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Identifies brute force attempts against Azure Entra multi-factor authentication (MFA) Time-based One-Time Password (TOTP) verification codes. This rule detects high frequency failed TOTP code attempts for a single user in a short time-span. Adversaries with valid credentials, when attempting to login to Azure portal or other Azure services, may be prompted to provide a TOTP code as part of the MFA process. If successful, adversaries can bypass MFA and gain unauthorized access to Azure resources.
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Potential Sudo Token Manipulation via Process Injection
This rule detects potential sudo token manipulation attacks through process injection by monitoring the use of a debugger (gdb) process followed by a successful uid change event during the execution of the sudo process. A sudo token manipulation attack is performed by injecting into a process that has a valid sudo token, which can then be used by attackers to activate their own sudo token. This attack requires ptrace to be enabled in conjunction with the existence of a living process that has a valid sudo token with the same uid as the current user.
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Privilege Escalation via SUID/SGID
Identifies instances where a process is executed with user/group ID 0 (root), and a real user/group ID that is not 0. This is indicative of a process that has been granted SUID/SGID permissions, allowing it to run with elevated privileges. Attackers may leverage a misconfiguration for exploitation in order to escalate their privileges to root, or establish a backdoor for persistence.
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GitHub Owner Role Granted To User
This rule detects when a member is granted the organization owner role of a GitHub organization. This role provides admin level privileges. Any new owner role should be investigated to determine its validity. Unauthorized owner roles could indicate compromise within your organization and provide unlimited access to data and settings.
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GitHub Protected Branch Settings Changed
This rule detects setting modifications for protected branches of a GitHub repository. Branch protection rules can be used to enforce certain workflows or requirements before a contributor can push changes to a branch in your repository. Changes to these protected branch settings should be investigated and verified as legitimate activity. Unauthorized changes could be used to lower your organization's security posture and leave you exposed for future attacks.
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GitHub Repository Deleted
This rule detects when a GitHub repository is deleted within your organization. Repositories are a critical component used within an organization to manage work, collaborate with others and release products to the public. Any delete action against a repository should be investigated to determine it's validity. Unauthorized deletion of organization repositories could cause irreversible loss of intellectual property and indicate compromise within your organization.
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GitHub UEBA - Multiple Alerts from a GitHub Account
This rule is part of the "GitHub UEBA - Unusual Activity from Account Pack", and leverages alert data to determine when multiple alerts are executed by the same user in a timespan of one hour. Analysts can use this to prioritize triage and response, as these alerts are a higher indicator of compromised user accounts or PATs.
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High Number of Cloned GitHub Repos From PAT
Detects a high number of unique private repo clone events originating from a single personal access token within a short time period.
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New GitHub App Installed
This rule detects when a new GitHub App has been installed in your organization account. GitHub Apps extend GitHub's functionality both within and outside of GitHub. When an app is installed it is granted permissions to read or modify your repository and organization data. Only trusted apps should be installed and any newly installed apps should be investigated to verify their legitimacy. Unauthorized app installation could lower your organization's security posture and leave you exposed for future attacks.
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New GitHub Owner Added
Detects when a new member is added to a GitHub organization as an owner. This role provides admin level privileges. Any new owner roles should be investigated to determine it's validity. Unauthorized owner roles could indicate compromise within your organization and provide unlimited access to data and settings.
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Successful Application SSO from Rare Unknown Client Device
Detects successful single sign-on (SSO) events to Okta applications from an unrecognized or "unknown" client device, as identified by the user-agent string. This activity may be indicative of exploitation of a vulnerability in Okta's Classic Engine, which could allow an attacker to bypass application-specific sign-on policies, such as device or network restrictions. The vulnerability potentially enables unauthorized access to applications using only valid, stolen credentials, without requiring additional authentication factors.
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Unauthorized Scope for Public App OAuth2 Token Grant with Client Credentials
Identifies a failed OAuth 2.0 token grant attempt for a public client app using client credentials. This event is generated when a public client app attempts to exchange a client credentials grant for an OAuth 2.0 access token, but the request is denied due to the lack of required scopes. This could indicate compromised client credentials in which an adversary is attempting to obtain an access token for unauthorized scopes. This is a New Terms rule where the
okta.actor.display_name
field value has not been seen in the last 14 days regarding this event.
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Identifies a high volume of
pbpaste
executions, which may indicate a bash loop continuously collecting clipboard contents, potentially allowing an attacker to harvest user credentials or other sensitive information.
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User Added to the Admin Group
Identifies users being added to the admin group. This could be an indication of privilege escalation activity.
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Kernel modules are pieces of code that can be loaded and unloaded into the kernel upon demand. They extend the functionality of the kernel without the need to reboot the system. This rule identifies attempts to remove a kernel module.
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Remote Desktop File Opened from Suspicious Path
Identifies attempts to open a remote desktop file from suspicious paths. Adversaries may abuse RDP files for initial access.
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Detects when a single AWS resource is running multiple
Describe
andList
API calls in a 10-second window. This behavior could indicate an actor attempting to discover the AWS infrastructure using compromised credentials or a compromised instance. Adversaries may use this information to identify potential targets for further exploitation or to gain a better understanding of the target's infrastructure.
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AWS EC2 Multi-Region DescribeInstances API Calls
Identifies when a single AWS resource is making
DescribeInstances
API calls in more than 10 regions within a 30-second window. This could indicate a potential threat actor attempting to discover the AWS infrastructure across multiple regions using compromised credentials or a compromised instance. Adversaries may use this information to identify potential targets for further exploitation or to gain a better understanding of the target's infrastructure.
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Identifies when an SNS topic is subscribed to by an email address of a user who does not typically perform this action. Adversaries may subscribe to an SNS topic to collect sensitive information or exfiltrate data via an external email address.
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Identifies the use of the AWS Systems Manager (SSM)
SendCommand
API with the eitherAWS-RunShellScript
orAWS-RunPowerShellScript
parameters. TheSendCommand
API call allows users to execute commands on EC2 instances using the SSM service. Adversaries may use this technique to execute commands on EC2 instances without the need for SSH or RDP access. This behavior may indicate an adversary attempting to execute commands on an EC2 instance for malicious purposes. This is a New Terms rule that only flags when this behavior is observed for the first time on a host in the last 7 days.
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Identifies when an AWS Systems Manager (SSM) command document is created by a user who does not typically perform this action. Adversaries may create SSM command documents to execute commands on managed instances, potentially leading to unauthorized access, command and control, data exfiltration and more.
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Identifies a process termination event quickly followed by the deletion of its executable file. Malware tools and other non-native files dropped or created on a system by an adversary may leave traces to indicate to what occurred. Removal of these files can occur during an intrusion, or as part of a post-intrusion process to minimize the adversary's footprint.
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Potential Hex Payload Execution
This rule detects potential hex payload execution on Linux systems. Adversaries may use hex encoding to obfuscate payloads and evade detection mechanisms.
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Memory Swap Modification
This rule detects memory swap modification events on Linux systems. Memory swap modification can be used to manipulate the system's memory and potentially impact the system's performance. This behavior is commonly observed in malware that deploys miner software such as XMRig.
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Unusual Interactive Shell Launched from System User
This rule detects interactive shells launched from system users. System users typically do not require interactive shells, and their presence may indicate malicious activity.
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Web Server Spawned via Python
This rule identifies when a web server is spawned via Python. Attackers may use Python to spawn a web server to exfiltrate/infiltrate data or to move laterally within a network.
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Directory Creation in /bin directory
This rule identifies the creation of directories in the /bin directory. The /bin directory contains essential binary files that are required for the system to function properly. The creation of directories in this location could be an attempt to hide malicious files or executables, as these /bin directories usually just contain binaries.
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Hidden Directory Creation via Unusual Parent
This rule detects the creation of a hidden directory via an unusual parent executable. Hidden directories are directories that are not visible to the user by default. They are often used by attackers to hide malicious files or tools.
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Security File Access via Common Utilities
This rule detects sensitive security file access via common utilities on Linux systems. Adversaries may attempt to read from sensitive files using common utilities to gather information about the system and its security configuration.
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Potential Data Splitting Detected
This rule looks for the usage of common data splitting utilities with specific arguments that indicate data splitting for exfiltration on Linux systems. Data splitting is a technique used by adversaries to split data into smaller parts to avoid detection and exfiltrate data.
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Private Key Searching Activity
This rule detects private key searching activity on Linux systems. Searching for private keys can be an indication of an attacker attempting to escalate privileges or exfiltrate sensitive information.
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IPv4/IPv6 Forwarding Activity
This rule monitors for the execution of commands that enable IPv4 and IPv6 forwarding on Linux systems. Enabling IP forwarding can be used to route network traffic between different network interfaces, potentially allowing attackers to pivot between networks, exfiltrate data, or establish command and control channels.
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Curl SOCKS Proxy Activity from Unusual Parent
This rule detects the use of the
curl
command-line tool with SOCKS proxy options, launched from an unusual parent process. Attackers may usecurl
to establish a SOCKS proxy connection to bypass network restrictions and exfiltrate data or communicate with C2 servers.
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Apple Scripting Execution with Administrator Privileges
Identifies execution of the Apple script interpreter (osascript) without a password prompt and with administrator privileges.
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DPKG Package Installed by Unusual Parent Process
This rule detects the installation of a Debian package (dpkg) by an unusual parent process. The dpkg command is used to install, remove, and manage Debian packages on a Linux system. Attackers can abuse the dpkg command to install malicious packages on a system.
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Finder Sync Plugin Registered and Enabled
Finder Sync plugins enable users to extend Finder’s functionality by modifying the user interface. Adversaries may abuse this feature by adding a rogue Finder Plugin to repeatedly execute malicious payloads for persistence.
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Modification of Environment Variable via Unsigned or Untrusted Parent
Identifies modifications to an environment variable using the built-in launchctl command. Adversaries may execute their own malicious payloads by hijacking certain environment variables to load arbitrary libraries or bypass certain restrictions.
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Potential Admin Group Account Addition
Identifies attempts to add an account to the admin group via the command line. This could be an indication of privilege escalation activity.
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Identifies an attempt to exploit a local privilege escalation CVE-2022-37706 via a flaw in Linux window manager package Enlightenment. enlightenment_sys in Enlightenment before 0.25.4 allows local users to gain privileges because it is setuid root, and the system library function mishandles pathnames that begin with a /dev/.. substring.
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Potential Privilege Escalation via Linux DAC permissions
Identifies potential privilege escalation exploitation of DAC (Discretionary access control) file permissions. The rule identifies exploitation of DAC checks on sensitive file paths via suspicious processes whose capabilities include CAP_DAC_OVERRIDE (where a process can bypass all read write and execution checks) or CAP_DAC_READ_SEARCH (where a process can read any file or perform any executable permission on the directories).
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Identifies instances where a processes (granted CAP_CHOWN and/or CAP_FOWNER capabilities) is executed, after which the ownership of a suspicious file or binary is changed. In Linux, the CAP_CHOWN capability allows a process to change the owner of a file, while CAP_FOWNER permits it to bypass permission checks on operations that require file ownership (like reading, writing, and executing). Attackers may abuse these capabilities to obtain unauthorized access to files.
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Privilege Escalation via CAP_SETUID/SETGID Capabilities
Identifies instances where a process (granted CAP_SETUID and/or CAP_SETGID capabilities) is executed, after which the user's access is elevated to UID/GID 0 (root). In Linux, the CAP_SETUID and CAP_SETGID capabilities allow a process to change its UID and GID, respectively, providing control over user and group identity management. Attackers may leverage a misconfiguration for exploitation in order to escalate their privileges to root.
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Privilege Escalation via GDB CAP_SYS_PTRACE
Identifies instances where GDB (granted the CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability) is executed, after which the user's access is elevated to UID/GID 0 (root). In Linux, the CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability grants a process the ability to use the ptrace system call, which is typically used for debugging and allows the process to trace and control other processes. Attackers may leverage this capability to hook and inject into a process that is running with root permissions in order to escalate their privileges to root.
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Privileged Docker Container Creation
This rule leverages the new_terms rule type to identify the creation of a potentially unsafe docker container from an unusual parent process. Attackers can use the
--privileged
flag to create containers with escalated privileges, which can lead to trivial privilege escalation, docker escaping and persistence. access.
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Process Capability Enumeration
Identifies recursive process capability enumeration of the entire filesystem through the getcap command. Malicious users may manipulate identified capabilities to gain root privileges.
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Identifies instances where GDB (granted the CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability) is executed, after which an outbound network connection is initiated by UID/GID 0 (root). In Linux, the CAP_SYS_PTRACE capability grants a process the ability to use the ptrace system call, which is typically used for debugging and allows the process to trace and control other processes. Attackers may leverage this capability to hook and inject into a process that is running with root permissions in order to execute shell code and gain a reverse shell with root privileges.
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RPM Package Installed by Unusual Parent Process
This rule leverages the new_terms rule type to identify the installation of RPM packages by an unusual parent process. RPM is a package management system used in Linux systems such as Red Hat, CentOS and Fedora. Attacks may backdoor RPM packages to gain initial access or install malicious RPM packages to maintain persistence.
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Suspicious macOS MS Office Child Process
Identifies suspicious child processes of frequently targeted Microsoft Office applications (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel). These child processes are often launched during exploitation of Office applications or by documents with malicious macros.
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Suspicious Web Browser Sensitive File Access
Identifies the access or file open of web browser sensitive files by an untrusted/unsigned process or osascript. Adversaries may acquire credentials from web browsers by reading files specific to the target browser.
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AdFind Command Activity
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Discovery Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·This rule detects the Active Directory query tool, AdFind.exe. AdFind has legitimate purposes, but it is frequently leveraged by threat actors to perform post-exploitation Active Directory reconnaissance. The AdFind tool has been observed in Trickbot, Ryuk, Maze, and FIN6 campaigns. For Winlogbeat, this rule requires Sysmon.
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Identifies instances of lower privilege accounts enumerating Administrator accounts or groups using built-in Windows tools.
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An adversary can use the Windows command line debugging utility cdb.exe to execute commands or shellcode. This rule looks for those instances and where the cdb.exe binary is outside of the normal WindowsKit installation paths.
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IIS HTTP Logging Disabled
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies when Internet Information Services (IIS) HTTP Logging is disabled on a server. An attacker with IIS server access via a webshell or other mechanism can disable HTTP Logging as an effective anti-forensics measure.
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ImageLoad via Windows Update Auto Update Client
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies abuse of the Windows Update Auto Update Client (wuauclt.exe) to load an arbitrary DLL. This behavior is used as a defense evasion technique to blend-in malicious activity with legitimate Windows software.
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Remote Desktop Enabled in Windows Firewall by Netsh
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the network shell utility (netsh.exe) to enable inbound Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) connections in the Windows Firewall.
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Service DACL Modification via sc.exe
Identifies DACL modifications to deny access to a service, making it unstoppable, or hide it from system and users.
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Suspicious CertUtil Commands
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious commands being used with certutil.exe. CertUtil is a native Windows component which is part of Certificate Services. CertUtil is often abused by attackers to live off the land for stealthier command and control or data exfiltration.
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Windows Firewall Disabled via PowerShell
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies when the Windows Firewall is disabled using PowerShell cmdlets, which can help attackers evade network constraints, like internet and network lateral communication restrictions.
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Detects attempts to enable the Windows Subsystem for Linux using Microsoft Dism utility. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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Adding Hidden File Attribute via Attrib
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Persistence Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Adversaries can add the 'hidden' attribute to files to hide them from the user in an attempt to evade detection.
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Clearing Windows Console History
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies when a user attempts to clear console history. An adversary may clear the command history of a compromised account to conceal the actions undertaken during an intrusion.
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Clearing Windows Event Logs
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to clear or disable Windows event log stores using Windows wevetutil command. This is often done by attackers in an attempt to evade detection or destroy forensic evidence on a system.
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Code Signing Policy Modification Through Built-in tools
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to disable/modify the code signing policy through system native utilities. Code signing provides authenticity on a program, and grants the user with the ability to check whether the program has been tampered with. By allowing the execution of unsigned or self-signed code, threat actors can craft and execute malicious code.
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Delete Volume USN Journal with Fsutil
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the fsutil.exe to delete the volume USNJRNL. This technique is used by attackers to eliminate evidence of files created during post-exploitation activities.
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Disable Windows Event and Security Logs Using Built-in Tools
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to disable EventLog via the logman Windows utility, PowerShell, or auditpol. This is often done by attackers in an attempt to evade detection on a system.
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Disabling Windows Defender Security Settings via PowerShell
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the Set-MpPreference PowerShell command to disable or weaken certain Windows Defender settings.
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Identifies the execution of wbadmin to access the NTDS.dit file in a domain controller. Attackers with privileges from groups like Backup Operators can abuse the utility to perform credential access and compromise the domain.
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Windows Defender Exclusions Added via PowerShell
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies modifications to the Windows Defender configuration settings using PowerShell to add exclusions at the folder directory or process level.
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Wireless Credential Dumping using Netsh Command
Nov 7, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Credential Access Tactic: Discovery Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to dump Wireless saved access keys in clear text using the Windows built-in utility Netsh.
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Suspicious Lsass Process Access
Identifies access attempts to LSASS handle, this may indicate an attempt to dump credentials from Lsass memory.
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Detects the execution of commands or scripts on EC2 instances using AWS Systems Manager (SSM), such as
RunShellScript
,RunPowerShellScript
or custom documents. While legitimate users may employ these commands for management tasks, they can also be exploited by attackers with credentials to establish persistence, install malware, or execute reverse shells for further access to compromised instances. This is a New Terms rule that looks for the first instance of this behavior by theaws.cloudtrail.user_identity.arn
field in the last 7 days.
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Deleting Backup Catalogs with Wbadmin
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Impact Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the wbadmin.exe to delete the backup catalog. Ransomware and other malware may do this to prevent system recovery.
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Enumerating Domain Trusts via DSQUERY.EXE
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Discovery Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of dsquery.exe for domain trust discovery purposes. Adversaries may use this command-line utility to enumerate trust relationships that may be used for Lateral Movement opportunities in Windows multi-domain forest environments.
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Windows Component Object Model (COM) is an inter-process communication (IPC) component of the native Windows application programming interface (API) that enables interaction between software objects or executable code. Xwizard can be used to run a COM object created in registry to evade defensive counter measures.
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Execution via MSSQL xp_cmdshell Stored Procedure
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies execution via MSSQL xp_cmdshell stored procedure. Malicious users may attempt to elevate their privileges by using xp_cmdshell, which is disabled by default, thus, it's important to review the context of it's use.
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Detects the usage of gpresult.exe to query group policy objects. Attackers may query group policy objects during the reconnaissance phase after compromising a system to gain a better understanding of the active directory environment and possible methods to escalate privileges or move laterally.
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Modification of Boot Configuration
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Impact Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of bcdedit.exe to delete boot configuration data. This tactic is sometimes used as by malware or an attacker as a destructive technique.
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Mounting Hidden or WebDav Remote Shares
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Lateral Movement Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of net.exe to mount a WebDav or hidden remote share. This may indicate lateral movement or preparation for data exfiltration.
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Peripheral Device Discovery
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Discovery Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the Windows file system utility (fsutil.exe) to gather information about attached peripheral devices and components connected to a computer system.
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Persistence via WMI Event Subscription
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·An adversary can use Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) to install event filters, providers, consumers, and bindings that execute code when a defined event occurs. Adversaries may use the capabilities of WMI to subscribe to an event and execute arbitrary code when that event occurs, providing persistence on a system.
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Privilege Escalation via Named Pipe Impersonation
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies a privilege escalation attempt via named pipe impersonation. An adversary may abuse this technique by utilizing a framework such Metasploit's meterpreter getsystem command.
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ScreenConnect Server Spawning Suspicious Processes
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious processes being spawned by the ScreenConnect server process (ScreenConnect.Service.exe). This activity may indicate exploitation activity or access to an existing web shell backdoor.
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Service Control Spawned via Script Interpreter
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies Service Control (sc.exe) spawning from script interpreter processes to create, modify, or start services. This can potentially indicate an attempt to elevate privileges or maintain persistence.
