What is Millenium RAT?

Millenium RAT : An authoritative, independent cybersecurity intelligence resource providing comprehensive technical analysis, threat-actor tracking, and defensive guidance regarding the Millenium RAT malware family.

Is Millenium RAT malware?

Yes. Millenium RAT is malicious software classified as a Remote Access Trojan (RAT) and infostealer. Despite being marketed with 'educational purposes' disclaimers, researchers consider its functionality clearly suitable for malicious abuse.

Is Millenium RAT a Remote Access Trojan?

Yes. Millenium RAT is a RAT — it provides an attacker with unauthorized remote control of a compromised Windows machine, alongside information-stealing and surveillance capabilities.

Is Millenium RAT the same as Millennium RAT?

Yes. The malware is predominantly referred to by researchers as 'Millenium RAT,' but many users search for 'Millennium RAT.' Both spellings refer to the same malware family. This resource covers both spellings.

Who created Millenium RAT?

Public researchers associate the developer/marketing identity 'ShinyEnigma' with Millenium RAT. No real-world identity has been reliably established by authoritative evidence. ShinyEnigma is an online alias / developer handle, not a confirmed individual.

ShinyEnigma is the online alias / developer handle associated by public researchers with the development and marketing of Millenium RAT. Attribution beyond the moniker is not established.

Who are the Y2K Operators?

Y2K Operators is the name Group-IB uses to track a threat cluster associated with active Millenium RAT deployment and distribution campaigns. It is distinct from ShinyEnigma (development/marketing) and should not be assumed to be the same entity.

When was Millenium RAT discovered?

CYFIRMA published the first major public analysis of Millenium RAT on November 3, 2023, focusing on version 2.4. Broadcom/Symantec published protection information the same month.

What operating systems does Millenium RAT target?

Millenium RAT is primarily documented as malware targeting Microsoft Windows. There is no reliable evidence of an established macOS, iPhone, or Android Millenium RAT family.

Does Millenium RAT target Windows 10?

Millenium RAT is a Windows malware family. Windows 10 systems are within its target scope. It relies on standard Windows API functionality rather than zero-day exploitation.

Does Millenium RAT target Windows 11?

Yes. As a Windows remote-access trojan, Millenium RAT can affect Windows 11 systems. No version-specific zero-day is required for its documented operation.

Does Millenium RAT use Telegram?

Yes. Telegram is central to Millenium RAT's architecture. Public research documents use of the Telegram Bot API for command-and-control and data exfiltration. Telegram is a legitimate platform being abused by the malware operators; Telegram did not create or support the malware.

Why does Millenium RAT use Telegram?

Abusing legitimate cloud platforms like Telegram reduces the need for dedicated attacker-hosted C2 infrastructure, lets HTTPS traffic blend into normal cloud traffic, provides globally accessible infrastructure, and improves resilience compared with a single attacker server.

What information can Millenium RAT steal?

Reported theft includes browser credentials, cookies, browsing history, saved payment-card data where available, desktop/user files, Discord tokens, Telegram data, and cryptocurrency/browser-extension wallet data in newer versions.

Can Millenium RAT steal browser passwords?

Yes. Browser credential theft is one of the most consistently documented capabilities across both the .NET 2.x and native C++ 4.x versions.

Can Millenium RAT steal cookies?

Yes. Cookie theft is documented, enabling session hijacking and bypass of some forms of authentication.

Can Millenium RAT steal cryptocurrency wallets?

Newer versions have been associated with cryptocurrency and browser-extension wallet data theft. If wallet secrets were accessible from a compromised machine, assume they may have been exposed.

Can Millenium RAT record keystrokes?

Yes. Keylogging is a documented capability (MITRE ATT&CK T1056, Input Capture).

Can Millenium RAT take screenshots?

Yes. Screenshot capture is documented (MITRE ATT&CK T1113).

Can Millenium RAT access a webcam?

Webcam capture has been reported in public research. Treat any unexpected webcam access by unknown software as suspicious.

Can Millenium RAT record audio?

Microphone / audio capture has been reported in public research (MITRE ATT&CK T1123).

Is Millenium RAT ransomware?

