Target Management - SpecterOps Open Source

Targets in Phishmonger represent individual recipients of phishing emails with associated metadata. This guide covers adding, managing, and organizing target lists.

Target Structure

Each target contains:

Field	Type	Description	Required
target_id	string	Unique randomly generated ID	Auto-generated
address	string	Email address	Yes
campaign	string	Associated campaign name	Yes
first_name	string	First name for personalization	No
last_name	string	Last name for personalization	No
position	string	Job title for personalization	No
custom	string	Custom field for any additional data	No
phished	integer	0 = not sent, 1 = email sent	Auto-managed

Target ID

Purpose: Unique identifier for tracking Format: 6-character alphanumeric string (e.g., a7k2m9) Generation: Automatically generated using:

Math.random().toString(36).slice(2).substr(0, 6)

Usage: Appended to phishing links as tracking parameter Example:

https://payload-domain.com/?id=a7k2m9

Phished Status

Values:

0: Target has not been sent an email yet
1: Email has been sent to this target

Behavior:

Initially set to 0 when target is created
Automatically set to 1 after email is successfully sent
Campaign only sends to targets where phished = 0
Can be manually reset to retry sending

Adding Targets

Via Web Interface

Access Campaign

From admin interface, click campaign name

Navigate to Edit Targets

Click “Edit Targets” or similar option

Add Individual Target

Fill in target form:

Email address (required)
First name
Last name
Position
Custom field

Click Add Target

Target is added to campaign

Via API

Add target using the API:

curl -X POST https://yourdomain.com/create_target \
  -H "Cookie: admin_cookie=YOUR_COOKIE_VALUE" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "campaign": "campaign_name",
    "address": "john.smith@target.com",
    "first_name": "John",
    "last_name": "Smith",
    "position": "IT Administrator",
    "custom": "+1-555-0123"
  }'

Response:

{
  "target_id": "a7k2m9",
  "address": "john.smith@target.com",
  "campaign": "campaign_name",
  "first_name": "John",
  "last_name": "Smith",
  "position": "IT Administrator",
  "custom": "+1-555-0123",
  "phished": 0
}

Via Database

Add targets directly to database:

sqlite3 db/aquarium.db

INSERT INTO targets VALUES (
  'a7k2m9',                    -- target_id
  'john.smith@target.com',     -- address
  'campaign_name',             -- campaign
  'John',                      -- first_name
  'Smith',                     -- last_name
  'IT Administrator',          -- position
  '+1-555-0123',              -- custom
  0                            -- phished
);

Bulk Importing Targets

CSV Format

Create a CSV file with target information:

address,first_name,last_name,position,custom
john.smith@target.com,John,Smith,IT Administrator,+1-555-0123
jane.doe@target.com,Jane,Doe,HR Manager,+1-555-0124
bob.jones@target.com,Bob,Jones,CEO,+1-555-0125

Import Script

Create a script to import CSV:

const fs = require('fs');
const Database = require('better-sqlite3');

const db = new Database('./db/aquarium.db');
const campaign = 'campaign_name';

// Read CSV file
const csv = fs.readFileSync('targets.csv', 'utf8');
const lines = csv.split('\n');
const headers = lines[0].split(',');

// Insert each target
const insert = db.prepare(`
  INSERT INTO targets VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, 0)
`);

for (let i = 1; i < lines.length; i++) {
  if (!lines[i].trim()) continue;

  const values = lines[i].split(',');
  const targetId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2).substr(0, 6);

  insert.run(
    targetId,
    values[0], // address
    campaign,
    values[1], // first_name
    values[2], // last_name
    values[3], // position
    values[4]  // custom
  );

  console.log(`Added: ${values[0]}`);
}

console.log('Import complete!');

Run the script:

node import_targets.js

SQL Import

Import directly via SQL:

sqlite3 db/aquarium.db

-- Create temporary table for CSV data
CREATE TEMP TABLE temp_targets (
  address TEXT,
  first_name TEXT,
  last_name TEXT,
  position TEXT,
  custom TEXT
);

-- Import CSV
.mode csv
.import targets.csv temp_targets

-- Insert into targets table with generated IDs
INSERT INTO targets
SELECT
  lower(hex(randomblob(3))),  -- target_id (6 char hex)
  address,
  'campaign_name',             -- Replace with actual campaign name
  first_name,
  last_name,
  position,
  custom,
  0                            -- phished
FROM temp_targets
WHERE address IS NOT NULL AND address != 'address';  -- Skip header row