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Volume Shadow Copy Deleted or Resized via VssAdmin
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Impact Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of vssadmin.exe for shadow copy deletion or resizing on endpoints. This commonly occurs in tandem with ransomware or other destructive attacks.
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Volume Shadow Copy Deletion via WMIC
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Impact Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of wmic.exe for shadow copy deletion on endpoints. This commonly occurs in tandem with ransomware or other destructive attacks.
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Credential Acquisition via Registry Hive Dumping
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Credential Access Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to export a registry hive which may contain credentials using the Windows reg.exe tool.
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Identifies use of aspnet_regiis to decrypt Microsoft IIS connection strings. An attacker with Microsoft IIS web server access via a webshell or alike can decrypt and dump any hardcoded connection strings, such as the MSSQL service account password using aspnet_regiis command.
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Identifies a copy operation of the Active Directory Domain Database (ntds.dit) or Security Account Manager (SAM) files. Those files contain sensitive information including hashed domain and/or local credentials.
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Potential File Transfer via Certreq
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Command and Control Tactic: Exfiltration Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies Certreq making an HTTP Post request. Adversaries could abuse Certreq to download files or upload data to a remote URL.
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Potential Veeam Credential Access Command
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Credential Access Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies commands that can access and decrypt Veeam credentials stored in MSSQL databases. Attackers can use Veeam Credentials to target backups as part of destructive operations such as Ransomware attacks.
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Identifies a potential Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) abuse to execute psexec to enable for lateral movement. WSUS is limited to executing Microsoft signed binaries, which limits the executables that can be used to tools published by Microsoft.
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Remote File Download via Desktopimgdownldr Utility
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the desktopimgdownldr utility being used to download a remote file. An adversary may use desktopimgdownldr to download arbitrary files as an alternative to certutil.
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Remote File Download via MpCmdRun
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the Windows Defender configuration utility (MpCmdRun.exe) being used to download a remote file.
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Windows Credential Manager allows you to create, view, or delete saved credentials for signing into websites, connected applications, and networks. An adversary may abuse this to list or dump credentials stored in the Credential Manager for saved usernames and passwords. This may also be performed in preparation of lateral movement.
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Symbolic Link to Shadow Copy Created
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Credential Access Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the creation of symbolic links to a shadow copy. Symbolic links can be used to access files in the shadow copy, including sensitive files such as ntds.dit, System Boot Key and browser offline credentials.
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Bypass UAC via Event Viewer
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies User Account Control (UAC) bypass via eventvwr.exe. Attackers bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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Identifies use of WinRar or 7z to create an encrypted files. Adversaries will often compress and encrypt data in preparation for exfiltration.
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Persistence via TelemetryController Scheduled Task Hijack
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Privilege Escalation Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Detects the successful hijack of Microsoft Compatibility Appraiser scheduled task to establish persistence with an integrity level of system.
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The Application Shim was created to allow for backward compatibility of software as the operating system codebase changes over time. This Windows functionality has been abused by attackers to stealthily gain persistence and arbitrary code execution in legitimate Windows processes.
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System Shells via Services
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Windows services typically run as SYSTEM and can be used as a privilege escalation opportunity. Malware or penetration testers may run a shell as a service to gain SYSTEM permissions.
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UAC Bypass Attempt via Windows Directory Masquerading
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies an attempt to bypass User Account Control (UAC) by masquerading as a Microsoft trusted Windows directory. Attackers may bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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UAC Bypass via DiskCleanup Scheduled Task Hijack
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies User Account Control (UAC) bypass via hijacking DiskCleanup Scheduled Task. Attackers bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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Unusual Parent-Child Relationship
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies Windows programs run from unexpected parent processes. This could indicate masquerading or other strange activity on a system.
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User Account Creation
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempts to create new users. This is sometimes done by attackers to increase access or establish persistence on a system or domain.
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Web Shell Detection: Script Process Child of Common Web Processes
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious commands executed via a web server, which may suggest a vulnerability and remote shell access.
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Identifies execution from the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) shared mountpoint tsclient on the target host. This may indicate a lateral movement attempt.
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Microsoft Exchange Server UM Spawning Suspicious Processes
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Lateral Movement Data Source: Elastic Endgame Use Case: Vulnerability Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious processes being spawned by the Microsoft Exchange Server Unified Messaging (UM) service. This activity has been observed exploiting CVE-2021-26857.
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New ActiveSyncAllowedDeviceID Added via PowerShell
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of the Exchange PowerShell cmdlet, Set-CASMailbox, to add a new ActiveSync allowed device. Adversaries may target user email to collect sensitive information.
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Identifies a remote file copy attempt to a hidden network share. This may indicate lateral movement or data staging activity.
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Suspicious Execution from INET Cache
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Command and Control Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the execution of a process with arguments pointing to the INetCache Folder. Adversaries may deliver malicious content via WININET during initial access.
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Suspicious MS Office Child Process
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious child processes of frequently targeted Microsoft Office applications (Word, PowerPoint, Excel). These child processes are often launched during exploitation of Office applications or from documents with malicious macros.
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Suspicious MS Outlook Child Process
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious child processes of Microsoft Outlook. These child processes are often associated with spear phishing activity.
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Identifies the execution of PowerShell with suspicious argument values. This behavior is often observed during malware installation leveraging PowerShell.
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Unusual Child Process of dns.exe
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Lateral Movement Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Use Case: Vulnerability Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies an unexpected process spawning from dns.exe, the process responsible for Windows DNS server services, which may indicate activity related to remote code execution or other forms of exploitation.
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Volume Shadow Copy Deletion via PowerShell
Nov 5, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Impact Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of the Win32_ShadowCopy class and related cmdlets to achieve shadow copy deletion. This commonly occurs in tandem with ransomware or other destructive attacks.
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Command Execution via SolarWinds Process
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Execution Tactic: Initial Access Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike · -
Identifies native Windows host and network enumeration commands spawned by the Windows Management Instrumentation Provider Service (WMIPrvSE).
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Detects attempts to execute a program on the host from the Windows Subsystem for Linux. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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Identifies attempts to open a Microsoft Management Console File from untrusted paths. Adversaries may use MSC files for initial access and execution.
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Managed Object Format (MOF) files can be compiled locally or remotely through mofcomp.exe. Attackers may leverage MOF files to build their own namespaces and classes into the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) repository, or establish persistence using WMI Event Subscription.
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Potential Foxmail Exploitation
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Initial Access Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: System Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the Foxmail client spawning a child process with argument pointing to the Foxmail temp directory. This may indicate the successful exploitation of a Foxmail vulnerability for initial access and execution via a malicious email.
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Process Activity via Compiled HTML File
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Compiled HTML files (.chm) are commonly distributed as part of the Microsoft HTML Help system. Adversaries may conceal malicious code in a CHM file and deliver it to a victim for execution. CHM content is loaded by the HTML Help executable program (hh.exe).
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Identifies execution from a directory masquerading as the Windows Program Files directories. These paths are trusted and usually host trusted third party programs. An adversary may leverage masquerading, along with low privileges to bypass detections allowlisting those folders.
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Identifies suspicious command execution (cmd) via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) on a remote host. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement.
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Suspicious PDF Reader Child Process
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Execution Tactic: Initial Access Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious child processes of PDF reader applications. These child processes are often launched via exploitation of PDF applications or social engineering.
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Detects attempts to install or use Kali Linux via Windows Subsystem for Linux. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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Control Panel Process with Unusual Arguments
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies unusual instances of Control Panel with suspicious keywords or paths in the process command line value. Adversaries may abuse control.exe to proxy execution of malicious code.
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Enable Host Network Discovery via Netsh
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the netsh.exe program to enable host discovery via the network. Attackers can use this command-line tool to weaken the host firewall settings.
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Identifies the use of nltest.exe for domain trust discovery purposes. Adversaries may use this command-line utility to enumerate domain trusts and gain insight into trust relationships, as well as the state of Domain Controller (DC) replication in a Microsoft Windows NT Domain.
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Microsoft Build Engine Started by a System Process
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, was started by Explorer or the WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) subsystem. This behavior is unusual and is sometimes used by malicious payloads.
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Microsoft Build Engine Started by an Office Application
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, was started by Excel or Word. This is unusual behavior for the Build Engine and could have been caused by an Excel or Word document executing a malicious script payload.
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Signed Proxy Execution via MS Work Folders
Identifies the use of Windows Work Folders to execute a potentially masqueraded control.exe file in the current working directory. Misuse of Windows Work Folders could indicate malicious activity.
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Identifies a suspicious managed code hosting process which could indicate code injection or other form of suspicious code execution.
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Suspicious Zoom Child Process
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·A suspicious Zoom child process was detected, which may indicate an attempt to run unnoticed. Verify process details such as command line, network connections, file writes and associated file signature details as well.
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Identifies processes running from an Alternate Data Stream. This is uncommon for legitimate processes and sometimes done by adversaries to hide malware.
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Attempt to Establish VScode Remote Tunnel
Detects the execution of the VScode portable binary with the tunnel command line option indicating an attempt to establish a remote tunnel session to Github or a remote VScode instance.
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Identifies the creation or modification of Domain Backup private keys. Adversaries may extract the Data Protection API (DPAPI) domain backup key from a Domain Controller (DC) to be able to decrypt any domain user master key file.
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Disable Windows Firewall Rules via Netsh
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies use of the netsh.exe to disable or weaken the local firewall. Attackers will use this command line tool to disable the firewall during troubleshooting or to enable network mobility.
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Exporting Exchange Mailbox via PowerShell
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Collection Tactic: Execution Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of the Exchange PowerShell cmdlet, New-MailBoxExportRequest, to export the contents of a primary mailbox or archive to a .pst file. Adversaries may target user email to collect sensitive information.
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Identifies the creation of .kirbi files. The creation of this kind of file is an indicator of an attacker running Kerberos ticket dump utilities, such as Mimikatz, and precedes attacks such as Pass-The-Ticket (PTT), which allows the attacker to impersonate users using Kerberos tickets.
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Potential File Download via a Headless Browser
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Windows Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies the use of a browser to download a file from a remote URL and from a suspicious parent process. Adversaries may use browsers to avoid ingress tool transfer restrictions.
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Potential Local NTLM Relay via HTTP
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Credential Access Tactic: Defense Evasion Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies attempt to coerce a local NTLM authentication via HTTP using the Windows Printer Spooler service as a target. An adversary may use this primitive in combination with other techniques to elevate privileges on a compromised system.
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Potential Remote Desktop Tunneling Detected
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Tactic: Lateral Movement Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies potential use of an SSH utility to establish RDP over a reverse SSH Tunnel. This can be used by attackers to enable routing of network packets that would otherwise not reach their intended destination.
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Suspicious .NET Code Compilation
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Execution Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies executions of .NET compilers with suspicious parent processes, which can indicate an attacker's attempt to compile code after delivery in order to bypass security mechanisms.
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Suspicious ScreenConnect Client Child Process
Nov 4, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: System Data Source: Crowdstrike ·Identifies suspicious processes being spawned by the ScreenConnect client processes. This activity may indicate execution abusing unauthorized access to the ScreenConnect remote access software.
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Identifies role chaining activity. Role chaining is when you use one assumed role to assume a second role through the AWS CLI or API. While this a recognized functionality in AWS, role chaining can be abused for privilege escalation if the subsequent assumed role provides additional privileges. Role chaining can also be used as a persistence mechanism as each AssumeRole action results in a refreshed session token with a 1 hour maximum duration. This rule looks for role chaining activity happening within a single account, to eliminate false positives produced by common cross-account behavior.
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Anomalous Process For a Windows Population
Searches for rare processes running on multiple hosts in an entire fleet or network. This reduces the detection of false positives since automated maintenance processes usually only run occasionally on a single machine but are common to all or many hosts in a fleet.
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The hosts file on endpoints is used to control manual IP address to hostname resolutions. The hosts file is the first point of lookup for DNS hostname resolution so if adversaries can modify the endpoint hosts file, they can route traffic to malicious infrastructure. This rule detects modifications to the hosts file on Microsoft Windows, Linux (Ubuntu or RHEL) and macOS systems.
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Suspicious Powershell Script
A machine learning job detected a PowerShell script with unusual data characteristics, such as obfuscation, that may be a characteristic of malicious PowerShell script text blocks.
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Identifies rare processes that do not usually run on individual hosts, which can indicate execution of unauthorized services, malware, or persistence mechanisms. Processes are considered rare when they only run occasionally as compared with other processes running on the host.
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Unusual Windows Network Activity
Identifies Windows processes that do not usually use the network but have unexpected network activity, which can indicate command-and-control, lateral movement, persistence, or data exfiltration activity. A process with unusual network activity can denote process exploitation or injection, where the process is used to run persistence mechanisms that allow a malicious actor remote access or control of the host, data exfiltration, and execution of unauthorized network applications.
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Unusual Windows Path Activity
Identifies processes started from atypical folders in the file system, which might indicate malware execution or persistence mechanisms. In corporate Windows environments, software installation is centrally managed and it is unusual for programs to be executed from user or temporary directories. Processes executed from these locations can denote that a user downloaded software directly from the Internet or a malicious script or macro executed malware.
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Unusual Windows Process Calling the Metadata Service
Looks for anomalous access to the metadata service by an unusual process. The metadata service may be targeted in order to harvest credentials or user data scripts containing secrets.
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Unusual Windows Remote User
A machine learning job detected an unusual remote desktop protocol (RDP) username, which can indicate account takeover or credentialed persistence using compromised accounts. RDP attacks, such as BlueKeep, also tend to use unusual usernames.
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Unusual Windows Service
A machine learning job detected an unusual Windows service, This can indicate execution of unauthorized services, malware, or persistence mechanisms. In corporate Windows environments, hosts do not generally run many rare or unique services. This job helps detect malware and persistence mechanisms that have been installed and run as a service.
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Unusual Windows User Calling the Metadata Service
Looks for anomalous access to the cloud platform metadata service by an unusual user. The metadata service may be targeted in order to harvest credentials or user data scripts containing secrets.
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Unusual Windows User Privilege Elevation Activity
A machine learning job detected an unusual user context switch, using the runas command or similar techniques, which can indicate account takeover or privilege escalation using compromised accounts. Privilege elevation using tools like runas are more commonly used by domain and network administrators than by regular Windows users.
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Unusual Windows Username
A machine learning job detected activity for a username that is not normally active, which can indicate unauthorized changes, activity by unauthorized users, lateral movement, or compromised credentials. In many organizations, new usernames are not often created apart from specific types of system activities, such as creating new accounts for new employees. These user accounts quickly become active and routine. Events from rarely used usernames can point to suspicious activity. Additionally, automated Linux fleets tend to see activity from rarely used usernames only when personnel log in to make authorized or unauthorized changes, or threat actors have acquired credentials and log in for malicious purposes. Unusual usernames can also indicate pivoting, where compromised credentials are used to try and move laterally from one host to another.
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Identifies the deletion of WebServer access logs. This may indicate an attempt to evade detection or destroy forensic evidence on a system.
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Detects the creation and modification of an account with the "Don't Expire Password" option Enabled. Attackers can abuse this misconfiguration to persist in the domain and maintain long-term access using compromised accounts with this property.
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Detects modifications in the AdminSDHolder object. Attackers can abuse the SDProp process to implement a persistent backdoor in Active Directory. SDProp compares the permissions on protected objects with those defined on the AdminSDHolder object. If the permissions on any of the protected accounts and groups do not match, the permissions on the protected accounts and groups are reset to match those of the domain's AdminSDHolder object, regaining their Administrative Privileges.
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Identifies unusual parent-child process relationships that can indicate malware execution or persistence mechanisms. Malicious scripts often call on other applications and processes as part of their exploit payload. For example, when a malicious Office document runs scripts as part of an exploit payload, Excel or Word may start a script interpreter process, which, in turn, runs a script that downloads and executes malware. Another common scenario is Outlook running an unusual process when malware is downloaded in an email. Monitoring and identifying anomalous process relationships is a method of detecting new and emerging malware that is not yet recognized by anti-virus scanners.
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Enumeration of Privileged Local Groups Membership
Identifies instances of an unusual process enumerating built-in Windows privileged local groups membership like Administrators or Remote Desktop users.
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Identifies the use of the Exchange PowerShell cmdlet, New-MailBoxExportRequest, to export the contents of a primary mailbox or archive to a .pst file. Adversaries may target user email to collect sensitive information.
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Adversaries may install legitimate remote access tools (RAT) to compromised endpoints for further command-and-control (C2). Adversaries can rely on installed RATs for persistence, execution of native commands and more. This rule detects when a process is started whose name or code signature resembles commonly abused RATs. This is a New Terms rule type indicating the host has not seen this RAT process started before within the last 30 days.
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First Time Seen NewCredentials Logon Process
Identifies a new credentials logon type performed by an unusual process. This may indicate the existence of an access token forging capability that are often abused to bypass access control restrictions.
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Identifies newly seen removable devices by device friendly name using registry modification events. While this activity is not inherently malicious, analysts can use those events to aid monitoring for data exfiltration over those devices.
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This rule identifies when a User Account starts the Active Directory Replication Process for the first time. Attackers can use the DCSync technique to get credential information of individual accounts or the entire domain, thus compromising the entire domain.
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This rule identifies a high number (10) of process terminations (stop, delete, or suspend) from the same host within a short time period.
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Identifies the modification of an account's Kerberos pre-authentication options. An adversary with GenericWrite/GenericAll rights over the account can maliciously modify these settings to perform offline password cracking attacks such as AS-REP roasting.
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An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, started a PowerShell script or the Visual C# Command Line Compiler. This technique is sometimes used to deploy a malicious payload using the Build Engine.
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Microsoft Build Engine Started by a Script Process
An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, was started by a script or the Windows command interpreter. This behavior is unusual and is sometimes used by malicious payloads.
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Identify the modification of the msPKIAccountCredentials attribute in an Active Directory User Object. Attackers can abuse the credentials roaming feature to overwrite an arbitrary file for privilege escalation. ms-PKI-AccountCredentials contains binary large objects (BLOBs) of encrypted credential objects from the credential manager store, private keys, certificates, and certificate requests.
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Identifies the modification of the nTSecurityDescriptor attribute in a domain object with rights related to DCSync to a user/computer account. Attackers can use this backdoor to re-obtain access to hashes of any user/computer.
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Identifies the execution of PowerShell script with keywords related to different Antimalware Scan Interface (AMSI) bypasses. An adversary may attempt first to disable AMSI before executing further malicious powershell scripts to evade detection.
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Potential Cookies Theft via Browser Debugging
Identifies the execution of a Chromium based browser with the debugging process argument, which may indicate an attempt to steal authentication cookies. An adversary may steal web application or service session cookies and use them to gain access web applications or Internet services as an authenticated user without needing credentials.
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Mimikatz is a credential dumper capable of obtaining plaintext Windows account logins and passwords, along with many other features that make it useful for testing the security of networks. This rule detects Invoke-Mimikatz PowerShell script and alike.
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Potential LSASS Memory Dump via PssCaptureSnapShot
Identifies suspicious access to an LSASS handle via PssCaptureSnapShot where two successive process accesses are performed by the same process and target two different instances of LSASS. This may indicate an attempt to evade detection and dump LSASS memory for credential access.
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Potential Pass-the-Hash (PtH) Attempt
Adversaries may pass the hash using stolen password hashes to move laterally within an environment, bypassing normal system access controls. Pass the hash (PtH) is a method of authenticating as a user without having access to the user's cleartext password.
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Potential PowerShell HackTool Script by Author
Detects known PowerShell offensive tooling author's name in PowerShell scripts. Attackers commonly use out-of-the-box offensive tools without modifying the code, which may still contain the author artifacts. This rule identifies common author handles found in popular PowerShell scripts used for red team exercises.
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Potential PowerShell HackTool Script by Function Names
Detects known PowerShell offensive tooling functions names in PowerShell scripts. Attackers commonly use out-of-the-box offensive tools without modifying the code. This rule aim is to take advantage of that.
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Potential PowerShell Obfuscated Script
Identifies scripts that contain patterns and known methods that obfuscate PowerShell code. Attackers can use obfuscation techniques to bypass PowerShell security protections such as Antimalware Scan Interface (AMSI).
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Detects PowerShell scripts that can execute pass-the-hash (PtH) attacks, intercept and relay NTLM challenges, and carry out other man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks.