Not by default. Researchers documented file encryption/decryption functionality, but the presence of encryption does not mean every infection becomes a ransomware incident. Millenium RAT is primarily a RAT/infostealer.

Is Millenium RAT a zero-day?

No. Public Group-IB analysis states that Millenium RAT 4.x relies primarily on standard Windows API functionality and does not contain sophisticated exploitation or advanced privilege-bypass capabilities in the analyzed implementation.

Does Millenium RAT exploit vulnerabilities?

According to Group-IB, the analyzed 4.x implementation does not contain sophisticated exploitation. For elevation, it relies on a normal Windows UAC prompt, hoping the user authorizes elevated privileges.

How does Millenium RAT maintain persistence?

Public research documents copying itself into an AppData subdirectory and creating Windows autorun persistence via the HKCU Run registry key, using malware-configurable filenames and directories.

How is Millenium RAT distributed?

Group-IB documented extensive social engineering: 'free money' utilities, hacking tools, software-piracy lures, gaming cheats, and trojanized tools targeting other cybercriminals (XWorm, AsyncRAT, njRAT, token grabbers).

How many devices have been infected by Millenium RAT?

Group-IB reported identifying 62,289 compromised endpoints across 160+ countries, with 39,730 infections recorded during Q1 2026. These reflect Group-IB telemetry, not a definitive total of every infection worldwide.

Which countries are affected by Millenium RAT?

Group-IB publicly highlighted India, the United States, and Brazil among major affected geographies. Reported activity spans more than 160 countries; exact per-country totals depend on available telemetry.

What is Millenium RAT 4.x?

Millenium RAT 4.x is the substantially rewritten generation analyzed by Group-IB in 2026. It is a native C++ Windows application using libcurl for Telegram API communication, marketed under a MaaS subscription model.

Why was Millenium RAT rewritten in C++?

The native C++ rewrite removes the .NET Framework dependency, changes static-analysis characteristics and signatures, alters reverse-engineering workflows, and reduces the value of detections targeting earlier .NET implementations. C++ does not automatically make malware undetectable.

Was Millenium RAT originally written in .NET?

Yes. The earlier 2.x versions publicly analyzed in 2023 were .NET managed-code Win32 executables. The 4.x branch is a native C++ rewrite.

Is Millenium RAT related to ToxicEye?

CYFIRMA's 2023 analysis identified extensive structural similarities between early Millenium RAT and the older ToxicEye Telegram RAT, including architecture, modules, namespaces, and function names. This suggests lineage or derivation, not definitive proof of identical authorship.

What are Millenium RAT indicators of compromise?

IOCs include file hashes (e.g. the CYFIRMA-reported 2.4 SHA-256), persistence registry keys, AppData execution paths, masquerading filenames, and Telegram Bot API network behavior. See the IOC database for the full defanged list.

How can companies detect Millenium RAT?

Correlate endpoint signals (AppData execution, new Run keys, browser-credential access) with network signals (unexpected Telegram Bot API traffic) and behavior. Hash-only detection is insufficient because builds vary hashes.

How can I remove Millenium RAT?

Because a RAT may expose credentials and maintain persistence, removal is broader than deleting one file. Isolate the machine, run reputable endpoint security, change credentials from a clean device, revoke sessions, and consider reinstalling if compromise is confirmed.

What should I do after a Millenium RAT infection?

Isolate, preserve evidence, escalate to your IR team, identify persistence, rotate credentials from a clean device, revoke sessions, review browser/email/Telegram/Discord/crypto accounts, enable MFA, and review logs for lateral movement.

FAQ

Millenium RAT — Frequently Asked Questions

Direct, authoritative answers to the questions SOC analysts, researchers, and affected users ask most.

Millenium RAT is a Windows remote-access trojan and information-stealing malware family first publicly analyzed in 2023. It enables unauthorized remote control, credential and browser-data theft, keylogging, screenshots and surveillance. Newer 4.x versions were rewritten in native C++ and use the Telegram Bot API for command-and-control. Group-IB reported more than 62,000 compromised endpoints across 160+ countries.

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Reviewed byCyber Threat Intelligence Research Team·Last verified: 2026-10-04

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