [1]
    Securelist Calisto July 2018

    Kuzin, M., Zelensky S. (2018, July 20). Calisto Trojan for macOS. Retrieved September 7, 2018.

    Open source URL
  2. [2]
    Symantec Calisto July 2018

    Pantig, J. (2018, July 30). OSX.Calisto. Retrieved September 7, 2018.

    Open source URL
  3. [3]
    Calisto

    (Citation: Securelist Calisto July 2018) (Citation: Symantec Calisto July 2018)

  4. [4]
    mitre-attackS0274
    Open source URL
Source and licensing

Source: MITRE ATT&CK®. © 2026 The MITRE Corporation. This work is reproduced and distributed with the permission of The MITRE Corporation. MITRE ATT&CK and ATT&CK are registered trademarks of The MITRE Corporation. Glexia is not affiliated with or endorsed by MITRE.

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