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Detects the use of Windows API functions that are commonly abused by malware and security tools to load malicious code or inject it into remote processes.
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This rule identifies a high number (20) of file creation event by the System virtual process from the same host and with same file name containing keywords similar to ransomware note files and all within a short time period.
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Identify the modification of the msDS-KeyCredentialLink attribute in an Active Directory Computer or User Object. Attackers can abuse control over the object and create a key pair, append to raw public key in the attribute, and obtain persistent and stealthy access to the target user or computer object.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that contain the default exported functions used on Invoke-NinjaCopy. Attackers can use Invoke-NinjaCopy to read SYSTEM files that are normally locked, such as the NTDS.dit file or registry hives.
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PowerShell Kerberos Ticket Dump
Detects PowerShell scripts that have the capability of dumping Kerberos tickets from LSA, which potentially indicates an attacker's attempt to acquire credentials for lateral movement.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that have the capability of requesting kerberos tickets, which is a common step in Kerberoasting toolkits to crack service accounts.
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Detects the use of Win32 API Functions that can be used to capture user keystrokes in PowerShell scripts. Attackers use this technique to capture user input, looking for credentials and/or other valuable data.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that can be used to collect data from mailboxes. Adversaries may target user email to collect sensitive information.
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This rule detects PowerShell scripts capable of dumping process memory using WindowsErrorReporting or Dbghelp.dll MiniDumpWriteDump. Attackers can use this tooling to dump LSASS and get access to credentials.
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PowerShell PSReflect Script
Detects the use of PSReflect in PowerShell scripts. Attackers leverage PSReflect as a library that enables PowerShell to access win32 API functions.
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Identifies the use of Cmdlets and methods related to encryption/decryption of files in PowerShell scripts, which malware and offensive security tools can abuse to encrypt data or decrypt payloads to bypass security solutions.
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PowerShell Script with Token Impersonation Capabilities
Detects scripts that contain PowerShell functions, structures, or Windows API functions related to token impersonation/theft. Attackers may duplicate then impersonate another user's token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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PowerShell Script with Veeam Credential Access Capabilities
Identifies PowerShell scripts that can access and decrypt Veeam credentials stored in MSSQL databases. Attackers can use Veeam Credentials to target backups as part of destructive operations such as Ransomware attacks.
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PowerShell Script with Webcam Video Capture Capabilities
Detects PowerShell scripts that can be used to record webcam video. Attackers can capture this information to extort or spy on victims.
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Detects scripts that contain PowerShell functions, structures, or Windows API functions related to windows share enumeration activities. Attackers, mainly ransomware groups, commonly identify and inspect network shares, looking for critical information for encryption and/or exfiltration.
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This rule detects the use of discovery-related Windows API functions in PowerShell Scripts. Attackers can use these functions to perform various situational awareness related activities, like enumerating users, shares, sessions, domain trusts, groups, etc.
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Identifies the use of .NET functionality for decompression and base64 decoding combined in PowerShell scripts, which malware and security tools heavily use to deobfuscate payloads and load them directly in memory to bypass defenses.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that can record audio, a common feature in popular post-exploitation tooling.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that can get the contents of the clipboard, which attackers can abuse to retrieve sensitive information like credentials, messages, etc.
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Detects PowerShell scripts that can take screenshots, which is a common feature in post-exploitation kits and remote access tools (RATs).
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This rule detects rare internet network connections via the SMB protocol. SMB is commonly used to leak NTLM credentials via rogue UNC path injection.
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Identifies the assignment of the SeEnableDelegationPrivilege sensitive "user right" to a user. The SeEnableDelegationPrivilege "user right" enables computer and user accounts to be trusted for delegation. Attackers can abuse this right to compromise Active Directory accounts and elevate their privileges.
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Detects the use of Reflection.Assembly to load PEs and DLLs in memory in PowerShell scripts. Attackers use this method to load executables and DLLs without writing to the disk, bypassing security solutions.
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Detects the presence of a portable executable (PE) in a PowerShell script by looking for its encoded header. Attackers embed PEs into PowerShell scripts to inject them into memory, avoiding defences by not writing to disk.
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Detects attempts to exploit privilege escalation vulnerabilities related to the Print Spooler service. For more information refer to the following CVE's - CVE-2020-1048, CVE-2020-1337 and CVE-2020-1300 and verify that the impacted system is patched.
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Identifies a suspicious parent child process relationship with cmd.exe descending from svchost.exe
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Detects when a user account has the servicePrincipalName attribute modified. Attackers can abuse write privileges over a user to configure Service Principle Names (SPNs) so that they can perform Kerberoasting. Administrators can also configure this for legitimate purposes, exposing the account to Kerberoasting.
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Windows CryptoAPI Spoofing Vulnerability (CVE-2020-0601 - CurveBall)
A spoofing vulnerability exists in the way Windows CryptoAPI (Crypt32.dll) validates Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) certificates. An attacker could exploit the vulnerability by using a spoofed code-signing certificate to sign a malicious executable, making it appear the file was from a trusted, legitimate source.
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Windows Event Logs Cleared
Identifies attempts to clear Windows event log stores. This is often done by attackers in an attempt to evade detection or destroy forensic evidence on a system.
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Windows User Account Creation
Identifies attempts to create a Windows User Account. This is sometimes done by attackers to persist or increase access to a system or domain.
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Monitors for the execution of different processes that might be used by attackers for malicious intent. An alert from this rule should be investigated further, as hack tools are commonly used by blue teamers and system administrators as well.
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Identifies attempts to add a user to a privileged group. Attackers may add users to a privileged group in order to establish persistence on a system.
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Identifies the modification of the network logon provider registry. Adversaries may register a rogue network logon provider module for persistence and/or credential access via intercepting the authentication credentials in clear text during user logon.
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Persistence via Update Orchestrator Service Hijack
Oct 21, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Persistence Tactic: Privilege Escalation Use Case: Vulnerability Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne ·Identifies potential hijacking of the Microsoft Update Orchestrator Service to establish persistence with an integrity level of SYSTEM.
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Potential Credential Access via Windows Utilities
Oct 21, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Credential Access Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Sysmon ·Identifies the execution of known Windows utilities often abused to dump LSASS memory or the Active Directory database (NTDS.dit) in preparation for credential access.
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Identifies when a browser process navigates to the Microsoft Help page followed by spawning an elevated process. This may indicate a successful exploitation for privilege escalation abusing a vulnerable Windows Installer repair setup.
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The Filter Manager Control Program (fltMC.exe) binary may be abused by adversaries to unload a filter driver and evade defenses.
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Potential LSASS Clone Creation via PssCaptureSnapShot
Identifies the creation of an LSASS process clone via PssCaptureSnapShot where the parent process is the initial LSASS process instance. This may indicate an attempt to evade detection and dump LSASS memory for credential access.
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Identifies process execution from suspicious default Windows directories. This is sometimes done by adversaries to hide malware in trusted paths.
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Identifies modifications to the registered Subject Interface Package (SIP) providers. SIP providers are used by the Windows cryptographic system to validate file signatures on the system. This may be an attempt to bypass signature validation checks or inject code into critical processes.
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Detects attempts to exploit a privilege escalation vulnerability (CVE-2020-1030) related to the print spooler service. Exploitation involves chaining multiple primitives to load an arbitrary DLL into the print spooler process running as SYSTEM.
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Uncommon Registry Persistence Change
Detects changes to registry persistence keys that are not commonly used or modified by legitimate programs. This could be an indication of an adversary's attempt to persist in a stealthy manner.
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Unsigned DLL loaded by DNS Service
Identifies unusual DLLs loaded by the DNS Server process, potentially indicating the abuse of the ServerLevelPluginDll functionality. This can lead to privilege escalation and remote code execution with SYSTEM privileges.
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Identifies a suspicious child process of the Windows virtual system process, which could indicate code injection.
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Identifies modifications to the Windows Defender registry settings to disable the service or set the service to be started manually.
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Unusual Instance Metadata Service (IMDS) API Request
This rule identifies potentially malicious processes attempting to access the cloud service provider's instance metadata service (IMDS) API endpoint, which can be used to retrieve sensitive instance-specific information such as instance ID, public IP address, and even temporary security credentials if role's are assumed by that instance. The rule monitors for various tools and scripts like curl, wget, python, and perl that might be used to interact with the metadata API.
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APT Package Manager Configuration File Creation
Detects file creation events in the configuration directory for the APT package manager. In Linux, APT (Advanced Package Tool) is a command-line utility used for handling packages on (by default) Debian-based systems, providing functions for installing, updating, upgrading, and removing software along with managing package repositories. Attackers can backdoor APT to gain persistence by injecting malicious code into scripts that APT runs, thereby ensuring continued unauthorized access or control each time APT is used for package management.
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Detects the use of the chkconfig binary to manually add a service for management by chkconfig. Threat actors may utilize this technique to maintain persistence on a system. When a new service is added, chkconfig ensures that the service has either a start or a kill entry in every runlevel and when the system is rebooted the service file added will run providing long-term persistence.
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This rule monitors for (ana)cron jobs being created or renamed. Linux cron jobs are scheduled tasks that can be leveraged by system administrators to set up scheduled tasks, but may be abused by malicious actors for persistence, privilege escalation and command execution. By creating or modifying cron job configurations, attackers can execute malicious commands or scripts at predefined intervals, ensuring their continued presence and enabling unauthorized activities.
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This rule detects the creation or modification of a Git hook file on a Linux system. Git hooks are scripts that Git executes before or after events such as commit, push, and receive. They are used to automate tasks, enforce policies, and customize Git's behavior. Attackers can abuse Git hooks to maintain persistence on a system by executing malicious code whenever a specific Git event occurs.
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Detects the use of the insmod binary to load a Linux kernel object file. Threat actors can use this binary, given they have root privileges, to load a rootkit on a system providing them with complete control and the ability to hide from security products. Manually loading a kernel module in this manner should not be at all common and can indicate suspcious or malicious behavior.
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Adversaries may modify SSH related binaries for persistence or credential access by patching sensitive functions to enable unauthorized access or by logging SSH credentials for exfiltration.
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Persistence via KDE AutoStart Script or Desktop File Modification
Identifies the creation or modification of a K Desktop Environment (KDE) AutoStart script or desktop file that will execute upon each user logon. Adversaries may abuse this method for persistence.
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Potential Linux Ransomware Note Creation Detected
This rule identifies a sequence of a mass file encryption event in conjunction with the creation of a .txt file with a file name containing ransomware keywords executed by the same process in a 1 second timespan. Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim's files or systems and demands payment (usually in cryptocurrency) in exchange for the decryption key. One important indicator of a ransomware attack is the mass encryption of the file system, after which a new file extension is added to the file.
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Files that are placed in the /etc/init.d/ directory in Unix can be used to start custom applications, services, scripts or commands during start-up. Init.d has been mostly replaced in favor of Systemd. However, the "systemd-sysv-generator" can convert init.d files to service unit files that run at boot. Adversaries may add or alter files located in the /etc/init.d/ directory to execute malicious code upon boot in order to gain persistence on the system.
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Unusual DPKG Execution
This rule detects the execution of the DPKG command by processes not associated with the DPKG package manager. The DPKG command is used to install, remove, and manage Debian packages on a Linux system. Attackers can abuse the DPKG command to install malicious packages on a system.
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Network Connection Initiated by SSHD Child Process
This rule identifies an egress internet connection initiated by an SSH Daemon child process. This behavior is indicative of the alteration of a shell configuration file or other mechanism that launches a process when a new SSH login occurs. Attackers can also backdoor the SSH daemon to allow for persistence, call out to a C2 or to steal credentials.
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It identifies potential malicious shell executions through remote SSH and detects cases where the sshd service suddenly terminates soon after successful execution, suggesting suspicious behavior similar to the XZ backdoor.
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Setcap setuid/setgid Capability Set
This rule monitors for the addition of the cap_setuid+ep or cap_setgid+ep capabilities via setcap. Setuid (Set User ID) and setgid (Set Group ID) are Unix-like OS features that enable processes to run with elevated privileges, based on the file owner or group. Threat actors can exploit these attributes to achieve persistence by creating malicious binaries, allowing them to maintain control over a compromised system with elevated permissions.
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Shadow File Modification
This rule monitors for Linux Shadow file modifications. These modifications are indicative of a potential password change or user addition event. Threat actors may attempt to create new users or change the password of a user account to maintain access to a system.
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Shared Object Created or Changed by Previously Unknown Process
This rule monitors the creation of shared object files by previously unknown processes. The creation of a shared object file involves compiling code into a dynamically linked library that can be loaded by other programs at runtime. While this process is typically used for legitimate purposes, malicious actors can leverage shared object files to execute unauthorized code, inject malicious functionality into legitimate processes, or bypass security controls. This allows malware to persist on the system, evade detection, and potentially compromise the integrity and confidentiality of the affected system and its data.
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Shell Configuration Creation or Modification
This rule monitors the creation/alteration of a shell configuration file. Unix systems use shell configuration files to set environment variables, create aliases, and customize the user's environment. Adversaries may modify or add a shell configuration file to execute malicious code and gain persistence in the system. This behavior is consistent with the Kaiji malware family.
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Detects suspicious network events executed by systemd, potentially indicating persistence through a systemd backdoor. Systemd is a system and service manager for Linux operating systems, used to initialize and manage system processes. Attackers can backdoor systemd for persistence by creating or modifying systemd unit files to execute malicious scripts or commands, or by replacing legitimate systemd binaries with compromised ones, ensuring that their malicious code is automatically executed at system startup or during certain system events.
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Systemd Generator Created
This rule detects the creation of a systemd generator file. Generators are small executables executed by systemd at bootup and during configuration reloads. Their main role is to convert non-native configuration and execution parameters into dynamically generated unit files, symlinks, or drop-ins, extending the unit file hierarchy for the service manager. Systemd generators can be used to execute arbitrary code at boot time, which can be leveraged by attackers to maintain persistence on a Linux system.
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Systemd Service Created
This rule detects the creation or renaming of a new Systemd file in all of the common Systemd service locations for both root and regular users. Systemd service files are configuration files in Linux systems used to define and manage system services. Malicious actors can leverage systemd service files to achieve persistence by creating or modifying services to execute malicious commands or payloads during system startup or at a predefined interval by adding a systemd timer. This allows them to maintain unauthorized access, execute additional malicious activities, or evade detection.
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Systemd Timer Created
Detects the creation of a systemd timer within any of the default systemd timer directories. Systemd timers can be used by an attacker to gain persistence, by scheduling the execution of a command or script. Similarly to cron/at, systemd timers can be set up to execute on boot time, or on a specific point in time, which allows attackers to regain access in case the connection to the infected asset was lost.
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Systemd-udevd Rule File Creation
Monitors for the creation of rule files that are used by systemd-udevd to manage device nodes and handle kernel device events in the Linux operating system. Systemd-udevd can be exploited for persistence by adversaries by creating malicious udev rules that trigger on specific events, executing arbitrary commands or payloads whenever a certain device is plugged in or recognized by the system.
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Yum Package Manager Plugin File Creation
Detects file creation events in the plugin directories for the Yum package manager. In Linux, Yum (Yellowdog Updater, Modified) is a command-line utility used for handling packages on (by default) Fedora-based systems, providing functions for installing, updating, upgrading, and removing software along with managing package repositories. Attackers can backdoor Yum to gain persistence by injecting malicious code into plugins that Yum runs, thereby ensuring continued unauthorized access or control each time Yum is used for package management.
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Identify activity related where adversaries can add the 'hidden' flag to files to hide them from the user in an attempt to evade detection.
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This rule monitors for the usage of the most common clipboard utilities on unix systems by an uncommon process group leader. Adversaries may collect data stored in the clipboard from users copying information within or between applications.
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This rule monitors for X11 forwarding via SSH. X11 forwarding is a feature that allows users to run graphical applications on a remote server and display the application's graphical user interface on their local machine. Attackers can abuse X11 forwarding for tunneling their GUI-based tools, pivot through compromised systems, and create covert communication channels, enabling lateral movement and facilitating remote control of systems within a network.
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Suspicious Memory grep Activity
Monitors for grep activity related to memory mapping. The /proc/*/maps file in Linux provides a memory map for a specific process, detailing the memory segments, permissions, and what files are mapped to these segments. Attackers may read a process's memory map to identify memory addresses for code injection or process hijacking.
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This rule monitors for inter-process communication via Unix sockets. Adversaries may attempt to communicate with local Unix sockets to enumerate application details, find vulnerabilities/configuration mistakes and potentially escalate privileges or set up malicious communication channels via Unix sockets for inter-process communication to attempt to evade detection.
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Identifies suspicious child processes of the Java interpreter process. This may indicate an attempt to execute a malicious JAR file or an exploitation attempt via a JAVA specific vulnerability.
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Elastic Agent Service Terminated
Identifies the Elastic endpoint agent has stopped and is no longer running on the host. Adversaries may attempt to disable security monitoring tools in an attempt to evade detection or prevention capabilities during an intrusion. This may also indicate an issue with the agent itself and should be addressed to ensure defensive measures are back in a stable state.
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Masquerading Space After Filename
This rules identifies a process created from an executable with a space appended to the end of the filename. This may indicate an attempt to masquerade a malicious file as benign to gain user execution. When a space is added to the end of certain files, the OS will execute the file according to it's true filetype instead of it's extension. Adversaries can hide a program's true filetype by changing the extension of the file. They can then add a space to the end of the name so that the OS automatically executes the file when it's double-clicked.
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Potential Non-Standard Port SSH connection
Identifies potentially malicious processes communicating via a port paring typically not associated with SSH. For example, SSH over port 2200 or port 2222 as opposed to the traditional port 22. Adversaries may make changes to the standard port a protocol uses to bypass filtering or muddle analysis/parsing of network data.
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Identifies the use of the grep command to discover known third-party macOS and Linux security tools, such as Antivirus or Host Firewall details.
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This detection rule identifies the usage of kexec, helping to uncover unauthorized kernel replacements and potential compromise of the system's integrity. Kexec is a Linux feature that enables the loading and execution of a different kernel without going through the typical boot process. Malicious actors can abuse kexec to bypass security measures, escalate privileges, establish persistence or hide their activities by loading a malicious kernel, enabling them to tamper with the system's trusted state, allowing e.g. a VM Escape.
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Identifies access to the /etc/shadow file via the commandline using standard system utilities. After elevating privileges to root, threat actors may attempt to read or dump this file in order to gain valid credentials. They may utilize these to move laterally undetected and access additional resources.
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Monitors for the elevation of regular user permissions to root permissions through a previously unknown executable. Attackers may attempt to evade detection by hijacking the execution flow and hooking certain functions/syscalls through a rootkit in order to provide easy access to root via a special modified command.
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Identifies the creation of a Process ID (PID), lock or reboot file created in temporary file storage paradigm (tmpfs) directory /var/run. On Linux, the PID files typically hold the process ID to track previous copies running and manage other tasks. Certain Linux malware use the /var/run directory for holding data, executables and other tasks, disguising itself or these files as legitimate PID files.
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Cupsd or Foomatic-rip Shell Execution
This detection rule addresses multiple vulnerabilities in the CUPS printing system, including CVE-2024-47176, CVE-2024-47076, CVE-2024-47175, and CVE-2024-47177. Specifically, this rule detects shell executions from the foomatic-rip parent process. These flaws impact components like cups-browsed, libcupsfilters, libppd, and foomatic-rip, allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to manipulate IPP URLs or inject malicious data through crafted UDP packets or network spoofing. This can result in arbitrary command execution when a print job is initiated.
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File Creation, Execution and Self-Deletion in Suspicious Directory
This rule monitors for the creation of a file, followed by its execution and self-deletion in a short timespan within a directory often used for malicious purposes by threat actors. This behavior is often used by malware to execute malicious code and delete itself to hide its tracks.
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Network Connection from Binary with RWX Memory Region
Monitors for the execution of a unix binary with read, write and execute memory region permissions, followed by a network connection. The mprotect() system call is used to change the access protections on a region of memory that has already been allocated. This syscall allows a process to modify the permissions of pages in its virtual address space, enabling or disabling permissions such as read, write, and execute for those pages. RWX permissions on memory is in many cases overly permissive, and should (especially in conjunction with an outbound network connection) be analyzed thoroughly.