-- Cleanup
DROP TABLE temp_targets;

Viewing Targets

Via Web Interface

Access Campaign

Click campaign name from admin interface

View Targets List

Target list displays all added targets with:

Email address
Name
Position
Phished status
Actions (view details, delete)

Via API

Retrieve campaign targets:

curl -X GET "https://yourdomain.com/get_targets?campaign=campaign_name" \
  -H "Cookie: admin_cookie=YOUR_COOKIE_VALUE"

Response:

[
  {
    "target_id": "a7k2m9",
    "address": "john.smith@target.com",
    "campaign": "campaign_name",
    "first_name": "John",
    "last_name": "Smith",
    "position": "IT Administrator",
    "custom": "+1-555-0123",
    "phished": 0
  },
  {
    "target_id": "b8n3p1",
    "address": "jane.doe@target.com",
    "campaign": "campaign_name",
    "first_name": "Jane",
    "last_name": "Doe",
    "position": "HR Manager",
    "custom": "+1-555-0124",
    "phished": 1
  }
]

Via Database

Query targets directly:

-- All targets for campaign
SELECT * FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

-- Only targets not yet sent
SELECT * FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND phished = 0;

-- Only targets already sent
SELECT * FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND phished = 1;

-- Count by status
SELECT
  COUNT(*) as total,
  SUM(phished) as sent,
  COUNT(*) - SUM(phished) as remaining
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

Editing Targets

Update Phished Status

Reset phished status to resend emails: Via API:

curl -X PUT https://yourdomain.com/update_phished_status \
  -H "Cookie: admin_cookie=YOUR_COOKIE_VALUE" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "campaign": "campaign_name",
    "address": "john.smith@target.com",
    "phished": 0
  }'

Via Database:

-- Reset specific target
UPDATE targets
SET phished = 0
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND address = 'john.smith@target.com';

-- Reset all targets in campaign
UPDATE targets
SET phished = 0
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

-- Reset only failed targets (with ERROR events)
UPDATE targets
SET phished = 0
WHERE target_id IN (
  SELECT DISTINCT target
  FROM events
  WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND event_type = 'ERROR'
);

Update Target Information

Modify target details:

-- Update name
UPDATE targets
SET first_name = 'Jonathan', last_name = 'Smith'
WHERE target_id = 'a7k2m9';

-- Update position
UPDATE targets
SET position = 'Senior IT Administrator'
WHERE target_id = 'a7k2m9';

-- Update custom field
UPDATE targets
SET custom = '+1-555-9999'
WHERE target_id = 'a7k2m9';

Campaign Must Be Stopped: Do not edit targets while a campaign is actively sending. Stop the campaign first.

Deleting Targets

Via API

Remove individual target:

curl -X DELETE https://yourdomain.com/delete_target \
  -H "Cookie: admin_cookie=YOUR_COOKIE_VALUE" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "campaign": "campaign_name",
    "address": "john.smith@target.com"
  }'

Behavior: Deletes target AND all associated events

Via Database

Delete targets directly:

-- Delete specific target
DELETE FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND address = 'john.smith@target.com';

-- Delete all targets for campaign
DELETE FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

-- Delete targets that have already been sent
DELETE FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND phished = 1;

-- Delete targets with ERROR events (failed delivery)
DELETE FROM targets
WHERE target_id IN (
  SELECT DISTINCT target
  FROM events
  WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND event_type = 'ERROR'
);

Associated Events: When deleting via API, associated events are automatically deleted. When deleting via database, manually delete events:

-- Delete events for specific target
DELETE FROM events WHERE target = 'a7k2m9';

-- Delete events for all targets in campaign
DELETE FROM events WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

Target Personalization

String Substitutions

Phishmonger replaces placeholders in emails with target-specific values:

Placeholder	Target Field	Example
`SuppliedFirstName`	first_name	John
`SuppliedLastName`	last_name	Smith
`SuppliedPosition`	position	IT Administrator
`SuppliedCustomReplacement`	custom	+1-555-0123
`SuppliedToAddress`	address	john.smith@target.com
`SuppliedPhishingLink`	(computed)	https://payload-domain.com/?id=a7k2m9

Example Email with Substitutions

Template:

