S0466: WindTail

S0466: WindTail describes [WindTail](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0466) is a macOS surveillance implant used by [Windshift](https://attack.mitre.org/groups/G0112). [WindTail](https://attack.mitre.org/software/S0466) shares code similarities with Hack Back aka KitM OSX.(Citation: SANS Windshift August 2018)(Citation: objective-see windtail1 dec 2018)(Citation: objective-see windtail2 jan 2019)

Executive priority

S0466: WindTail 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 S0466: WindTail 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 S0466: WindTail 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

WindTail

WindTail is a macOS surveillance implant used by Windshift. WindTail shares code similarities with Hack Back aka KitM OSX.[1][2][3]

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.

Filter related techniques15 rows

Domain	ID	Name	Relationship / procedure
Enterprise	T1036.001	Invalid Code SignatureSub-technique	WindTail has been incompletely signed with revoked certificates.[2]
Enterprise	T1106	Native API	WindTail can invoke Apple APIs `contentsOfDirectoryAtPath`, `pathExtension`, and (string) `compare`.[3]
Enterprise	T1083	File and Directory Discovery	WindTail has the ability to enumerate the users home directory and the path to its own application bundle.[2][3]
Enterprise	T1027.013	Encrypted/Encoded FileSub-technique	WindTail can be delivered as a compressed, encrypted, and encoded payload.[3]
Enterprise	T1071.001	Web ProtocolsSub-technique	WindTail has the ability to use HTTP for C2 communications.[3]
Enterprise	T1027.015	CompressionSub-technique	WindTail can be delivered as a compressed, encrypted, and encoded payload.[3]
Enterprise	T1059.004	Unix ShellSub-technique	WindTail can use the `open` command to execute an application.[2]
Enterprise	T1119	Automated Collection	WindTail can identify and add files that possess specific file extensions to an array for archiving.[3]
Enterprise	T1036	Masquerading	WindTail has used icons mimicking MS Office files to mask payloads.[2]
Enterprise	T1560.001	Archive via UtilitySub-technique	WindTail has the ability to use the macOS built-in zip utility to archive files.[3]
Enterprise	T1140	Deobfuscate/Decode Files or Information	WindTail has the ability to decrypt strings using hard-coded AES keys.[2]
Enterprise	T1070.004	File DeletionSub-technique	WindTail has the ability to receive and execute a self-delete command.[3]
Enterprise	T1048.003	Exfiltration Over Unencrypted Non-C2 ProtocolSub-technique	WindTail has the ability to automatically exfiltrate files using the macOS built-in utility /usr/bin/curl.[3]
Enterprise	T1564.003	Hidden WindowSub-technique	WindTail can instruct the OS to execute an application without a dock icon or menu.[2]
Enterprise	T1124	System Time Discovery	WindTail has the ability to generate the current date and time.[2]

Associated objects

Groups, software, and campaigns

G0112: Windshift

Windshift is a threat group that has been active since at least 2017, targeting specific individuals for surveillance in government departments and critical infrastructure across the Middle East.[1][2][3]

Relationship explorer

All related ATT&CK context

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: 19.2
Object version: 1.1
Created: Jun 4, 2020, 19:01 UTC (UTC+00:00)
Modified: Nov 17, 2024, 14:15 UTC (UTC+00:00)
Raw hash: 5a55594600bdd528...

Imported snapshots across ATT&CK releases(2)

Release	Bundle imported	Object version	Modified	Status	Raw hash
19.2	Aug 6, 2026, 02:58 UTC (UTC+00:00)	1.1	Nov 17, 2024, 14:15 UTC (UTC+00:00)	Current bundle	`5a55594600bd…`
19.1	Jul 14, 2026, 09:14 UTC (UTC+00:00)	1.1	Nov 17, 2024, 14:15 UTC (UTC+00:00)	Older bundle	`5a55594600bd…`

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 JSON Open 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]
SANS Windshift August 2018
Karim, T. (2018, August). TRAILS OF WINDSHIFT. Retrieved November 17, 2024.
Open source URL
[2]
objective-see windtail1 dec 2018
Wardle, Patrick. (2018, December 20). Middle East Cyber-Espionage analyzing WindShift's implant: OSX.WindTail (part 1). Retrieved October 3, 2019.
Open source URL
[3]
objective-see windtail2 jan 2019
Wardle, Patrick. (2019, January 15). Middle East Cyber-Espionage analyzing WindShift's implant: OSX.WindTail (part 2). Retrieved October 3, 2019.
Open source URL
[4]
mitre-attackS0466
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.

Official MITRE ATT&CK site Official STIX data repository MITRE ATT&CK terms of use