Potential Cluster Enumeration via jq Detected via Defend for Containers

 1[metadata]
 2creation_date = "2026/02/02"
 3integration = ["cloud_defend"]
 4maturity = "production"
 5min_stack_comments = "Defend for Containers integration was re-introduced in 9.3.0"
 6min_stack_version = "9.3.0"
 7updated_date = "2026/02/02"
 8
 9[rule]
10author = ["Elastic"]
11description = """
12This rule detects the enumeration of the cluster by the "jq" command inside a container. The "jq" command is used to
13parse JSON data, and may be used by an adversary to gain information about the cluster and the services running inside it.
14This behavior is uncommon for interactive shells within a container, and is commonly leveraged by attackers to help parse
15cluster information in a more readable format, or set the output as environment variables.
16"""
17false_positives = [
18    """
19    There is a potential for false positives if the "jq" command is used for legitimate purposes,
20    such as debugging or troubleshooting. It is important to investigate any alerts generated by this rule to determine
21    if they are indicative of malicious activity or part of legitimate container activity.
22    """,
23]
24from = "now-6m"
25index = ["logs-cloud_defend.process*"]
26interval = "5m"
27language = "eql"
28license = "Elastic License v2"
29name = "Potential Cluster Enumeration via jq Detected via Defend for Containers"
30risk_score = 21
31rule_id = "33ff31e9-3872-4944-8394-81dae76c12d9"
32severity = "low"
33tags = [
34    "Data Source: Elastic Defend for Containers",
35    "Domain: Container",
36    "OS: Linux",
37    "Use Case: Threat Detection",
38    "Tactic: Discovery",
39    "Resources: Investigation Guide",
40]
41timestamp_override = "event.ingested"
42type = "eql"
43query = '''
44process where host.os.type == "linux" and event.type == "start" and event.action == "exec" and process.name == "jq" and
45process.interactive == true and container.id like "?*" 
46'''
47
48[[rule.threat]]
49framework = "MITRE ATT&CK"
50
51[[rule.threat.technique]]
52id = "T1613"
53name = "Container and Resource Discovery"
54reference = "https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1613/"
55
56[rule.threat.tactic]
57id = "TA0007"
58name = "Discovery"
59reference = "https://attack.mitre.org/tactics/TA0007/"