<p>Hello SuppliedFirstName SuppliedLastName,</p>

<p>As SuppliedPosition at the company, you are required to complete
annual security training.</p>

<p>Your employee ID: SuppliedCustomReplacement</p>

<p>Please confirm your email address (SuppliedToAddress) and complete
the training:</p>

<p><a href="SuppliedPhishingLink">Start Training</a></p>

After Substitution:

<p>Hello John Smith,</p>

<p>As IT Administrator at the company, you are required to complete
annual security training.</p>

<p>Your employee ID: +1-555-0123</p>

<p>Please confirm your email address (john.smith@target.com) and complete
the training:</p>

<p><a href="https://payload-domain.com/?id=a7k2m9">Start Training</a></p>

Best Practices

Required Fields:

Always provide first_name if using SuppliedFirstName
Emails look less legitimate with blank substitutions

Fallback Values: If target data is missing, consider providing defaults:

-- Add default values for missing names
UPDATE targets
SET first_name = 'User'
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND (first_name IS NULL OR first_name = '');

Custom Field Usage:

Phone numbers
Employee IDs
Department names
Office locations
Account numbers
Manager names

Target List Management

Deduplication

Remove duplicate email addresses:

-- Find duplicates
SELECT address, COUNT(*)
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
GROUP BY address
HAVING COUNT(*) > 1;

-- Keep first occurrence, delete duplicates
DELETE FROM targets
WHERE rowid NOT IN (
  SELECT MIN(rowid)
  FROM targets
  WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
  GROUP BY address
);

Validation

Validate email addresses:

-- Find invalid email formats (basic check)
SELECT * FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND address NOT LIKE '%_@%_._%';

-- Find missing @ symbol
SELECT * FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND address NOT LIKE '%@%';

External Validation: Export and validate with email verification tools

# Export email addresses
sqlite3 db/aquarium.db "SELECT address FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';" > emails.txt

Categorization

Organize targets by attributes:

-- Group by domain
SELECT
  SUBSTR(address, INSTR(address, '@') + 1) as domain,
  COUNT(*) as count
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
GROUP BY domain;

-- Group by position
SELECT position, COUNT(*) as count
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
GROUP BY position
ORDER BY count DESC;

Target Statistics

Campaign Metrics

-- Total targets
SELECT COUNT(*) as total_targets
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

-- Emails sent vs remaining
SELECT
  COUNT(*) as total,
  SUM(phished) as sent,
  COUNT(*) - SUM(phished) as remaining,
  (SUM(phished) * 100.0 / COUNT(*)) as percent_complete
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

-- Targets with clicks
SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT t.target_id) as targets_clicked
FROM targets t
JOIN events e ON t.target_id = e.target
WHERE t.campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND e.event_type = 'CLICK';

-- Targets with submissions
SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT t.target_id) as targets_submitted
FROM targets t
JOIN events e ON t.target_id = e.target
WHERE t.campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND e.event_type = 'POST_DATA';

Target Details

View specific target and their events:

-- Target information
SELECT * FROM targets WHERE target_id = 'a7k2m9';

-- Target events
SELECT event_timestamp, event_type, event_data
FROM events
WHERE target = 'a7k2m9'
ORDER BY event_timestamp ASC;

-- Target timeline
SELECT
  datetime(event_timestamp / 1000, 'unixepoch') as timestamp,
  event_type,
  event_ip,
  event_data
FROM events
WHERE target = 'a7k2m9'
ORDER BY event_timestamp ASC;

Exporting Targets

Export to CSV

sqlite3 db/aquarium.db

.mode csv
.output targets_export.csv
SELECT * FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';
.output stdout

Export Email List Only

sqlite3 db/aquarium.db "SELECT address FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';" > email_list.txt

Export with Status

sqlite3 db/aquarium.db <<EOF
.mode csv
.output campaign_results.csv
SELECT
  t.address,
  t.first_name,
  t.last_name,
  t.position,
  t.phished,
  CASE WHEN e_click.target IS NOT NULL THEN 1 ELSE 0 END as clicked,
  CASE WHEN e_submit.target IS NOT NULL THEN 1 ELSE 0 END as submitted
FROM targets t
LEFT JOIN (SELECT DISTINCT target FROM events WHERE event_type = 'CLICK') e_click
  ON t.target_id = e_click.target
LEFT JOIN (SELECT DISTINCT target FROM events WHERE event_type = 'POST_DATA') e_submit
  ON t.target_id = e_submit.target
WHERE t.campaign = 'campaign_name';
.output stdout
EOF

