## Overview
APT38 has initiated steps to establish persistent access within the financial institution's systems. This phase involves deploying backdoors and exploiting existing vulnerabilities to ensure continued access.

## Technical Details
- **Backdoor Tools:** The deployment of a RAT (Remote Access Trojan) was confirmed, enabling remote access and control.
- **Persistent Mechanisms:** Registry keys were modified to ensure malware execution upon system reboot.
- **Exploited Vulnerabilities:** CVE-2022-1234 was leveraged for privilege escalation.

## Recommendations
- **Immediate Action:** Conduct a comprehensive vulnerability assessment and patch identified weaknesses.
- **Monitoring:** Implement continuous endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions.

## Next Steps
Prepare for lateral movement activities as APT38 coordinates with mules to activate the network for cash-out operations.