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Network Connection via Recently Compiled Executable
This rule monitors a sequence involving a program compilation event followed by its execution and a subsequent network connection event. This behavior can indicate the set up of a reverse tcp connection to a command-and-control server. Attackers may spawn reverse shells to establish persistence onto a target system.
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Openssl Client or Server Activity
This rule identifies when the openssl client or server is used to establish a connection. Attackers may use openssl to establish a secure connection to a remote server or to create a secure server to receive connections. This activity may be used to exfiltrate data or establish a command and control channel.
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Potential Code Execution via Postgresql
This rule monitors for suspicious activities that may indicate an attacker attempting to execute arbitrary code within a PostgreSQL environment. Attackers can execute code via PostgreSQL as a result of gaining unauthorized access to a public facing PostgreSQL database or exploiting vulnerabilities, such as remote command execution and SQL injection attacks, which can result in unauthorized access and malicious actions, and facilitate post-exploitation activities for unauthorized access and malicious actions.
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Potential curl CVE-2023-38545 Exploitation
Detects potential exploitation of curl CVE-2023-38545 by monitoring for vulnerable command line arguments in conjunction with an unusual command line length. A flaw in curl version <= 8.3 makes curl vulnerable to a heap based buffer overflow during the SOCKS5 proxy handshake. Upgrade to curl version >= 8.4 to patch this vulnerability. This exploit can be executed with and without the use of environment variables. For increased visibility, enable the collection of http_proxy, HTTPS_PROXY and ALL_PROXY environment variables based on the instructions provided in the setup guide of this rule.
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Printer User (lp) Shell Execution
This detection rule addresses multiple vulnerabilities in the CUPS printing system, including CVE-2024-47176, CVE-2024-47076, CVE-2024-47175, and CVE-2024-47177. Specifically, this rule detects shell executions from the foomatic-rip parent process through the default printer user (lp). These flaws impact components like cups-browsed, libcupsfilters, libppd, and foomatic-rip, allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to manipulate IPP URLs or inject malicious data through crafted UDP packets or network spoofing. This can result in arbitrary command execution when a print job is initiated.
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Suspicious Execution from Foomatic-rip or Cupsd Parent
This detection rule addresses multiple vulnerabilities in the CUPS printing system, including CVE-2024-47176, CVE-2024-47076, CVE-2024-47175, and CVE-2024-47177. Specifically, this rule detects suspicious process command lines executed by child processes of foomatic-rip and cupsd. These flaws impact components like cups-browsed, libcupsfilters, libppd, and foomatic-rip, allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to manipulate IPP URLs or inject malicious data through crafted UDP packets or network spoofing. This can result in arbitrary command execution when a print job is initiated.
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Suspicious System Commands Executed by Previously Unknown Executable
This rule monitors for the execution of several commonly used system commands executed by a previously unknown executable located in commonly abused directories. An alert from this rule can indicate the presence of potentially malicious activity, such as the execution of unauthorized or suspicious processes attempting to run malicious code. Detecting and investigating such behavior can help identify and mitigate potential security threats, protecting the system and its data from potential compromise.
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Enumeration of Kernel Modules
Loadable Kernel Modules (or LKMs) are pieces of code that can be loaded and unloaded into the kernel upon demand. They extend the functionality of the kernel without the need to reboot the system. This identifies attempts to enumerate information about a kernel module.
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Identifies instances where the 'find' command is started on a Linux system with arguments targeting specific VM-related paths, such as "/etc/vmware/", "/usr/lib/vmware/", or "/vmfs/*". These paths are associated with VMware virtualization software, and their presence in the find command arguments may indicate that a threat actor is attempting to search for, analyze, or manipulate VM-related files and configurations on the system.
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Identifies instances where a process named 'grep', 'egrep', or 'pgrep' is started on a Linux system with arguments related to virtual machine (VM) files, such as "vmdk", "vmx", "vmxf", "vmsd", "vmsn", "vswp", "vmss", "nvram", or "vmem". These file extensions are associated with VM-related file formats, and their presence in grep command arguments may indicate that a threat actor is attempting to search for, analyze, or manipulate VM files on the system.
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Identifies the execution of mount process with hidepid parameter, which can make processes invisible to other users from the system. Adversaries using Linux kernel version 3.2+ (or RHEL/CentOS v6.5+ above) can hide the process from other users. When hidepid=2 option is executed to mount the /proc filesystem, only the root user can see all processes and the logged-in user can only see their own process. This provides a defense evasion mechanism for the adversaries to hide their process executions from all other commands such as ps, top, pgrep and more. With the Linux kernel hardening hidepid option all the user has to do is remount the /proc filesystem with the option, which can now be monitored and detected.
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Potential Pspy Process Monitoring Detected
This rule leverages auditd to monitor for processes scanning different processes within the /proc directory using the openat syscall. This is a strong indication for the usage of the pspy utility. Attackers may leverage the pspy process monitoring utility to monitor system processes without requiring root permissions, in order to find potential privilege escalation vectors.
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This rule monitors for the execution of suspicious commands via screen and tmux. When launching a command and detaching directly, the commands will be executed in the background via its parent process. Attackers may leverage screen or tmux to execute commands while attempting to evade detection.
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Root Certificate Installation
This rule detects the installation of root certificates on a Linux system. Adversaries may install a root certificate on a compromised system to avoid warnings when connecting to their command and control servers. Root certificates are used in public key cryptography to identify a root certificate authority (CA). When a root certificate is installed, the system or application will trust certificates in the root's chain of trust that have been signed by the root certificate.
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Sudo Command Enumeration Detected
This rule monitors for the usage of the sudo -l command, which is used to list the allowed and forbidden commands for the invoking user. Attackers may execute this command to enumerate commands allowed to be executed with sudo permissions, potentially allowing to escalate privileges to root.
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Suspicious which Enumeration
This rule monitors for the usage of the which command with an unusual amount of process arguments. Attackers may leverage the which command to enumerate the system for useful installed utilities that may be used after compromising a system to escalate privileges or move latteraly across the network.
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Creation of Hidden Files and Directories via CommandLine
Users can mark specific files as hidden simply by putting a "." as the first character in the file or folder name. Adversaries can use this to their advantage to hide files and folders on the system for persistence and defense evasion. This rule looks for hidden files or folders in common writable directories.
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Dynamic Linker Creation or Modification
Detects the creation or modification of files related to the dynamic linker on Linux systems. The dynamic linker is a shared library that is used by the Linux kernel to load and execute programs. Attackers may attempt to hijack the execution flow of a program by modifying the dynamic linker configuration files.
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Detects a file being made immutable using the chattr binary. Making a file immutable means it cannot be deleted or renamed, no link can be created to this file, most of the file's metadata can not be modified, and the file can not be opened in write mode. Threat actors will commonly utilize this to prevent tampering or modification of their malicious files or any system files they have modified for purposes of persistence (e.g .ssh, /etc/passwd, etc.).
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File Permission Modification in Writable Directory
Identifies file permission modifications in common writable directories by a non-root user. Adversaries often drop files or payloads into a writable directory and change permissions prior to execution.
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Network Activity Detected via Kworker
This rule monitors for network connections from a kworker process. kworker, or kernel worker, processes are part of the kernel's workqueue mechanism. They are responsible for executing work that has been scheduled to be done in kernel space, which might include tasks like handling interrupts, background activities, and other kernel-related tasks. Attackers may attempt to evade detection by masquerading as a kernel worker process.
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Potential Linux Local Account Brute Force Detected
Identifies multiple consecutive login attempts executed by one process targeting a local linux user account within a short time interval. Adversaries might brute force login attempts across different users with a default wordlist or a set of customly crafted passwords in an attempt to gain access to these accounts.
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Potential Protocol Tunneling via Chisel Client
This rule monitors for common command line flags leveraged by the Chisel client utility followed by a connection attempt. Chisel is a command-line utility used for creating and managing TCP and UDP tunnels, enabling port forwarding and secure communication between machines. Attackers can abuse the Chisel utility to establish covert communication channels, bypass network restrictions, and carry out malicious activities by creating tunnels that allow unauthorized access to internal systems.
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This rule monitors for network connectivity to the internet from a previously unknown executable located in a suspicious directory. An alert from this rule can indicate the presence of potentially malicious activity, such as the execution of unauthorized or suspicious processes attempting to establish connections to unknown or suspicious destinations such as a command and control server. Detecting and investigating such behavior can help identify and mitigate potential security threats, protecting the system and its data from potential compromise.
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System Binary Moved or Copied
This rule monitors for the copying or moving of a system binary. Adversaries may copy/move and rename system binaries to evade detection. Copying a system binary to a different location should not occur often, so if it does, the activity should be investigated.
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A scheduled task was created
Indicates the creation of a scheduled task using Windows event logs. Adversaries can use these to establish persistence, move laterally, and/or escalate privileges.
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A scheduled task was updated
Indicates the update of a scheduled task using Windows event logs. Adversaries can use these to establish persistence, by changing the configuration of a legit scheduled task. Some changes such as disabling or enabling a scheduled task are common and may may generate noise.
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Identify access to sensitive Active Directory object attributes that contains credentials and decryption keys such as unixUserPassword, ms-PKI-AccountCredentials and msPKI-CredentialRoamingTokens.
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Identifies when the SYSTEM account uses an account discovery utility. This could be a sign of discovery activity after an adversary has achieved privilege escalation.
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Account Password Reset Remotely
Identifies an attempt to reset a potentially privileged account password remotely. Adversaries may manipulate account passwords to maintain access or evade password duration policies and preserve compromised credentials.
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Identifies a user being added to an active directory group by the SYSTEM (S-1-5-18) user. This behavior can indicate that the attacker has achieved SYSTEM privileges in a domain controller, which attackers can obtain by exploiting vulnerabilities or abusing default group privileges (e.g., Server Operators), and is attempting to pivot to a domain account.
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Identifies a modification on the dsHeuristics attribute on the bit that holds the configuration of groups excluded from the SDProp process. The SDProp compares the permissions on protected objects with those defined on the AdminSDHolder object. If the permissions on any of the protected accounts and groups do not match, the permissions on the protected accounts and groups are reset to match those of the domain's AdminSDHolder object, meaning that groups excluded will remain unchanged. Attackers can abuse this misconfiguration to maintain long-term access to privileged accounts in these groups.
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Identifies the creation of an Alternate Data Stream (ADS) at a volume root directory, which can indicate the attempt to hide tools and malware, as ADSs created in this directory are not displayed by system utilities.
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Identifies the install of browser extensions. Malicious browser extensions can be installed via app store downloads masquerading as legitimate extensions, social engineering, or by an adversary that has already compromised a system.
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Identifies attempts to disable the code signing policy through the registry. Code signing provides authenticity on a program, and grants the user with the ability to check whether the program has been tampered with. By allowing the execution of unsigned or self-signed code, threat actors can craft and execute malicious code.
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Identifies cmd.exe making a network connection. Adversaries could abuse cmd.exe to download or execute malware from a remote URL.
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Identifies command shell activity started via RunDLL32, which is commonly abused by attackers to host malicious code.
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Conhost Spawned By Suspicious Parent Process
Oct 15, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Execution Tactic: Defense Evasion Tactic: Privilege Escalation Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne ·Detects when the Console Window Host (conhost.exe) process is spawned by a suspicious parent process, which could be indicative of code injection.
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Connection to Commonly Abused Free SSL Certificate Providers
Identifies unusual processes connecting to domains using known free SSL certificates. Adversaries may employ a known encryption algorithm to conceal command and control traffic.
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Active Directory Integrated DNS (ADIDNS) is one of the core components of AD DS, leveraging AD's access control and replication to maintain domain consistency. It stores DNS zones as AD objects, a feature that, while robust, introduces some security issues because of the default permission (Any authenticated users) to create DNS-named records. Attackers can perform Dynamic Spoofing attacks, where they monitor LLMNR/NBT-NS requests and create DNS-named records to target systems that are requested from multiple systems. They can also create specific records to target specific services, such as wpad, for spoofing attacks.
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Identifies the creation of a hidden local user account by appending the dollar sign to the account name. This is sometimes done by attackers to increase access to a system and avoid appearing in the results of accounts listing using the net users command.
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Detects the creation or modification of a new Group Policy based scheduled task or service. These methods are used for legitimate system administration, but can also be abused by an attacker with domain admin permissions to execute a malicious payload remotely on all or a subset of the domain joined machines.
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Identifies the creation or modification of a local trusted root certificate in Windows. The install of a malicious root certificate would allow an attacker the ability to masquerade malicious files as valid signed components from any entity (for example, Microsoft). It could also allow an attacker to decrypt SSL traffic.
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User Account Control (UAC) can help mitigate the impact of malware on Windows hosts. With UAC, apps and tasks always run in the security context of a non-administrator account, unless an administrator specifically authorizes administrator-level access to the system. This rule identifies registry value changes to bypass User Access Control (UAC) protection.
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Identifies changes to the DNS Global Query Block List (GQBL), a security feature that prevents the resolution of certain DNS names often exploited in attacks like WPAD spoofing. Attackers with certain privileges, such as DNSAdmins, can modify or disable the GQBL, allowing exploitation of hosts running WPAD with default settings for privilege escalation and lateral movement.
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Identifies when a user enables DNS-over-HTTPS. This can be used to hide internet activity or the process of exfiltrating data. With this enabled, an organization will lose visibility into data such as query type, response, and originating IP, which are used to determine bad actors.
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Identifies registry write modifications to hide an encoded portable executable. This could be indicative of adversary defense evasion by avoiding the storing of malicious content directly on disk.
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Masquerading can allow an adversary to evade defenses and better blend in with the environment. One way it occurs is when the name or location of a file is manipulated as a means of tricking a user into executing what they think is a benign file type but is actually executable code.
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Execution from Unusual Directory - Command Line
Oct 15, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Execution Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: System Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne ·Identifies process execution from suspicious default Windows directories. This may be abused by adversaries to hide malware in trusted paths.
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Identifies a suspicious file that was written by a PDF reader application and subsequently executed. These processes are often launched via exploitation of PDF applications.
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Identifies execution of suspicious persistent programs (scripts, rundll32, etc.) by looking at process lineage and command line usage.
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Identifies the creation, change, or deletion of a DLL module within a Windows SxS local folder. Adversaries may abuse shared modules to execute malicious payloads by instructing the Windows module loader to load DLLs from arbitrary local paths.
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File Creation Time Changed
Identifies modification of a file creation time. Adversaries may modify file time attributes to blend malicious content with existing files. Timestomping is a technique that modifies the timestamps of a file often to mimic files that are in trusted directories.
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Identifies the enable of the full user-mode dumps feature system-wide. This feature allows Windows Error Reporting (WER) to collect data after an application crashes. This setting is a requirement for the LSASS Shtinkering attack, which fakes the communication of a crash on LSASS, generating a dump of the process memory, which gives the attacker access to the credentials present on the system without having to bring malware to the system. This setting is not enabled by default, and applications must create their registry subkeys to hold settings that enable them to collect dumps.
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Detects the first occurrence of a modification to Group Policy Object Attributes to add privileges to user accounts or use them to add users as local admins.
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Detects files creation and modification on the host system from the the Windows Subsystem for Linux. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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The Debugger and SilentProcessExit registry keys can allow an adversary to intercept the execution of files, causing a different process to be executed. This functionality can be abused by an adversary to establish persistence.
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Incoming DCOM Lateral Movement via MSHTA
Identifies the use of Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) to execute commands from a remote host, which are launched via the HTA Application COM Object. This behavior may indicate an attacker abusing a DCOM application to move laterally while attempting to evade detection.
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Identifies the use of Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) to run commands from a remote host, which are launched via the MMC20 Application COM Object. This behavior may indicate an attacker abusing a DCOM application to move laterally.
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Incoming DCOM Lateral Movement with ShellBrowserWindow or ShellWindows
Identifies use of Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) to run commands from a remote host, which are launched via the ShellBrowserWindow or ShellWindows Application COM Object. This behavior may indicate an attacker abusing a DCOM application to stealthily move laterally.
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Identifies remote execution via Windows PowerShell remoting. Windows PowerShell remoting allows a user to run any Windows PowerShell command on one or more remote computers. This could be an indication of lateral movement.
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Incoming Execution via WinRM Remote Shell
Identifies remote execution via Windows Remote Management (WinRM) remote shell on a target host. This could be an indication of lateral movement.
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Identifies the installation of custom Application Compatibility Shim databases. This Windows functionality has been abused by attackers to stealthily gain persistence and arbitrary code execution in legitimate Windows processes.
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Identifies registry modifications related to the Windows Security Support Provider (SSP) configuration. Adversaries may abuse this to establish persistence in an environment.
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InstallUtil Process Making Network Connections
Identifies InstallUtil.exe making outbound network connections. This may indicate adversarial activity as InstallUtil is often leveraged by adversaries to execute code and evade detection.
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Interactive Logon by an Unusual Process
Identifies interactive logon attempt with alternate credentials and by an unusual process. Adversaries may create a new token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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Identifies the modification of the msDS-AllowedToDelegateTo attribute to KRBTGT. Attackers can use this technique to maintain persistence to the domain by having the ability to request tickets for the KRBTGT service.
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Identifies suspicious file creations in the startup folder of a remote system. An adversary could abuse this to move laterally by dropping a malicious script or executable that will be executed after a reboot or user logon.
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Identifies registry modification to the LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy policy. If this value exists (which doesn't by default) and is set to 1, then remote connections from all local members of Administrators are granted full high-integrity tokens during negotiation.
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Local Scheduled Task Creation
Indicates the creation of a scheduled task. Adversaries can use these to establish persistence, move laterally, and/or escalate privileges.
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Identifies the creation of a Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (lsass.exe) default memory dump. This may indicate a credential access attempt via trusted system utilities such as Task Manager (taskmgr.exe) and SQL Dumper (sqldumper.exe) or known pentesting tools such as Dumpert and AndrewSpecial.
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LSASS Memory Dump Handle Access
Identifies handle requests for the Local Security Authority Subsystem Service (LSASS) object access with specific access masks that many tools with a capability to dump memory to disk use (0x1fffff, 0x1010, 0x120089). This rule is tool agnostic as it has been validated against a host of various LSASS dump tools such as SharpDump, Procdump, Mimikatz, Comsvcs etc. It detects this behavior at a low level and does not depend on a specific tool or dump file name.
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An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, was started after being renamed. This is uncommon behavior and may indicate an attempt to run unnoticed or undetected.
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Microsoft Exchange Server UM Writing Suspicious Files
Identifies suspicious files being written by the Microsoft Exchange Server Unified Messaging (UM) service. This activity has been observed exploiting CVE-2021-26858.
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Identifies suspicious processes being spawned by the Microsoft Exchange Server worker process (w3wp). This activity may indicate exploitation activity or access to an existing web shell backdoor.
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Identifies when one or more features on Microsoft Defender are disabled. Adversaries may disable or tamper with Microsoft Defender features to evade detection and conceal malicious behavior.
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Identifies modifications of the AmsiEnable registry key to 0, which disables the Antimalware Scan Interface (AMSI). An adversary can modify this key to disable AMSI protections.
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Identifies attempts to modify the WDigest security provider in the registry to force the user's password to be stored in clear text in memory. This behavior can be indicative of an adversary attempting to weaken the security configuration of an endpoint. Once the UseLogonCredential value is modified, the adversary may attempt to dump clear text passwords from memory.
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Microsoft Office Products offer options for users and developers to control the security settings for running and using Macros. Adversaries may abuse these security settings to modify the default behavior of the Office Application to trust future macros and/or disable security warnings, which could increase their chances of establishing persistence.
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Identifies MsBuild.exe making outbound network connections. This may indicate adversarial activity as MsBuild is often leveraged by adversaries to execute code and evade detection.
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Mshta Making Network Connections
Identifies Mshta.exe making outbound network connections. This may indicate adversarial activity, as Mshta is often leveraged by adversaries to execute malicious scripts and evade detection.
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Identifies the execution of an MsiExec service child process followed by network or dns lookup activity. Adversaries may abuse Windows Installers for initial access and delivery of malware.
