type: incident · created: 2026-07-31 · updated: 2026-08-18 · tags: [] · confidence: not-rated · affected_sectors: [] · au_impact: false
Suspected Chinese-Speaking Hackers Target Central Asian Governments With OctLurk and SilkLurk
Summary
Kaspersky identified a suspected Chinese-speaking threat group targeting government organisations across Central Asia since January 2025. Uses two new obfuscated backdoors (OctLurk, SilkLurk) delivered via LurkProxy.
Key Details
- Date: 2026-07-31
- Source: The Hacker News
- Reliability: Tier 2/4 — Established cyber journalism
- Threat Actor: Suspected Chinese-speaking group (unnamed)
- Target Countries: Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Syria
- Target Sectors: Healthcare, research, foreign ministries, logistics, law enforcement, education
- Tools: OctLurk, SilkLurk (obfuscated backdoors), LurkProxy (delivery)
- Active Since: January 2025
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