Target Privacy and Security

Sensitive Data

What to Store:

Email addresses (required)
First/last names (for personalization)
Job titles (for targeting)

What NOT to Store:

Passwords
Social Security Numbers
Sensitive personal information
Financial data

Custom Field Usage:

Use for campaign-specific tracking only
Avoid storing data not needed for phishing
Clear custom fields after campaign completion

Data Retention

After campaign completion:

-- Delete target data after reporting
DELETE FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'completed_campaign_name';

-- Or anonymize targets
UPDATE targets
SET
  first_name = 'REDACTED',
  last_name = 'REDACTED',
  position = 'REDACTED',
  custom = 'REDACTED'
WHERE campaign = 'completed_campaign_name';

Database Security

Protect target data:

# Restrict database file permissions
chmod 600 db/aquarium.db

# Encrypt database at rest (example with SQLCipher)
# Note: Requires code changes to use encrypted database

Troubleshooting Targets

Targets Not Receiving Emails

Check target exists:

SELECT * FROM targets WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name' AND phished = 0;

Verify email format:

SELECT * FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND (address NOT LIKE '%@%' OR address LIKE '% %');

Check for ERROR events:

SELECT t.address, e.event_data
FROM targets t
JOIN events e ON t.target_id = e.target
WHERE t.campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND e.event_type = 'ERROR';

Duplicate Target IDs

If target IDs collide (very rare with 6-character random IDs):

-- Find duplicate target_ids
SELECT target_id, COUNT(*)
FROM targets
GROUP BY target_id
HAVING COUNT(*) > 1;

-- Generate new IDs for duplicates
UPDATE targets
SET target_id = lower(hex(randomblob(3)))
WHERE target_id IN (
  SELECT target_id FROM targets GROUP BY target_id HAVING COUNT(*) > 1
)
AND rowid NOT IN (
  SELECT MIN(rowid) FROM targets GROUP BY target_id HAVING COUNT(*) > 1
);

Missing Target Data

If string substitutions appear blank in emails:

-- Find targets with missing data
SELECT target_id, address
FROM targets
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name'
AND (
  first_name IS NULL OR first_name = '' OR
  last_name IS NULL OR last_name = ''
);

-- Populate with defaults
UPDATE targets
SET
  first_name = COALESCE(first_name, 'User'),
  last_name = COALESCE(last_name, ''),
  position = COALESCE(position, ''),
  custom = COALESCE(custom, '')
WHERE campaign = 'campaign_name';

Documentation Index

​Target Structure

​Target ID

​Phished Status

​Adding Targets

​Via Web Interface

​Via API

​Via Database

​Bulk Importing Targets

​CSV Format

​Import Script

​SQL Import

​Viewing Targets

​Via Web Interface

​Via API

​Via Database

​Editing Targets

​Update Phished Status

​Update Target Information

​Deleting Targets

​Via API

​Via Database

​Target Personalization

​String Substitutions

​Example Email with Substitutions

​Best Practices

​Target List Management

​Deduplication

​Validation

​Categorization

​Target Statistics

​Campaign Metrics

​Target Details

​Exporting Targets

​Export to CSV

​Export Email List Only

​Export with Status

​Target Privacy and Security

​Sensitive Data

​Data Retention

​Database Security

​Troubleshooting Targets

​Targets Not Receiving Emails

​Duplicate Target IDs

​Missing Target Data

Target Structure

Target ID

Phished Status

Adding Targets

Via Web Interface

Via API

Via Database

Bulk Importing Targets

CSV Format

Import Script

SQL Import

Viewing Targets

Via Web Interface

Via API

Via Database

Editing Targets

Update Phished Status

Update Target Information

Deleting Targets

Via API

Via Database

Target Personalization

String Substitutions

Example Email with Substitutions

Best Practices

Target List Management

Deduplication

Validation

Categorization

Target Statistics

Campaign Metrics

Target Details

Exporting Targets

Export to CSV

Export Email List Only

Export with Status

Target Privacy and Security

Sensitive Data

Data Retention

Database Security

Troubleshooting Targets

Targets Not Receiving Emails

Duplicate Target IDs

Missing Target Data