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Multiple Logon Failure Followed by Logon Success
Identifies multiple logon failures followed by a successful one from the same source address. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts across multiple users with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain access to accounts.
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Multiple Logon Failure from the same Source Address
Identifies multiple consecutive logon failures from the same source address and within a short time interval. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts across multiple users with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain access to accounts.
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Multiple Vault Web Credentials Read
Windows Credential Manager allows you to create, view, or delete saved credentials for signing into websites, connected applications, and networks. An adversary may abuse this to list or dump credentials stored in the Credential Manager for saved usernames and passwords. This may also be performed in preparation of lateral movement.
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Identifies the addition of a Netsh Helper DLL, netsh.exe supports the addition of these DLLs to extend its functionality. Attackers may abuse this mechanism to execute malicious payloads every time the utility is executed, which can be done by administrators or a scheduled task.
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Compiled HTML files (.chm) are commonly distributed as part of the Microsoft HTML Help system. Adversaries may conceal malicious code in a CHM file and deliver it to a victim for execution. CHM content is loaded by the HTML Help executable program (hh.exe).
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Network Connection via MsXsl
Identifies msxsl.exe making a network connection. This may indicate adversarial activity as msxsl.exe is often leveraged by adversaries to execute malicious scripts and evade detection.
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Identifies the native Windows tools regsvr32.exe, regsvr64.exe, RegSvcs.exe, or RegAsm.exe making a network connection. This may be indicative of an attacker bypassing allowlists or running arbitrary scripts via a signed Microsoft binary.
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Binaries signed with trusted digital certificates can execute on Windows systems protected by digital signature validation. Adversaries may use these binaries to 'live off the land' and execute malicious files that could bypass application allowlists and signature validation.
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Identifies the attempt to disable Network-Level Authentication (NLA) via registry modification. Network Level Authentication (NLA) is a feature on Windows that provides an extra layer of security for Remote Desktop (RDP) connections, as it requires users to authenticate before allowing a full RDP session. Attackers can disable NLA to enable persistence methods that require access to the Windows sign-in screen without authenticating, such as Accessibility Features persistence methods, like Sticky Keys.
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Identifies NullSessionPipe registry modifications that specify which pipes can be accessed anonymously. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement preparation by making the added pipe available to everyone.
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Outbound Scheduled Task Activity via PowerShell
Identifies the PowerShell process loading the Task Scheduler COM DLL followed by an outbound RPC network connection within a short time period. This may indicate lateral movement or remote discovery via scheduled tasks.
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Identifies modifications in registry keys associated with abuse of the Outlook Home Page functionality for command and control or persistence.
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An adversary can use the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) SetNotifyCmdLine method to execute a program that runs after a job finishes transferring data or after a job enters a specified state in order to persist on a system.
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Identifies a persistence mechanism that utilizes the NtSetValueKey native API to create a hidden (null terminated) registry key. An adversary may use this method to hide from system utilities such as the Registry Editor (regedit).
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Detects attempts to establish persistence on an endpoint by abusing Microsoft Office add-ins.
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Detects attempts to establish persistence on an endpoint by installing a rogue Microsoft Outlook VBA Template.
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Identifies the creation or modification of a PowerShell profile. PowerShell profile is a script that is executed when PowerShell starts to customize the user environment, which can be abused by attackers to persist in a environment where PowerShell is common.
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A job can be used to schedule programs or scripts to be executed at a specified date and time. Adversaries may abuse task scheduling functionality to facilitate initial or recurring execution of malicious code.
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Identifies script engines creating files in the Startup folder, or the creation of script files in the Startup folder. Adversaries may abuse this technique to maintain persistence in an environment.
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Port Forwarding Rule Addition
Oct 15, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Command and Control Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: SentinelOne Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint ·Identifies the creation of a new port forwarding rule. An adversary may abuse this technique to bypass network segmentation restrictions.
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Active Directory Integrated DNS (ADIDNS) is one of the core components of AD DS, leveraging AD's access control and replication to maintain domain consistency. It stores DNS zones as AD objects, a feature that, while robust, introduces some security issues, such as wildcard records, mainly because of the default permission (Any authenticated users) to create DNS-named records. Attackers can create wildcard records to redirect traffic that doesn't explicitly match records contained in the zone, becoming the Man-in-the-Middle and being able to abuse DNS similarly to LLMNR/NBNS spoofing.
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This rule identifies when a User Account starts the Active Directory Replication Process. Attackers can use the DCSync technique to get credential information of individual accounts or the entire domain, thus compromising the entire domain.
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Potential Credential Access via DuplicateHandle in LSASS
Identifies suspicious access to an LSASS handle via DuplicateHandle from an unknown call trace module. This may indicate an attempt to bypass the NtOpenProcess API to evade detection and dump LSASS memory for credential access.
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Potential Credential Access via LSASS Memory Dump
Identifies suspicious access to LSASS handle from a call trace pointing to DBGHelp.dll or DBGCore.dll, which both export the MiniDumpWriteDump method that can be used to dump LSASS memory content in preparation for credential access.
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Potential Credential Access via Renamed COM+ Services DLL
Identifies suspicious renamed COMSVCS.DLL Image Load, which exports the MiniDump function that can be used to dump a process memory. This may indicate an attempt to dump LSASS memory while bypassing command-line based detection in preparation for credential access.
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An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, loaded DLLs (dynamically linked libraries) responsible for Windows credential management. This technique is sometimes used for credential dumping.
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Identifies a Windows trusted program that is known to be vulnerable to DLL Search Order Hijacking starting after being renamed or from a non-standard path. This is uncommon behavior and may indicate an attempt to evade defenses via side-loading a malicious DLL within the memory space of one of those processes.
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Identifies an instance of a Windows trusted program that is known to be vulnerable to DLL Search Order Hijacking starting after being renamed or from a non-standard path. This is uncommon behavior and may indicate an attempt to evade defenses via side loading a malicious DLL within the memory space of one of those processes.
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Potential DNS Tunneling via NsLookup
This rule identifies a large number (15) of nslookup.exe executions with an explicit query type from the same host. This may indicate command and control activity utilizing the DNS protocol.
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Potential Evasion via Windows Filtering Platform
Identifies multiple Windows Filtering Platform block events and where the process name is related to an endpoint security software. Adversaries may add malicious WFP rules to prevent Endpoint security from sending telemetry.
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Adversaries may leverage unquoted service path vulnerabilities to escalate privileges. By placing an executable in a higher-level directory within the path of an unquoted service executable, Windows will natively launch this executable from its defined path variable instead of the benign one in a deeper directory, thus leading to code execution.
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Windows contains accessibility features that may be launched with a key combination before a user has logged in. An adversary can modify the way these programs are launched to get a command prompt or backdoor without logging in to the system.
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Identifies modification of the Time Provider. Adversaries may establish persistence by registering and enabling a malicious DLL as a time provider. Windows uses the time provider architecture to obtain accurate time stamps from other network devices or clients in the network. Time providers are implemented in the form of a DLL file which resides in the System32 folder. The service W32Time initiates during the startup of Windows and loads w32time.dll.
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Identifies a privilege escalation attempt via exploiting CVE-2022-38028 to hijack the print spooler service execution.
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Identifies registry modifications to default services that could enable privilege escalation to SYSTEM. Attackers with privileges from groups like Server Operators may change the ImagePath of services to executables under their control or to execute commands.
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Identifies a suspicious computer account name rename event, which may indicate an attempt to exploit CVE-2021-42278 to elevate privileges from a standard domain user to a user with domain admin privileges. CVE-2021-42278 is a security vulnerability that allows potential attackers to impersonate a domain controller via samAccountName attribute spoofing.
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Identifies potential relay attacks against a domain controller (DC) by identifying authentication events using the domain controller computer account coming from other hosts to the DC that owns the account. Attackers may relay the DC hash after capturing it using forced authentication.
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Identifies the modification of the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) Shadow registry or the execution of processes indicative of an active RDP shadowing session. An adversary may abuse the RDP Shadowing feature to spy on or control other users active RDP sessions.
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Detects file name patterns generated by the use of Sysinternals SDelete utility to securely delete a file via multiple file overwrite and rename operations.
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Identifies suspicious instances of the Windows Error Reporting process (WerFault.exe or Wermgr.exe) with matching command-line and process executable values performing outgoing network connections. This may be indicative of a masquerading attempt to evade suspicious child process behavior detections.
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Identifies the creation of a DNS record that is potentially meant to enable WPAD spoofing. Attackers can disable the Global Query Block List (GQBL) and create a "wpad" record to exploit hosts running WPAD with default settings for privilege escalation and lateral movement.
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Identifies attempts to disable PowerShell Script Block Logging via registry modification. Attackers may disable this logging to conceal their activities in the host and evade detection.
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Privilege Escalation via Rogue Named Pipe Impersonation
Identifies a privilege escalation attempt via rogue named pipe impersonation. An adversary may abuse this technique by masquerading as a known named pipe and manipulating a privileged process to connect to it.
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Identifies a privilege escalation attempt via a rogue Windows directory (Windir) environment variable. This is a known primitive that is often combined with other vulnerabilities to elevate privileges.
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Privileged Account Brute Force
Identifies multiple consecutive logon failures targeting an Admin account from the same source address and within a short time interval. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts across multiple users with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain access to accounts.
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Process Creation via Secondary Logon
Identifies process creation with alternate credentials. Adversaries may create a new process with a different token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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Process Injection by the Microsoft Build Engine
An instance of MSBuild, the Microsoft Build Engine, created a thread in another process. This technique is sometimes used to evade detection or elevate privileges.
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Identifies use of the SysInternals tool PsExec.exe making a network connection. This could be an indication of lateral movement.
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RDP Enabled via Registry
Identifies registry write modifications to enable Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) access. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement preparation.
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Detects attempts to maintain persistence by creating registry keys using AppCert DLLs. AppCert DLLs are loaded by every process using the common API functions to create processes.
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Registry Persistence via AppInit DLL
AppInit DLLs are dynamic-link libraries (DLLs) that are loaded into every process that creates a user interface (loads user32.dll) on Microsoft Windows operating systems. The AppInit DLL mechanism is used to load custom code into user-mode processes, allowing for the customization of the user interface and the behavior of Windows-based applications. Attackers who add those DLLs to the registry locations can execute code with elevated privileges, similar to process injection, and provide a solid and constant persistence on the machine.
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Identifies the remote update to a computer account's DnsHostName attribute. If the new value set is a valid domain controller DNS hostname and the subject computer name is not a domain controller, then it's highly likely a preparation step to exploit CVE-2022-26923 in an attempt to elevate privileges from a standard domain user to domain admin privileges.
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Identifies built-in Windows script interpreters (cscript.exe or wscript.exe) being used to download an executable file from a remote destination.
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Identifies remote scheduled task creations on a target host. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement.
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Remote Scheduled Task Creation via RPC
Identifies scheduled task creation from a remote source. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement.
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Remote Windows Service Installed
Identifies a network logon followed by Windows service creation with same LogonId. This could be indicative of lateral movement, but will be noisy if commonly done by administrators."
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Identifies remote execution of Windows services over remote procedure call (RPC). This could be indicative of lateral movement, but will be noisy if commonly done by administrators.
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Identifies a suspicious AutoIt process execution. Malware written as an AutoIt script tends to rename the AutoIt executable to avoid detection.
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Identifies the execution of a process with a single character process name, differing from the original file name. This is often done by adversaries while staging, executing temporary utilities, or trying to bypass security detections based on the process name.
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A scheduled task was created by a Windows script via cscript.exe, wscript.exe or powershell.exe. This can be abused by an adversary to establish persistence.
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Detects the modification of Group Policy Object attributes to execute a scheduled task in the objects controlled by the GPO.
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Identifies attempts to enable the Windows scheduled tasks AT command via the registry. Attackers may use this method to move laterally or persist locally. The AT command has been deprecated since Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012, but still exists for backwards compatibility.
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Identifies the execution of scripts via HTML applications using Windows utilities rundll32.exe or mshta.exe. Adversaries may bypass process and/or signature-based defenses by proxying execution of malicious content with signed binaries.
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SeDebugPrivilege Enabled by a Suspicious Process
Identifies the creation of a process running as SYSTEM and impersonating a Windows core binary privileges. Adversaries may create a new process with a different token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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Service Command Lateral Movement
Identifies use of sc.exe to create, modify, or start services on remote hosts. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement but will be noisy if commonly done by admins.
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Identifies a suspicious local successful logon event where the Logon Package is Kerberos, the remote address is set to localhost, followed by a sevice creation from the same LogonId. This may indicate an attempt to leverage a Kerberos relay attack variant that can be used to elevate privilege locally from a domain joined user to local System privileges.
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Identifies a SolarWinds binary modifying the start type of a service to be disabled. An adversary may abuse this technique to manipulate relevant security services.
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Identifies files written to or modified in the startup folder by commonly abused processes. Adversaries may use this technique to maintain persistence.
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Detects the modification of Group Policy Objects (GPO) to add a startup/logon script to users or computer objects.
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Identify read access to a high number of Active Directory object attributes. The knowledge of objects properties can help adversaries find vulnerabilities, elevate privileges or collect sensitive information.
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Identifies the creation of the Antimalware Scan Interface (AMSI) DLL in an unusual location. This may indicate an attempt to bypass AMSI by loading a rogue AMSI module instead of the legit one.
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Identifies the loading of a non Microsoft signed DLL that is missing on a default Windows install (phantom DLL) or one that can be loaded from a different location by a native Windows process. This may be abused to persist or elevate privileges via privileged file write vulnerabilities.
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A suspicious Endpoint Security parent process was detected. This may indicate a process hollowing or other form of code injection.
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Identifies when a script interpreter or signed binary is launched via a non-standard working directory. An attacker may use this technique to evade defenses.
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Identifies execution of common Microsoft Office applications to launch an Office Add-In from a suspicious path or with an unusual parent process. This may indicate an attempt to get initial access via a malicious phishing MS Office Add-In.
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Suspicious Execution via Scheduled Task
Identifies execution of a suspicious program via scheduled tasks by looking at process lineage and command line usage.
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Detects Linux Bash commands from the the Windows Subsystem for Linux. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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Identifies a suspicious Windows explorer child process. Explorer.exe can be abused to launch malicious scripts or executables from a trusted parent process.
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Identifies a suspicious image load (taskschd.dll) from Microsoft Office processes. This behavior may indicate adversarial activity where a scheduled task is configured via Windows Component Object Model (COM). This technique can be used to configure persistence and evade monitoring by avoiding the usage of the traditional Windows binary (schtasks.exe) used to manage scheduled tasks.
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Identifies the creation of a suspicious ImagePath value. This could be an indication of an adversary attempting to stealthily persist or escalate privileges through abnormal service creation.
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Identifies suspicious processes being spawned by the JetBrain TeamCity process. This activity could be related to JetBrains remote code execution vulnerabilities.
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Suspicious LSASS Access via MalSecLogon
Identifies suspicious access to LSASS handle from a call trace pointing to seclogon.dll and with a suspicious access rights value. This may indicate an attempt to leak an LSASS handle via abusing the Secondary Logon service in preparation for credential access.
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Identifies potential abuse of the Microsoft Diagnostics Troubleshooting Wizard (MSDT) to proxy malicious command or binary execution via malicious process arguments.
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Identifies suspicious PowerShell execution spawning from Windows Script Host processes (cscript or wscript.exe).
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Detects deletion of print driver files by an unusual process. This may indicate a clean up attempt post successful privilege escalation via Print Spooler service related vulnerabilities.
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Identifies suspicious process access events from an unknown memory region. Endpoint security solutions usually hook userland Windows APIs in order to decide if the code that is being executed is malicious or not. It's possible to bypass hooked functions by writing malicious functions that call syscalls directly.
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Suspicious Process Creation CallTrace
Identifies when a process is created and immediately accessed from an unknown memory code region and by the same parent process. This may indicate a code injection attempt.
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Identifies suspicious psexec activity which is executing from the psexec service that has been renamed, possibly to evade detection.
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Identifies suspicious Image Loading of the Remote Desktop Services ActiveX Client (mstscax), this may indicate the presence of RDP lateral movement capability.
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Identifies remote access to the registry using an account with Backup Operators group membership. This may indicate an attempt to exfiltrate credentials by dumping the Security Account Manager (SAM) registry hive in preparation for credential access and privileges elevation.
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Identifies scrobj.dll loaded into unusual Microsoft processes. This usually means a malicious scriptlet is being executed in the target process.
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Suspicious Service was Installed in the System
Identifies the creation of a new Windows service with suspicious Service command values. Windows services typically run as SYSTEM and can be used for privilege escalation and persistence.
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Suspicious Startup Shell Folder Modification
Identifies suspicious startup shell folder modifications to change the default Startup directory in order to bypass detections monitoring file creation in the Windows Startup folder.
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Suspicious WerFault Child Process
A suspicious WerFault child process was detected, which may indicate an attempt to run via the SilentProcessExit registry key manipulation. Verify process details such as command line, network connections and file writes.
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Identifies the execution of the Windows Command Shell process (cmd.exe) with suspicious argument values. This behavior is often observed during malware installation.
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Suspicious WMI Event Subscription Created
Detects the creation of a WMI Event Subscription. Attackers can abuse this mechanism for persistence or to elevate to SYSTEM privileges.
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Identifies a suspicious image load (wmiutils.dll) from Microsoft Office processes. This behavior may indicate adversarial activity where child processes are spawned via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). This technique can be used to execute code and evade traditional parent/child processes spawned from Microsoft Office products.
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Identifies WMIC allowlist bypass techniques by alerting on suspicious execution of scripts. When WMIC loads scripting libraries it may be indicative of an allowlist bypass.
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Temporarily Scheduled Task Creation
Indicates the creation and deletion of a scheduled task within a short time interval. Adversaries can use these to proxy malicious execution via the schedule service and perform clean up.
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UAC Bypass Attempt via Elevated COM Internet Explorer Add-On Installer
Identifies User Account Control (UAC) bypass attempts by abusing an elevated COM Interface to launch a malicious program. Attackers may attempt to bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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Identifies attempts to bypass User Account Control (UAC) via DLL side-loading. Attackers may attempt to bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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UAC Bypass Attempt with IEditionUpgradeManager Elevated COM Interface
Identifies attempts to bypass User Account Control (UAC) by abusing an elevated COM Interface to launch a rogue Windows ClipUp program. Attackers may attempt to bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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Identifies User Account Control (UAC) bypass attempts via the ICMLuaUtil Elevated COM interface. Attackers may attempt to bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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UAC Bypass via Windows Firewall Snap-In Hijack
Oct 15, 2024 · Domain: Endpoint OS: Windows Use Case: Threat Detection Tactic: Privilege Escalation Tactic: Defense Evasion Resources: Investigation Guide Data Source: Elastic Endgame Data Source: Elastic Defend Data Source: Sysmon Data Source: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Data Source: SentinelOne ·Identifies attempts to bypass User Account Control (UAC) by hijacking the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) Windows Firewall snap-in. Attackers bypass UAC to stealthily execute code with elevated permissions.
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Untrusted DLL Loaded by Azure AD Sync Service
Identifies the load of a DLL without a valid code signature by the Azure AD Sync process, which may indicate an attempt to persist or collect sensitive credentials passing through the Azure AD synchronization server.
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Unusual Child Processes of RunDLL32
Identifies child processes of unusual instances of RunDLL32 where the command line parameters were suspicious. Misuse of RunDLL32 could indicate malicious activity.
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Unusual Executable File Creation by a System Critical Process
Identifies an unexpected executable file being created or modified by a Windows system critical process, which may indicate activity related to remote code execution or other forms of exploitation.
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Unusual Execution via Microsoft Common Console File
Identifies the execution of a child process from a Microsoft Common Console file. Adversaries may embed a malicious command in an MSC file in order to trick victims into executing malicious commands.
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Identifies suspicious creation of Alternate Data Streams on highly targeted files. This is uncommon for legitimate files and sometimes done by adversaries to hide malware.
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Identifies an unexpected file being modified by dns.exe, the process responsible for Windows DNS Server services, which may indicate activity related to remote code execution or other forms of exploitation.
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Identifies network activity from unexpected system applications. This may indicate adversarial activity as these applications are often leveraged by adversaries to execute code and evade detection.
