Vault Viper is a financially‑motivated cybercrime actor that bridges the worlds of illegal online gambling, money‑laundering, and cyber‑enabled fraud. According to research by Infoblox Threat Intelligence, Vault Viper “leverages DNS infrastructure and a custom browser for illegal gambling and organized crime across Southeast Asia.” Infoblox+2WIRED+2

Origin, affiliations & infrastructure

• Vault Viper is linked to the online iGaming and casino‑software provider BBIN / Baoying Group, which was originally founded in Taiwan and has strong operations in the Philippines. WIRED+1

• The group appears to have strong ties to organised crime syndicates in Southeast Asia: In the context of scam‑compound investigations, the actor has been cited in discussion of human‑trafficking, forced scam factories, and cross‑border money‑laundering. Dark Reading+2GBHackers+2

• The technical infrastructure leverages large-scale DNS / domain operations: thousands of domains tied to casino sites, reservation‑systems, browser download packages, and command‑&‑control (C & C) proxies. For example, the malicious “Universe Browser” is flagged as distributed by Vault Viper. WIRED+1

Key tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs)

• Custom browser/launcher: Vault Viper deploys a custom Chromium‑based browser (the “Universe Browser”) marketed toward Chinese‑language online gamblers as a “privacy” or “anti‑censorship” tool. In reality it routes all traffic via actor‑controlled proxies, disables sandboxing/developer tools, and includes stealth modules for screenshot capture, keylogging, and hidden network rerouting. WIRED+1

• DNS / domain‑infrastructure abuse: The actor uses large numbers of domains (including hijacked, look‑alike, and newly‑registered domains) to deliver gambling‑platforms, malware drops, traffic redirects, and financial fraud services. Domain generation, rapid churn, and evasive DNS records are central. Infoblox+1

• Traffic distribution & obfuscation: Campaigns are embedded in the illegal gambling ecosystem, exploiting user demand for access to banned gambling markets (China, Korea, Japan), leveraging that to deliver malware, capture credentials, and monetise illicit funds. WIRED+1

• Integration with organised‑crime supply‑chain: Beyond pure malware/IT operations, Vault Viper’s operations extend into offline scam compounds, forced labour, money‑laundering casinos and illicit payment processing—making it a hybrid cyber‑crime actor rather than just a malware gang. Dark Reading

Victim profile & geographic focus

• Primary victims: Individuals in regions where Chinese / Korean / Japanese are served by illegal gambling platforms; users seeking work via scam compounds; individuals engaging in pig‑butchering or romance/fraud schemes via Southeast Asia.

• Geographic focus: Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines), but with global reach: victims worldwide and infrastructure hosted globally. WIRED+1

• Industry/sector risk: Online gambling platforms (legal and illegal), financial services (payments bridging crypto/fiat), DNS infrastructure providers, mobile/desktop browsers distributed via grey/black markets.

Risk & impact

Vault Viper represents a mature organised‑crime actor with substantial capital, infrastructure, and cross‑domain reach (digital + physical). The risk extends beyond classic malware or phishing: the infrastructure supports large scale laundering of illicit funds, subversion of user devices, credential theft, and sustained fraud operations benefiting trans‑national crime syndicates.