What makes APTs so different?

APTs are different than regular cybercriminals based on the selection of a target, the goal, and human factors:

• Targets: They are chosen based on financial, political, geopolitical, surveillance, and security intelligence interests to gain high-value information
• Goal: The goal of an APT is not to simply get in and get out, but to gain prolonged access to the network's resources and keep themselves undetected by security administrators
• Human factors: This is a critical element for the entire APT operation, since the operation can occur through spear phishing or even insider threats

For more information on data exfiltration, follow the link at http://about-threats.trendmicro.com/cloud-content/us/ent-primers/pdf/how_do_threat_actors_steal_your_data.pdf.