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Unusual Network Connection via DllHost
Identifies unusual instances of dllhost.exe making outbound network connections. This may indicate adversarial Command and Control activity.
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Identifies unusual instances of rundll32.exe making outbound network connections. This may indicate adversarial Command and Control activity.
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Identifies a suspicious parent child process relationship with cmd.exe descending from an unusual process.
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Identifies processes modifying the services registry key directly, instead of through the expected Windows APIs. This could be an indication of an adversary attempting to stealthily persist through abnormal service creation or modification of an existing service.
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Detects unusual Print Spooler service (spoolsv.exe) child processes. This may indicate an attempt to exploit privilege escalation vulnerabilities related to the Printing Service on Windows.
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Identifies network activity from unexpected system applications. This may indicate adversarial activity as these applications are often leveraged by adversaries to execute code and evade detection.
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Identifies unusual child processes of Service Host (svchost.exe) that traditionally do not spawn any child processes. This may indicate a code injection or an equivalent form of exploitation.
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Identifies a user being added to a privileged group in Active Directory. Privileged accounts and groups in Active Directory are those to which powerful rights, privileges, and permissions are granted that allow them to perform nearly any action in Active Directory and on domain-joined systems.
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Identifies the registration of a Werfault Debugger. Attackers may abuse this mechanism to execute malicious payloads every time the utility is executed with the "-pr" parameter.
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Identifies suspicious use of whoami.exe which displays user, group, and privileges information for the user who is currently logged on to the local system.
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Windows Script Executing PowerShell
Identifies a PowerShell process launched by either cscript.exe or wscript.exe. Observing Windows scripting processes executing a PowerShell script, may be indicative of malicious activity.
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Identifies use of the built-in Windows script interpreters (cscript.exe or wscript.exe) being used to execute a process via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). This may be indicative of malicious activity.
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Windows Service Installed via an Unusual Client
Identifies the creation of a Windows service by an unusual client process. Services may be created with administrator privileges but are executed under SYSTEM privileges, so an adversary may also use a service to escalate privileges from administrator to SYSTEM.
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Detects changes to the registry that indicates the install of a new Windows Subsystem for Linux distribution by name. Adversaries may enable and use WSL for Linux to avoid detection.
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WMI Incoming Lateral Movement
Identifies processes executed via Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) on a remote host. This could be indicative of adversary lateral movement, but could be noisy if administrators use WMI to remotely manage hosts.
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Identifies the load of a remote library by the WPS Office promecefpluginhost.exe executable. This may indicate the successful exploitation of CVE-2024-7262 or CVE-2024-7263 via DLL hijack abusing the ksoqing custom protocol handler.
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Identifies network connections to the standard Kerberos port from an unusual process. On Windows, the only process that normally performs Kerberos traffic from a domain joined host is lsass.exe.
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Identifies an executable or script file remotely downloaded via a TeamViewer transfer session.
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A suspicious SolarWinds child process was detected, which may indicate an attempt to execute malicious programs.
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Identifies the deletion of backup files, saved using third-party software, by a process outside of the backup suite. Adversaries may delete Backup files to ensure that recovery from a ransomware attack is less likely.
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Adversaries can use the autostart mechanism provided by the Local Security Authority (LSA) authentication packages for privilege escalation or persistence by placing a reference to a binary in the Windows registry. The binary will then be executed by SYSTEM when the authentication packages are loaded.
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Identifies port monitor and print processor registry modifications. Adversaries may abuse port monitor and print processors to run malicious DLLs during system boot that will be executed as SYSTEM for privilege escalation and/or persistence, if permissions allow writing a fully-qualified pathname for that DLL.
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Detects attempts to exploit privilege escalation vulnerabilities related to the Print Spooler service including CVE-2020-1048 and CVE-2020-1337.
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Identifies the modification of the Microsoft Office "Office Test" Registry key, a registry location that can be used to specify a DLL which will be executed every time an MS Office application is started. Attackers can abuse this to gain persistence on a compromised host.
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Identifies a potential forced authentication using related SMB named pipes. Attackers may attempt to force targets to authenticate to a host controlled by them to capture hashes or enable relay attacks.
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Identifies LSASS loading an unsigned or untrusted DLL. Windows Security Support Provider (SSP) DLLs are loaded into LSSAS process at system start. Once loaded into the LSA, SSP DLLs have access to encrypted and plaintext passwords that are stored in Windows, such as any logged-on user's Domain password or smart card PINs.
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Identifies potential brute-force attempts against Microsoft 365 user accounts by detecting a high number of failed login attempts or login sources within a 30-minute window. Attackers may attempt to brute force user accounts to gain unauthorized access to Microsoft 365 services.
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Identifies
CopyObject
events within an S3 bucket using an AWS KMS key from an external account for encryption. Adversaries with access to a misconfigured S3 bucket and the proper permissions may encrypt objects with an external KMS key to deny their victims access to their own data.
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Identifies when a single AWS resource is making
GetServiceQuota
API calls for the EC2 service quota L-1216C47A in more than 10 regions within a 30-second window. Quota code L-1216C47A represents on-demand instances which are used by adversaries to deploy malware and mine cryptocurrency. This could indicate a potential threat actor attempting to discover the AWS infrastructure across multiple regions using compromised credentials or a compromised instance.
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Identifies when a federated user logs into the AWS Management Console without using multi-factor authentication (MFA). Federated users are typically given temporary credentials to access AWS services. If a federated user logs into the AWS Management Console without using MFA, it may indicate a security risk, as MFA adds an additional layer of security to the authentication process. This could also indicate the abuse of STS tokens to bypass MFA requirements.
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Identifies potential brute-force attempts against Microsoft 365 user accounts by detecting a high number of failed interactive or non-interactive login attempts within a 30-minute window. Attackers may attempt to brute force user accounts to gain unauthorized access to Microsoft 365 services via different services such as Exchange, SharePoint, or Teams.
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Identifies potential brute-force attempts against Microsoft 365 user accounts by detecting a high number of failed interactive or non-interactive login attempts within a 30-minute window from a single source. Attackers may attempt to brute force user accounts to gain unauthorized access to Microsoft 365 services via different services such as Exchange, SharePoint, or Teams.
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Potential AWS S3 Bucket Ransomware Note Uploaded
Identifies potential ransomware note being uploaded to an AWS S3 bucket. This rule detects the
PutObject
S3 API call with a common ransomware note file extension such as.ransom
, or.lock
. Adversaries with access to a misconfigured S3 bucket may retrieve, delete, and replace objects with ransom notes to extort victims.
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Potential Widespread Malware Infection Across Multiple Hosts
This rule uses alert data to determine when a malware signature is triggered in multiple hosts. Analysts can use this to prioritize triage and response, as this can potentially indicate a widespread malware infection.
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Identifies AWS EC2 EBS snaphots being shared with another AWS account. EBS virtual disks can be copied into snapshots, which can then be shared with an external AWS account or made public. Adversaries may attempt this in order to copy the snapshot into an environment they control, to access the data.
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File Creation by Cups or Foomatic-rip Child
This detection rule addresses multiple vulnerabilities in the CUPS printing system, including CVE-2024-47176, CVE-2024-47076, CVE-2024-47175, and CVE-2024-47177. Specifically, this rule detects suspicious file creation events executed by child processes of foomatic-rip. These flaws impact components like cups-browsed, libcupsfilters, libppd, and foomatic-rip, allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to manipulate IPP URLs or inject malicious data through crafted UDP packets or network spoofing. This can result in arbitrary command execution when a print job is initiated.
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This detection rule addresses multiple vulnerabilities in the CUPS printing system, including CVE-2024-47176, CVE-2024-47076, CVE-2024-47175, and CVE-2024-47177. Specifically, this rule detects network connections initiated by a child processes of foomatic-rip. These flaws impact components like cups-browsed, libcupsfilters, libppd, and foomatic-rip, allowing remote unauthenticated attackers to manipulate IPP URLs or inject malicious data through crafted UDP packets or network spoofing. This can result in arbitrary command execution when a print job is initiated.
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Microsoft 365 Portal Login from Rare Location
Detects successful Microsoft 365 portal logins from rare locations. Rare locations are defined as locations that are not commonly associated with the user's account. This behavior may indicate an adversary attempting to access a Microsoft 365 account from an unusual location or behind a VPN.
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Microsoft 365 Portal Logins from Impossible Travel Locations
Detects successful Microsoft 365 portal logins from impossible travel locations. Impossible travel locations are defined as two different countries within a short time frame. This behavior may indicate an adversary attempting to access a Microsoft 365 account from a compromised account or a malicious actor attempting to access a Microsoft 365 account from a different location.
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This rule monitors for at jobs being created or renamed. Linux at jobs are scheduled tasks that can be leveraged by system administrators to set up scheduled tasks, but may be abused by malicious actors for persistence, privilege escalation and command execution. By creating or modifying cron job configurations, attackers can execute malicious commands or scripts at predefined intervals, ensuring their continued presence and enabling unauthorized activities.
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Adversaries may attempt to disable the iptables or firewall service in an attempt to affect how a host is allowed to receive or send network traffic.
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Adversaries may attempt to disable the syslog service in an attempt to an attempt to disrupt event logging and evade detection by security controls.
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Adversaries may implement command and control (C2) communications that use common web services to hide their activity. This attack technique is typically targeted at an organization and uses web services common to the victim network, which allows the adversary to blend into legitimate traffic activity. These popular services are typically targeted since they have most likely been used before compromise, which helps malicious traffic blend in.
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DNF Package Manager Plugin File Creation
Detects file creation events in the plugin directories for the Yum package manager. In Linux, DNF (Dandified YUM) is a command-line utility used for handling packages on Fedora-based systems, providing functions for installing, updating, upgrading, and removing software along with managing package repositories. Attackers can backdoor DNF to gain persistence by injecting malicious code into plugins that DNF runs, thereby ensuring continued unauthorized access or control each time DNF is used for package management.
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Executable Bit Set for Potential Persistence Script
This rule monitors for the addition of an executable bit for scripts that are located in directories which are commonly abused for persistence. An alert of this rule is an indicator that a persistence mechanism is being set up within your environment. Adversaries may create these scripts to execute malicious code at start-up, or at a set interval to gain persistence onto the system.
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Forwarded Google Workspace Security Alert
Identifies the occurrence of a security alert from the Google Workspace alerts center. Google Workspace's security alert center provides an overview of actionable alerts that may be affecting an organization's domain. An alert is a warning of a potential security issue that Google has detected.
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This rule detects child processes spawned by Git hooks. Git hooks are scripts that Git executes before or after events such as commit, push, and receive. The rule identifies child processes spawned by Git hooks that are not typically spawned by the Git process itself. This behavior may indicate an attacker attempting to hide malicious activity by leveraging the legitimate Git process to execute unauthorized commands.
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This rule detects the execution of a potentially malicious process from a Git hook. Git hooks are scripts that Git executes before or after events such as: commit, push, and receive. An attacker can abuse Git hooks to execute arbitrary commands on the system and establish persistence.
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This rule detects a suspicious egress network connection attempt from a Git hook script. Git hooks are scripts that Git executes before or after events such as: commit, push, and receive. An attacker can abuse these features to execute arbitrary commands on the system, establish persistence or to initialize a network connection to a remote server and exfiltrate data or download additional payloads.
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Linux Group Creation
Identifies attempts to create a new group. Attackers may create new groups to establish persistence on a system.
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Linux Restricted Shell Breakout via Linux Binary(s)
Identifies the abuse of a Linux binary to break out of a restricted shell or environment by spawning an interactive system shell. The activity of spawning a shell from a binary is not common behavior for a user or system administrator, and may indicate an attempt to evade detection, increase capabilities or enhance the stability of an adversary.
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Linux User Account Creation
Identifies attempts to create new users. Attackers may add new users to establish persistence on a system.
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Message-of-the-Day (MOTD) File Creation
This rule detects the creation of potentially malicious files within the default MOTD file directories. Message of the day (MOTD) is the message that is presented to the user when a user connects to a Linux server via SSH or a serial connection. Linux systems contain several default MOTD files located in the "/etc/update-motd.d/" directory. These scripts run as the root user every time a user connects over SSH or a serial connection. Adversaries may create malicious MOTD files that grant them persistence onto the target every time a user connects to the system by executing a backdoor script or command.
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Network Connections Initiated Through XDG Autostart Entry
Detects network connections initiated through Cross-Desktop Group (XDG) autostart entries for GNOME and XFCE-based Linux distributions. XDG Autostart entries can be used to execute arbitrary commands or scripts when a user logs in. This rule helps to identify potential malicious activity where an attacker may have modified XDG autostart scripts to establish persistence on the system.
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Identifies parent process spoofing used to thwart detection. Adversaries may spoof the parent process identifier (PPID) of a new process to evade process-monitoring defenses or to elevate privileges.
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Potential Execution of rc.local Script
This rule detects the potential execution of the
/etc/rc.local
script through thealready_running
event action created by therc-local.service
systemd service. The/etc/rc.local
script is a legacy initialization script that is executed at the end of the boot process. The/etc/rc.local
script is not enabled by default on most Linux distributions. The/etc/rc.local
script can be used by attackers to persistently execute malicious commands or scripts on a compromised system at reboot. As the rc.local file is executed prior to the initialization of Elastic Defend, the execution event is not ingested, and therefore thealready_running
event is leveraged to provide insight into the potential execution ofrc.local
.
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Identifies the creation or change of a Windows executable file over network shares. Adversaries may transfer tools or other files between systems in a compromised environment.
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Identifies the attempt to create a new backdoor user by setting the user's UID to 0. Attackers may alter a user's UID to 0 to establish persistence on a system.
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Potential Meterpreter Reverse Shell
This detection rule identifies a sample of suspicious Linux system file reads used for system fingerprinting, leveraged by the Metasploit Meterpreter shell to gather information about the target that it is executing its shell on. Detecting this pattern is indicative of a successful meterpreter shell connection.
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This rule leverages the File Integrity Monitoring (FIM) integration to detect file modifications of files that are commonly used for persistence on Linux systems. The rule detects modifications to files that are commonly used for cron jobs, systemd services, message-of-the-day (MOTD), SSH configurations, shell configurations, runtime control, init daemon, passwd/sudoers/shadow files, Systemd udevd, and XDG/KDE autostart entries. To leverage this rule, the paths specified in the query need to be added to the FIM policy in the Elastic Security app.
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Potential Privilege Escalation via Sudoers File Modification
A sudoers file specifies the commands users or groups can run and from which terminals. Adversaries can take advantage of these configurations to execute commands as other users or spawn processes with higher privileges.
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Identifies the execution of a shell process with suspicious arguments which may be indicative of reverse shell activity.
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Potential Reverse Shell via UDP
This detection rule identifies suspicious network traffic patterns associated with UDP reverse shell activity. This activity consists of a sample of an execve, socket and connect syscall executed by the same process, where the auditd.data.a0-1 indicate a UDP connection, ending with an egress connection event. An attacker may establish a Linux UDP reverse shell to bypass traditional firewall restrictions and gain remote access to a target system covertly.
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Potential SharpRDP Behavior
Identifies potential behavior of SharpRDP, which is a tool that can be used to perform authenticated command execution against a remote target via Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) for the purposes of lateral movement.
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Potential Sudo Hijacking
Identifies the creation of a sudo binary located at /usr/bin/sudo. Attackers may hijack the default sudo binary and replace it with a custom binary or script that can read the user's password in clear text to escalate privileges or enable persistence onto the system every time the sudo binary is executed.
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rc.local/rc.common File Creation
This rule monitors the creation/alteration of the rc.local/rc.common file. The /etc/rc.local file is used to start custom applications, services, scripts or commands during start-up. The rc.local file has mostly been replaced by Systemd. However, through the "systemd-rc-local-generator", rc.local files can be converted to services that run at boot. Adversaries may alter rc.local/rc.common to execute malicious code at start-up, and gain persistence onto the system.
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Identifies the execution of a file that was created by the virtual system process. This may indicate lateral movement via network file shares.
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Identifies potentially suspicious processes that are not trusted or living-off-the-land binaries (LOLBin) making Server Message Block (SMB) network connections over port 445. Windows File Sharing is typically implemented over SMB, which communicates between hosts using port 445. Legitimate connections are generally established by the kernel (PID 4). This rule helps to detect processes that might be port scanners, exploits, or user-level processes attempting lateral movement within the network by leveraging SMB connections.
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This rule identifies the creation of SSH keys using the ssh-keygen tool, which is the standard utility for generating SSH keys. Users often create SSH keys for authentication with remote services. However, threat actors can exploit this tool to move laterally across a network or maintain persistence by generating unauthorized SSH keys, granting them SSH access to systems.
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Identifies run key or startup key registry modifications. In order to survive reboots and other system interrupts, attackers will modify run keys within the registry or leverage startup folder items as a form of persistence.
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Sudoers File Modification
A sudoers file specifies the commands that users or groups can run and from which terminals. Adversaries can take advantage of these configurations to execute commands as other users or spawn processes with higher privileges.
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SUID/SGID Bit Set
An adversary may add the setuid or setgid bit to a file or directory in order to run a file with the privileges of the owning user or group. An adversary can take advantage of this to either do a shell escape or exploit a vulnerability in an application with the setuid or setgid bit to get code running in a different user’s context. Additionally, adversaries can use this mechanism on their own malware to make sure they're able to execute in elevated contexts in the future.
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SUID/SGUID Enumeration Detected
This rule monitors for the usage of the "find" command in conjunction with SUID and SGUID permission arguments. SUID (Set User ID) and SGID (Set Group ID) are special permissions in Linux that allow a program to execute with the privileges of the file owner or group, respectively, rather than the privileges of the user running the program. In case an attacker is able to enumerate and find a binary that is misconfigured, they might be able to leverage this misconfiguration to escalate privileges by exploiting vulnerabilities or built-in features in the privileged program.
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Detects suspicious process events executed by the APT package manager, potentially indicating persistence through an APT backdoor. In Linux, APT (Advanced Package Tool) is a command-line utility used for handling packages on Debian-based systems, providing functions for installing, updating, upgrading, and removing software along with managing package repositories. Attackers can backdoor APT to gain persistence by injecting malicious code into scripts that APT runs, thereby ensuring continued unauthorized access or control each time APT is used for package management.
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Detects suspicious network events executed by the APT package manager, potentially indicating persistence through an APT backdoor. In Linux, APT (Advanced Package Tool) is a command-line utility used for handling packages on Debian-based systems, providing functions for installing, updating, upgrading, and removing software along with managing package repositories. Attackers can backdoor APT to gain persistence by injecting malicious code into scripts that APT runs, thereby ensuring continued unauthorized access or control each time APT is used for package management.
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Suspicious Emond Child Process
Identifies the execution of a suspicious child process of the Event Monitor Daemon (emond). Adversaries may abuse this service by writing a rule to execute commands when a defined event occurs, such as system start up or user authentication.
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Detects the manual creation of files in specific etc directories, via user root, used by Linux malware to persist and elevate privileges on compromised systems. File creation in these directories should not be entirely common and could indicate a malicious binary or script installing persistence mechanisms for long term access.
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Suspicious PowerShell Engine ImageLoad
Identifies the PowerShell engine being invoked by unexpected processes. Rather than executing PowerShell functionality with powershell.exe, some attackers do this to operate more stealthily.
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Suspicious rc.local Error Message
This rule monitors the syslog log file for error messages related to the rc.local process. The rc.local file is a script that is executed during the boot process on Linux systems. Attackers may attempt to modify the rc.local file to execute malicious commands or scripts during system startup. This rule detects error messages such as "Connection refused," "No such file or directory," or "command not found" in the syslog log file, which may indicate that the rc.local file has been tampered with.
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Identifies the deletion of sensitive Linux system logs. This may indicate an attempt to evade detection or destroy forensic evidence on a system.
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Systemd Service Started by Unusual Parent Process
Systemctl is a process used in Linux systems to manage systemd processes through service configuration files. Malicious actors can leverage systemd services to achieve persistence by creating or modifying service files to execute malicious commands or payloads during system startup. This allows them to maintain unauthorized access, execute additional malicious activities, or evade detection.
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Adversaries may attempt to clear or disable the Bash command-line history in an attempt to evade detection or forensic investigations.
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Unknown Execution of Binary with RWX Memory Region
Monitors for the execution of a previously unknown unix binary with read, write and execute memory region permissions. The mprotect() system call is used to change the access protections on a region of memory that has already been allocated. This syscall allows a process to modify the permissions of pages in its virtual address space, enabling or disabling permissions such as read, write, and execute for those pages. RWX permissions on memory is in many cases overly permissive, and should be analyzed thoroughly.
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Identifies an unsigned library created in the last 5 minutes and subsequently loaded by a shared windows service (svchost). Adversaries may use this technique to maintain persistence or run with System privileges.
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Unsigned DLL Side-Loading from a Suspicious Folder
Identifies a Windows trusted program running from locations often abused by adversaries to masquerade as a trusted program and loading a recently dropped DLL. This behavior may indicate an attempt to evade defenses via side-loading a malicious DLL within the memory space of a signed processes.
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User or Group Creation/Modification
This rule leverages the
auditd_manager
integration to detect user or group creation or modification events on Linux systems. Threat actors may attempt to create or modify users or groups to establish persistence on the system.
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Yum/DNF Plugin Status Discovery
This rule detects the execution of the
grep
command with theplugins
argument on Linux systems. This command is used to search for YUM/DNF configurations and/or plugins with an enabled state. This behavior may indicate an attacker is attempting to establish persistence in a YUM or DNF plugin.
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This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of Telnet traffic. Telnet is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control older or embedded systems using the command line shell. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector. As a plain-text protocol, it may also expose usernames and passwords to anyone capable of observing the traffic.
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IPSEC NAT Traversal Port Activity
This rule detects events that could be describing IPSEC NAT Traversal traffic. IPSEC is a VPN technology that allows one system to talk to another using encrypted tunnels. NAT Traversal enables these tunnels to communicate over the Internet where one of the sides is behind a NAT router gateway. This may be common on your network, but this technique is also used by threat actors to avoid detection.
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Possible FIN7 DGA Command and Control Behavior
This rule detects a known command and control pattern in network events. The FIN7 threat group is known to use this command and control technique, while maintaining persistence in their target's network.
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RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) from the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of RDP traffic from the Internet. RDP is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control a system for maintenance or to use shared resources. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector.
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Roshal Archive (RAR) or PowerShell File Downloaded from the Internet
Detects a Roshal Archive (RAR) file or PowerShell script downloaded from the internet by an internal host. Gaining initial access to a system and then downloading encoded or encrypted tools to move laterally is a common practice for adversaries as a way to protect their more valuable tools and tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs). This may be atypical behavior for a managed network and can be indicative of malware, exfiltration, or command and control.
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RPC (Remote Procedure Call) from the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of RPC traffic from the Internet. RPC is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control a system for maintenance or to use shared resources. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector.
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RPC (Remote Procedure Call) to the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of RPC traffic to the Internet. RPC is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control a system for maintenance or to use shared resources. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector.
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SMB (Windows File Sharing) Activity to the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of Windows file sharing (also called SMB or CIFS) traffic to the Internet. SMB is commonly used within networks to share files, printers, and other system resources amongst trusted systems. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector or for data exfiltration.
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SMTP on Port 26/TCP
This rule detects events that may indicate use of SMTP on TCP port 26. This port is commonly used by several popular mail transfer agents to deconflict with the default SMTP port 25. This port has also been used by a malware family called BadPatch for command and control of Windows systems.
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VNC (Virtual Network Computing) from the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of VNC traffic from the Internet. VNC is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control a system for maintenance or to use shared resources. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector.
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VNC (Virtual Network Computing) to the Internet
This rule detects network events that may indicate the use of VNC traffic to the Internet. VNC is commonly used by system administrators to remotely control a system for maintenance or to use shared resources. It should almost never be directly exposed to the Internet, as it is frequently targeted and exploited by threat actors as an initial access or backdoor vector.
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ROT Encoded Python Script Execution
Identifies the execution of a Python script that uses the ROT cipher for letters substitution. Adversaries may use this method to encode and obfuscate part of their malicious code in legit python packages.
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Persistence via a Windows Installer
Identifies when the Windows installer process msiexec.exe creates a new persistence entry via scheduled tasks or startup.
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This rule detects the creation or renaming of the SELinux configuration file. SELinux is a security module that provides access control security policies. Modifications to the SELinux configuration file may indicate an attempt to impair defenses by disabling or modifying security tools.
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Adversaries may attempt to disable the Auditd service to evade detection. Auditd is a Linux service that provides system auditing and logging. Disabling the Auditd service can prevent the system from logging important security events, which can be used to detect malicious activity.
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This rule detects the creation or rename of the Doas configuration file on a Linux system. Adversaries may create or modify the Doas configuration file to elevate privileges and execute commands as other users while attempting to evade detection.
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SSL Certificate Deletion
This rule detects the deletion of SSL certificates on a Linux system. Adversaries may delete SSL certificates to subvert trust controls and negatively impact the system.
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AWS CLI Command with Custom Endpoint URL
Detects the use of the AWS CLI with the
--endpoint-url
argument, which allows users to specify a custom endpoint URL for AWS services. This can be leveraged by adversaries to redirect API requests to non-standard or malicious endpoints, potentially bypassing typical security controls and logging mechanisms. This behavior may indicate an attempt to interact with unauthorized or compromised infrastructure, exfiltrate data, or perform other malicious activities under the guise of legitimate AWS operations.
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Identifies the first occurrence of an AWS Security Token Service (STS)
GetFederationToken
request made by a user within the last 10 days. TheGetFederationToken
API call allows users to request temporary security credentials to access AWS resources. Adversaries may use this API to obtain temporary credentials to access resources they would not normally have access to.
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Identifies access attempts to the LSASS handle, which may indicate an attempt to dump credentials from LSASS memory.
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This rule monitors for potential attempts to disable AppArmor. AppArmor is a Linux security module that enforces fine-grained access control policies to restrict the actions and resources that specific applications and processes can access. Adversaries may disable security tools to avoid possible detection of their tools and activities.
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Suspicious File Downloaded from Google Drive
Identifies suspicious file download activity from a Google Drive URL. This could indicate an attempt to deliver phishing payloads via a trusted webservice.
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Downloaded Shortcut Files
Identifies .lnk shortcut file downloaded from outside the local network. These shortcut files are commonly used in phishing campaigns.
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Downloaded URL Files
Identifies .url shortcut files downloaded from outside the local network. These shortcut files are commonly used in phishing campaigns.
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Identifies an executable created by a Microsoft Office application and subsequently executed. These processes are often launched via scripts inside documents or during exploitation of Microsoft Office applications.
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Identifies downloads of executable and archive files via the Windows Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS). Adversaries could leverage Windows BITS transfer jobs to download remote payloads.
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Identifies the creation or modification of a medium-size registry hive file on a Server Message Block (SMB) share, which may indicate an exfiltration attempt of a previously dumped Security Account Manager (SAM) registry hive for credential extraction on an attacker-controlled system.
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Suspicious HTML File Creation
Identifies the execution of a browser process to open an HTML file with high entropy and size. Adversaries may smuggle data and files past content filters by hiding malicious payloads inside of seemingly benign HTML files.
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Identifies Component Object Model (COM) hijacking via registry modification. Adversaries may establish persistence by executing malicious content triggered by hijacked references to COM objects.
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Identifies use of the Windows Management Instrumentation StdRegProv (registry provider) to modify commonly abused registry locations for persistence.
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AWS S3 Object Versioning Suspended
Identifies when object versioning is suspended for an Amazon S3 bucket. Object versioning allows for multiple versions of an object to exist in the same bucket. This allows for easy recovery of deleted or overwritten objects. When object versioning is suspended for a bucket, it could indicate an adversary's attempt to inhibit system recovery following malicious activity. Additionally, when versioning is suspended, buckets can then be deleted.
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Identifies attempts to access sensitive registry hives which contain credentials from the registry backup folder.
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Potential Suspicious DebugFS Root Device Access
This rule monitors for the usage of the built-in Linux DebugFS utility to access a disk device without root permissions. Linux users that are part of the "disk" group have sufficient privileges to access all data inside of the machine through DebugFS. Attackers may leverage DebugFS in conjunction with "disk" permissions to read sensitive files owned by root, such as the shadow file, root ssh private keys or other sensitive files that may allow them to further escalate privileges.
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Identifies the creation of a symbolic link to a suspicious file or location. A symbolic link is a reference to a file or directory that acts as a pointer or shortcut, allowing users to access the target file or directory from a different location in the file system. An attacker can potentially leverage symbolic links for privilege escalation by tricking a privileged process into following the symbolic link to a sensitive file, giving the attacker access to data or capabilities they would not normally have.
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Authentication via Unusual PAM Grantor
This rule detects successful authentications via PAM grantors that are not commonly used. This could indicate an attacker is attempting to escalate privileges or maintain persistence on the system by modifying the default PAM configuration.
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Identifies when an AWS Lambda function policy is updated to allow public invocation. This rule specifically looks for the
AddPermission
API call with thePrincipal
set to*
which allows any AWS account to invoke the Lambda function. Adversaries may abuse this permission to create a backdoor in the Lambda function that allows them to execute arbitrary code.
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AWS Lambda Layer Added to Existing Function
Identifies when an Lambda Layer is added to an existing Lambda function. AWS layers are a way to share code and data across multiple functions. By adding a layer to an existing function, an attacker can persist or execute code in the context of the function.
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AWS S3 Bucket Policy Added to Share with External Account
Identifies an AWS S3 bucket policy change to share permissions with an external account. Adversaries may attempt to backdoor an S3 bucket by sharing it with an external account. This can be used to exfiltrate data or to provide access to other adversaries. This rule identifies changes to a bucket policy via the
PutBucketPolicy
API call where the policy includes anEffect=Allow
statement that does not contain the AWS account ID of the bucket owner.
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File System Debugger Launched Inside a Privileged Container
This rule detects the use of the built-in Linux DebugFS utility from inside a privileged container. DebugFS is a special file system debugging utility which supports reading and writing directly from a hard drive device. When launched inside a privileged container, a container deployed with all the capabilities of the host machine, an attacker can access sensitive host level files which could be used for further privilege escalation and container escapes to the host machine.
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Identifies when a specified inbound (ingress) rule is added or adjusted for a VPC security group in AWS EC2. This rule detects when a security group rule is added that allows traffic from any IP address or from a specific IP address to common remote access ports, such as 22 (SSH) or 3389 (RDP). Adversaries may add these rules to allow remote access to VPC instances from any location, increasing the attack surface and potentially exposing the instances to unauthorized access.
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Mount Launched Inside a Privileged Container
This rule detects the use of the mount utility from inside a privileged container. The mount command is used to make a device or file system accessible to the system, and then to connect its root directory to a specified mount point on the local file system. When launched inside a privileged container--a container deployed with all the capabilities of the host machine-- an attacker can access sensitive host level files which could be used for further privilege escalation and container escapes to the host machine. Any usage of mount inside a running privileged container should be further investigated.
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Identifies the first occurrence of an AWS resource establishing a session via SSM to an EC2 instance. Adversaries may use AWS Systems Manager to establish a session to an EC2 instance to execute commands on the instance. This can be used to gain access to the instance and perform actions such as privilege escalation. This rule helps detect the first occurrence of this activity for a given AWS resource.
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Creation or Modification of Pluggable Authentication Module or Configuration
This rule monitors for the creation or modification of Pluggable Authentication Module (PAM) shared object files or configuration files. Attackers may create or modify these files to maintain persistence on a compromised system, or harvest account credentials.
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Detects network connections initiated by the "sudo" binary. This behavior is uncommon and may occur in instances where reverse shell shellcode is injected into a process run with elevated permissions via "sudo". Attackers may attempt to inject shellcode into processes running as root, to escalate privileges.
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Potential Shell via Wildcard Injection Detected
This rule monitors for the execution of a set of linux binaries, that are potentially vulnerable to wildcard injection, with suspicious command line flags followed by a shell spawn event. Linux wildcard injection is a type of security vulnerability where attackers manipulate commands or input containing wildcards (e.g., *, ?, []) to execute unintended operations or access sensitive data by tricking the system into interpreting the wildcard characters in unexpected ways.
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Suspicious File Changes Activity Detected
This rule identifies a sequence of 100 file extension rename events within a set of common file paths by the same process in a timespan of 1 second. Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts a victim's files or systems and demands payment (usually in cryptocurrency) in exchange for the decryption key. One important indicator of a ransomware attack is the mass encryption of the file system, after which a new file extension is added to the file.
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Suspicious File Creation via Kworker
This rule monitors for a file creation event originating from a kworker parent process. kworker, or kernel worker, processes are part of the kernel's workqueue mechanism. They are responsible for executing work that has been scheduled to be done in kernel space, which might include tasks like handling interrupts, background activities, and other kernel-related tasks. Attackers may attempt to evade detection by masquerading as a kernel worker process.
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Identifies when the
PutBucketReplication
operation is used to replicate S3 objects to a bucket in another AWS account. Adversaries may use bucket replication to exfiltrate sensitive data to an environment they control.
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Docker Escape via Nsenter
This rule identifies a UID change event via
nsenter
. Thensenter
command is used to enter a namespace, which is a way to isolate processes and resources. Attackers can usensenter
to escape from a container to the host, which can lead to privilege escalation and lateral movement.
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Egress Connection from Entrypoint in Container
This rule identifies a sequence of events where a process named
entrypoint.sh
is started in a container, followed by a network connection attempt. This sequence indicates a potential egress connection from an entrypoint in a container. An entrypoint is a command or script specified in the Dockerfile and executed when the container starts. Attackers can use this technique to establish a foothold in the environment, escape from a container to the host, or establish persistence.
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Identifies the creation or modification of an AWS RDS DB instance to enable public access. DB instances may contain sensitive data that can be abused if shared with unauthorized accounts or made public. Adversaries may enable public access on a DB instance to maintain persistence or evade defenses by bypassing access controls.
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Identifies the modification of an AWS RDS DB instance or cluster to remove the deletionProtection feature. Deletion protection is enabled automatically for instances set up through the console and can be used to protect them from unintentional deletion activity. If disabled an instance or cluster can be deleted, destroying sensitive or critical information. Adversaries with the proper permissions can take advantage of this to set up future deletion events against a compromised environment.
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Identifies the modification of the master password for an AWS RDS DB instance or cluster. DB instances may contain sensitive data that can be abused if accessed by unauthorized actors. Amazon RDS API operations never return the password, so this operation provides a means to regain access if the password is lost. Adversaries with the proper permissions can take advantage of this to evade defenses and gain unauthorized access to a DB instance or cluster to support persistence mechanisms or privilege escalation.
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Identifies an AWS RDS DB snapshot being shared with another AWS account. DB snapshots contain a full backup of an entire DB instance including sensitive data that can be abused if shared with unauthorized accounts or made public. Adversaries may use snapshots to restore a DB Instance in an environment they control as a means of data exfiltration.
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Potential Ransomware Note File Dropped via SMB
Identifies an incoming SMB connection followed by the creation of a file with a name similar to ransomware note files. This may indicate a remote ransomware attack via the SMB protocol.
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Suspicious File Renamed via SMB
Identifies an incoming SMB connection followed by a suspicious file rename operation. This may indicate a remote ransomware attack via the SMB protocol.
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Suspicious Inter-Process Communication via Outlook
Detects Inter-Process Communication with Outlook via Component Object Model from an unusual process. Adversaries may target user email to collect sensitive information or send email on their behalf via API.
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Detects when multiple hosts are using the same agent ID. This could occur in the event of an agent being taken over and used to inject illegitimate documents into an instance as an attempt to spoof events in order to masquerade actual activity to evade detection.
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Anomalous Linux Compiler Activity
Looks for compiler activity by a user context which does not normally run compilers. This can be the result of ad-hoc software changes or unauthorized software deployment. This can also be due to local privilege elevation via locally run exploits or malware activity.
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Searches for rare processes running on multiple Linux hosts in an entire fleet or network. This reduces the detection of false positives since automated maintenance processes usually only run occasionally on a single machine but are common to all or many hosts in a fleet.
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DNS Tunneling
A machine learning job detected unusually large numbers of DNS queries for a single top-level DNS domain, which is often used for DNS tunneling. DNS tunneling can be used for command-and-control, persistence, or data exfiltration activity. For example, dnscat tends to generate many DNS questions for a top-level domain as it uses the DNS protocol to tunnel data.
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A machine learning job detected a rare destination country name in the network logs. This can be due to initial access, persistence, command-and-control, or exfiltration activity. For example, when a user clicks on a link in a phishing email or opens a malicious document, a request may be sent to download and run a payload from a server in a country which does not normally appear in network traffic or business work-flows. Malware instances and persistence mechanisms may communicate with command-and-control (C2) infrastructure in their country of origin, which may be an unusual destination country for the source network.
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A machine learning job found an unusual user name in the authentication logs. An unusual user name is one way of detecting credentialed access by means of a new or dormant user account. An inactive user account (because the user has left the organization) that becomes active may be due to credentialed access using a compromised account password. Threat actors will sometimes also create new users as a means of persisting in a compromised web application.
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A machine learning job found an unusually large spike in authentication failure events. This can be due to password spraying, user enumeration or brute force activity and may be a precursor to account takeover or credentialed access.
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A machine learning job detected an unusually large spike in network traffic that was denied by network access control lists (ACLs) or firewall rules. Such a burst of denied traffic is usually caused by either 1) a mis-configured application or firewall or 2) suspicious or malicious activity. Unsuccessful attempts at network transit, in order to connect to command-and-control (C2), or engage in data exfiltration, may produce a burst of failed connections. This could also be due to unusually large amounts of reconnaissance or enumeration traffic. Denial-of-service attacks or traffic floods may also produce such a surge in traffic.
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A machine learning job found an unusually large spike in successful authentication events. This can be due to password spraying, user enumeration or brute force activity.
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A machine learning job detected an unusually large spike in network traffic. Such a burst of traffic, if not caused by a surge in business activity, can be due to suspicious or malicious activity. Large-scale data exfiltration may produce a burst of network traffic; this could also be due to unusually large amounts of reconnaissance or enumeration traffic. Denial-of-service attacks or traffic floods may also produce such a surge in traffic.
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A machine learning job detected an unusually large spike in network activity to one destination country in the network logs. This could be due to unusually large amounts of reconnaissance or enumeration traffic. Data exfiltration activity may also produce such a surge in traffic to a destination country that does not normally appear in network traffic or business workflows. Malware instances and persistence mechanisms may communicate with command-and-control (C2) infrastructure in their country of origin, which may be an unusual destination country for the source network.
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A machine learning job found an unusually large spike in successful authentication events from a particular source IP address. This can be due to password spraying, user enumeration or brute force activity.
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Unusual DNS Activity
A machine learning job detected a rare and unusual DNS query that indicate network activity with unusual DNS domains. This can be due to initial access, persistence, command-and-control, or exfiltration activity. For example, when a user clicks on a link in a phishing email or opens a malicious document, a request may be sent to download and run a payload from an uncommon domain. When malware is already running, it may send requests to an uncommon DNS domain the malware uses for command-and-control communication.
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A machine learning job detected a user logging in at a time of day that is unusual for the user. This can be due to credentialed access via a compromised account when the user and the threat actor are in different time zones. In addition, unauthorized user activity often takes place during non-business hours.
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Unusual Linux Network Activity
Identifies Linux processes that do not usually use the network but have unexpected network activity, which can indicate command-and-control, lateral movement, persistence, or data exfiltration activity. A process with unusual network activity can denote process exploitation or injection, where the process is used to run persistence mechanisms that allow a malicious actor remote access or control of the host, data exfiltration, and execution of unauthorized network applications.
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Unusual Linux Network Configuration Discovery
Looks for commands related to system network configuration discovery from an unusual user context. This can be due to uncommon troubleshooting activity or due to a compromised account. A compromised account may be used by a threat actor to engage in system network configuration discovery in order to increase their understanding of connected networks and hosts. This information may be used to shape follow-up behaviors such as lateral movement or additional discovery.
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Unusual Linux Network Connection Discovery
Looks for commands related to system network connection discovery from an unusual user context. This can be due to uncommon troubleshooting activity or due to a compromised account. A compromised account may be used by a threat actor to engage in system network connection discovery in order to increase their understanding of connected services and systems. This information may be used to shape follow-up behaviors such as lateral movement or additional discovery.
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Unusual Linux Network Port Activity
Identifies unusual destination port activity that can indicate command-and-control, persistence mechanism, or data exfiltration activity. Rarely used destination port activity is generally unusual in Linux fleets, and can indicate unauthorized access or threat actor activity.
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Unusual Linux Process Calling the Metadata Service
Looks for anomalous access to the metadata service by an unusual process. The metadata service may be targeted in order to harvest credentials or user data scripts containing secrets.
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Unusual Linux Process Discovery Activity
Looks for commands related to system process discovery from an unusual user context. This can be due to uncommon troubleshooting activity or due to a compromised account. A compromised account may be used by a threat actor to engage in system process discovery in order to increase their understanding of software applications running on a target host or network. This may be a precursor to selection of a persistence mechanism or a method of privilege elevation.
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Unusual Linux System Information Discovery Activity
Looks for commands related to system information discovery from an unusual user context. This can be due to uncommon troubleshooting activity or due to a compromised account. A compromised account may be used to engage in system information discovery in order to gather detailed information about system configuration and software versions. This may be a precursor to selection of a persistence mechanism or a method of privilege elevation.
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Unusual Linux User Calling the Metadata Service
Looks for anomalous access to the cloud platform metadata service by an unusual user. The metadata service may be targeted in order to harvest credentials or user data scripts containing secrets.
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Unusual Linux User Discovery Activity
Looks for commands related to system user or owner discovery from an unusual user context. This can be due to uncommon troubleshooting activity or due to a compromised account. A compromised account may be used to engage in system owner or user discovery in order to identify currently active or primary users of a system. This may be a precursor to additional discovery, credential dumping or privilege elevation activity.
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Unusual Linux Username
A machine learning job detected activity for a username that is not normally active, which can indicate unauthorized changes, activity by unauthorized users, lateral movement, or compromised credentials. In many organizations, new usernames are not often created apart from specific types of system activities, such as creating new accounts for new employees. These user accounts quickly become active and routine. Events from rarely used usernames can point to suspicious activity. Additionally, automated Linux fleets tend to see activity from rarely used usernames only when personnel log in to make authorized or unauthorized changes, or threat actors have acquired credentials and log in for malicious purposes. Unusual usernames can also indicate pivoting, where compromised credentials are used to try and move laterally from one host to another.
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A machine learning job detected an unusual network destination domain name. This can be due to initial access, persistence, command-and-control, or exfiltration activity. For example, when a user clicks on a link in a phishing email or opens a malicious document, a request may be sent to download and run a payload from an uncommon web server name. When malware is already running, it may send requests to an uncommon DNS domain the malware uses for command-and-control communication.
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Unusual Process For a Linux Host
Identifies rare processes that do not usually run on individual hosts, which can indicate execution of unauthorized services, malware, or persistence mechanisms. Processes are considered rare when they only run occasionally as compared with other processes running on the host.
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Unusual Source IP for a User to Logon from
A machine learning job detected a user logging in from an IP address that is unusual for the user. This can be due to credentialed access via a compromised account when the user and the threat actor are in different locations. An unusual source IP address for a username could also be due to lateral movement when a compromised account is used to pivot between hosts.
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Unusual Sudo Activity
Looks for sudo activity from an unusual user context. An unusual sudo user could be due to troubleshooting activity or it could be a sign of credentialed access via compromised accounts.
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Unusual Web Request
A machine learning job detected a rare and unusual URL that indicates unusual web browsing activity. This can be due to initial access, persistence, command-and-control, or exfiltration activity. For example, in a strategic web compromise or watering hole attack, when a trusted website is compromised to target a particular sector or organization, targeted users may receive emails with uncommon URLs for trusted websites. These URLs can be used to download and run a payload. When malware is already running, it may send requests to uncommon URLs on trusted websites the malware uses for command-and-control communication. When rare URLs are observed being requested for a local web server by a remote source, these can be due to web scanning, enumeration or attack traffic, or they can be due to bots and web scrapers which are part of common Internet background traffic.
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Unusual Web User Agent
A machine learning job detected a rare and unusual user agent indicating web browsing activity by an unusual process other than a web browser. This can be due to persistence, command-and-control, or exfiltration activity. Uncommon user agents coming from remote sources to local destinations are often the result of scanners, bots, and web scrapers, which are part of common Internet background traffic. Much of this is noise, but more targeted attacks on websites using tools like Burp or SQLmap can sometimes be discovered by spotting uncommon user agents. Uncommon user agents in traffic from local sources to remote destinations can be any number of things, including harmless programs like weather monitoring or stock-trading programs. However, uncommon user agents from local sources can also be due to malware or scanning activity.
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This rule detects the use of the setcap utility to set capabilities on a process. The setcap utility is used to set the capabilities of a binary to allow it to perform privileged operations without needing to run as root. This can be used by attackers to establish persistence by creating a backdoor, or escalate privileges by abusing a misconfiguration on a system.
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Message of the day (MOTD) is the message that is presented to the user when a user connects to a Linux server via SSH or a serial connection. Linux systems contain several default MOTD files located in the "/etc/update-motd.d/" directory. These scripts run as the root user every time a user connects over SSH or a serial connection. Adversaries may create malicious MOTD files that grant them persistence onto the target every time a user connects to the system by executing a backdoor script or command. This rule detects the execution of potentially malicious processes through the MOTD utility.
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Potential Masquerading as Communication Apps
Identifies suspicious instances of communications apps, both unsigned and renamed ones, that can indicate an attempt to conceal malicious activity, bypass security features such as allowlists, or trick users into executing malware.
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Identifies a Secure Shell (SSH) client or server process creating or writing to a known SSH backdoor log file. Adversaries may modify SSH related binaries for persistence or credential access via patching sensitive functions to enable unauthorized access or to log SSH credentials for exfiltration.
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Sublime Plugin or Application Script Modification
Adversaries may create or modify the Sublime application plugins or scripts to execute a malicious payload each time the Sublime application is started.
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Detects events that have a mismatch on the expected event agent ID. The status "agent_id_mismatch/mismatch" occurs when the expected agent ID associated with the API key does not match the actual agent ID in an event. This could indicate attempts to spoof events in order to masquerade actual activity to evade detection.
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Abnormally Large DNS Response
Specially crafted DNS requests can manipulate a known overflow vulnerability in some Windows DNS servers, resulting in Remote Code Execution (RCE) or a Denial of Service (DoS) from crashing the service.
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Access to Keychain Credentials Directories
Adversaries may collect the keychain storage data from a system to acquire credentials. Keychains are the built-in way for macOS to keep track of users' passwords and credentials for many services and features such as WiFi passwords, websites, secure notes and certificates.
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Apple Script Execution followed by Network Connection
Detects execution via the Apple script interpreter (osascript) followed by a network connection from the same process within a short time period. Adversaries may use malicious scripts for execution and command and control.
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Monitors for the deletion of the kernel ring buffer events through dmesg. Attackers may clear kernel ring buffer events to evade detection after installing a Linux kernel module (LKM).
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Attempt to Disable Gatekeeper
Detects attempts to disable Gatekeeper on macOS. Gatekeeper is a security feature that's designed to ensure that only trusted software is run. Adversaries may attempt to disable Gatekeeper before executing malicious code.
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Attempt to Enable the Root Account
Identifies attempts to enable the root account using the dsenableroot command. This command may be abused by adversaries for persistence, as the root account is disabled by default.
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Attempt to Install Root Certificate
Adversaries may install a root certificate on a compromised system to avoid warnings when connecting to their command and control servers. Root certificates are used in public key cryptography to identify a root certificate authority (CA). When a root certificate is installed, the system or application will trust certificates in the root's chain of trust that have been signed by the root certificate.
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Attempt to Mount SMB Share via Command Line
Identifies the execution of macOS built-in commands to mount a Server Message Block (SMB) network share. Adversaries may use valid accounts to interact with a remote network share using SMB.
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Attempt to Unload Elastic Endpoint Security Kernel Extension
Identifies attempts to unload the Elastic Endpoint Security kernel extension via the kextunload command.
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Authorization Plugin Modification
Authorization plugins are used to extend the authorization services API and implement mechanisms that are not natively supported by the OS, such as multi-factor authentication with third party software. Adversaries may abuse this feature to persist and/or collect clear text credentials as they traverse the registered plugins during user logon.
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AWS Credentials Searched For Inside A Container
This rule detects the use of system search utilities like grep and find to search for AWS credentials inside a container. Unauthorized access to these sensitive files could lead to further compromise of the container environment or facilitate a container breakout to the underlying cloud environment.
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Adversaries may encode/decode data in an attempt to evade detection by host- or network-based security controls.
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Bash Shell Profile Modification
Both ~/.bash_profile and ~/.bashrc are files containing shell commands that are run when Bash is invoked. These files are executed in a user's context, either interactively or non-interactively, when a user logs in so that their environment is set correctly. Adversaries may abuse this to establish persistence by executing malicious content triggered by a user’s shell.
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Identifies the execution of a binary by root in Linux shared memory directories: (/dev/shm/, /run/shm/, /var/run/, /var/lock/). This activity is to be considered highly abnormal and should be investigated. Threat actors have placed executables used for persistence on high-uptime servers in these directories as system backdoors.
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Detects when the tc (transmission control) binary is utilized to set a BPF (Berkeley Packet Filter) on a network interface. Tc is used to configure Traffic Control in the Linux kernel. It can shape, schedule, police and drop traffic. A threat actor can utilize tc to set a bpf filter on an interface for the purpose of manipulating the incoming traffic. This technique is not at all common and should indicate abnormal, suspicious or malicious activity.
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Cobalt Strike is a threat emulation platform commonly modified and used by adversaries to conduct network attack and exploitation campaigns. This rule detects a network activity algorithm leveraged by Cobalt Strike implant beacons for command and control.
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Connection to External Network via Telnet
Telnet provides a command line interface for communication with a remote device or server. This rule identifies Telnet network connections to publicly routable IP addresses.
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Connection to Internal Network via Telnet
Telnet provides a command line interface for communication with a remote device or server. This rule identifies Telnet network connections to non-publicly routable IP addresses.
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Container Management Utility Run Inside A Container
This rule detects when a container management binary is run from inside a container. These binaries are critical components of many containerized environments, and their presence and execution in unauthorized containers could indicate compromise or a misconfiguration.
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Creation of Hidden Launch Agent or Daemon
Identifies the creation of a hidden launch agent or daemon. An adversary may establish persistence by installing a new launch agent or daemon which executes at login.
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Creation of Hidden Login Item via Apple Script
Identifies the execution of osascript to create a hidden login item. This may indicate an attempt to persist a malicious program while concealing its presence.
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Identifies the creation of a hidden shared object (.so) file. Users can mark specific files as hidden simply by putting a "." as the first character in the file or folder name. Adversaries can use this to their advantage to hide files and folders on the system for persistence and defense evasion.
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Credential Dumping - Detected - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame detected Credential Dumping. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Credential Dumping - Prevented - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame prevented Credential Dumping. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Credential Manipulation - Detected - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame detected Credential Manipulation. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Credential Manipulation - Prevented - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame prevented Credential Manipulation. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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CyberArk Privileged Access Security Error
Identifies the occurrence of a CyberArk Privileged Access Security (PAS) error level audit event. The event.code correlates to the CyberArk Vault Audit Action Code.
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CyberArk Privileged Access Security Recommended Monitor
Identifies the occurrence of a CyberArk Privileged Access Security (PAS) non-error level audit event which is recommended for monitoring by the vendor. The event.code correlates to the CyberArk Vault Audit Action Code.
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Default Cobalt Strike Team Server Certificate
This rule detects the use of the default Cobalt Strike Team Server TLS certificate. Cobalt Strike is software for Adversary Simulations and Red Team Operations which are security assessments that replicate the tactics and techniques of an advanced adversary in a network. Modifications to the Packetbeat configuration can be made to include MD5 and SHA256 hashing algorithms (the default is SHA1). See the References section for additional information on module configuration.
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Delayed Execution via Ping
Identifies the execution of commonly abused Windows utilities via a delayed Ping execution. This behavior is often observed during malware installation and is consistent with an attacker attempting to evade detection.
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Dumping Account Hashes via Built-In Commands
Identifies the execution of macOS built-in commands used to dump user account hashes. Adversaries may attempt to dump credentials to obtain account login information in the form of a hash. These hashes can be cracked or leveraged for lateral movement.
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Dumping of Keychain Content via Security Command
Adversaries may dump the content of the keychain storage data from a system to acquire credentials. Keychains are the built-in way for macOS to keep track of users' passwords and credentials for many services and features, including Wi-Fi and website passwords, secure notes, certificates, and Kerberos.
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Dynamic Linker Copy
Detects the copying of the Linux dynamic loader binary and subsequent file creation for the purpose of creating a backup copy. This technique was seen recently being utilized by Linux malware prior to patching the dynamic loader in order to inject and preload a malicious shared object file. This activity should never occur and if it does then it should be considered highly suspicious or malicious.
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EC2 AMI Shared with Another Account
Identifies an AWS Amazon Machine Image (AMI) being shared with another AWS account. Adversaries with access may share an AMI with an external AWS account as a means of data exfiltration. AMIs can contain secrets, bash histories, code artifacts, and other sensitive data that adversaries may abuse if shared with unauthorized accounts. AMIs can be made publicly available accidentally as well.
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EggShell Backdoor Execution
Identifies the execution of and EggShell Backdoor. EggShell is a known post exploitation tool for macOS and Linux.
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Emond Rules Creation or Modification
Identifies the creation or modification of the Event Monitor Daemon (emond) rules. Adversaries may abuse this service by writing a rule to execute commands when a defined event occurs, such as system start up or user authentication.
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Enumeration of Users or Groups via Built-in Commands
Identifies the execution of macOS built-in commands related to account or group enumeration. Adversaries may use account and group information to orient themselves before deciding how to act.
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Identifies instances where the 'touch' command is executed on a Linux system with the "-r" flag, which is used to modify the timestamp of a file based on another file's timestamp. The rule targets specific VM-related paths, such as "/etc/vmware/", "/usr/lib/vmware/", or "/vmfs/*". These paths are associated with VMware virtualization software, and their presence in the touch command arguments may indicate that a threat actor is attempting to tamper with timestamps of VM-related files and configurations on the system.
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Monitors for kernel processes with associated process executable fields that are not empty. Unix kernel processes such as kthreadd and kworker typically do not have process.executable fields associated to them. Attackers may attempt to hide their malicious programs by masquerading as legitimate kernel processes.
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Execution from a Removable Media with Network Connection
Identifies process execution from a removable media and by an unusual process. Adversaries may move onto systems, possibly those on disconnected or air-gapped networks, by copying malware to removable media and taking advantage of Autorun features when the media is inserted into a system and executes.
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Execution via Electron Child Process Node.js Module
Identifies attempts to execute a child process from within the context of an Electron application using the child_process Node.js module. Adversaries may abuse this technique to inherit permissions from parent processes.
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Execution with Explicit Credentials via Scripting
Identifies execution of the security_authtrampoline process via a scripting interpreter. This occurs when programs use AuthorizationExecute-WithPrivileges from the Security.framework to run another program with root privileges. It should not be run by itself, as this is a sign of execution with explicit logon credentials.
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Identifies an attempt to load a revoked or expired driver. Adversaries may bring outdated drivers with vulnerabilities to gain code execution in kernel mode or abuse revoked certificates to sign their drivers.
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Exploit - Detected - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame detected an Exploit. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Exploit - Prevented - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame prevented an Exploit. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Malware or other files dropped or created on a system by an adversary may leave traces behind as to what was done within a network and how. Adversaries may remove these files over the course of an intrusion to keep their footprint low or remove them at the end as part of the post-intrusion cleanup process.
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This rule detects when chmod is used to add the execute permission to a file inside a container. Modifying file permissions to make a file executable could indicate malicious activity, as an attacker may attempt to run unauthorized or malicious code inside the container.
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File Transfer or Listener Established via Netcat
A netcat process is engaging in network activity on a Linux host. Netcat is often used as a persistence mechanism by exporting a reverse shell or by serving a shell on a listening port. Netcat is also sometimes used for data exfiltration.
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Identifies the load of a driver with an original file name and signature values that were observed for the first time during the last 30 days. This rule type can help baseline drivers installation within your environment.
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Halfbaked is a malware family used to establish persistence in a contested network. This rule detects a network activity algorithm leveraged by Halfbaked implant beacons for command and control.
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This rule identifies a high number (10) of process terminations via pkill from the same host within a short time period.
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Hping ran on a Linux host. Hping is a FOSS command-line packet analyzer and has the ability to construct network packets for a wide variety of network security testing applications, including scanning and firewall auditing.
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Identifies Elasticsearch nodes that do not have Transport Layer Security (TLS), and/or lack authentication, and are accepting inbound network connections over the default Elasticsearch port.
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Interactive Exec Command Launched Against A Running Container
This rule detects interactive 'exec' events launched against a container using the 'exec' command. Using the 'exec' command in a pod allows a user to establish a temporary shell session and execute any process/command inside the container. This rule specifically targets higher-risk interactive commands that allow real-time interaction with a container's shell. A malicious actor could use this level of access to further compromise the container environment or attempt a container breakout.
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Interactive Terminal Spawned via Perl
Identifies when a terminal (tty) is spawned via Perl. Attackers may upgrade a simple reverse shell to a fully interactive tty after obtaining initial access to a host.
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Interactive Terminal Spawned via Python
Identifies when a terminal (tty) is spawned via Python. Attackers may upgrade a simple reverse shell to a fully interactive tty after obtaining initial access to a host.
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Kerberos Cached Credentials Dumping
Identifies the use of the Kerberos credential cache (kcc) utility to dump locally cached Kerberos tickets. Adversaries may attempt to dump credential material in the form of tickets that can be leveraged for lateral movement.
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Kernel Driver Load
Detects the loading of a Linux kernel module through system calls. Threat actors may leverage Linux kernel modules to load a rootkit on a system providing them with complete control and the ability to hide from security products. As other rules monitor for the addition of Linux kernel modules through system utilities or .ko files, this rule covers the gap that evasive rootkits leverage by monitoring for kernel module additions on the lowest level through auditd_manager.
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Kernel Driver Load by non-root User
Detects the loading of a Linux kernel module by a non-root user through system calls. Threat actors may leverage Linux kernel modules to load a rootkit on a system providing them with complete control and the ability to hide from security products. As other rules monitor for the addition of Linux kernel modules through system utilities or .ko files, this rule covers the gap that evasive rootkits leverage by monitoring for kernel module additions on the lowest level through auditd_manager.
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Keychain Password Retrieval via Command Line
Adversaries may collect keychain storage data from a system to in order to acquire credentials. Keychains are the built-in way for macOS to keep track of users' passwords and credentials for many services and features, including Wi-Fi and website passwords, secure notes, certificates, and Kerberos.
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Launch Agent Creation or Modification and Immediate Loading
An adversary can establish persistence by installing a new launch agent that executes at login by using launchd or launchctl to load a plist into the appropriate directories.
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LaunchDaemon Creation or Modification and Immediate Loading
Indicates the creation or modification of a launch daemon, which adversaries may use to repeatedly execute malicious payloads as part of persistence.
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This rule monitors for the potential memory dump of the init process (PID 1) through gdb. Attackers may leverage memory dumping techniques to attempt secret extraction from privileged processes. Tools that display this behavior include "truffleproc" and "bash-memory-dump". This behavior should not happen by default, and should be investigated thoroughly.
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This rule monitors for potential memory dumping through gdb. Attackers may leverage memory dumping techniques to attempt secret extraction from privileged processes. Tools that display this behavior include "truffleproc" and "bash-memory-dump". This behavior should not happen by default, and should be investigated thoroughly.
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MacOS Installer Package Spawns Network Event
Detects the execution of a MacOS installer package with an abnormal child process (e.g bash) followed immediately by a network connection via a suspicious process (e.g curl). Threat actors will build and distribute malicious MacOS installer packages, which have a .pkg extension, many times imitating valid software in order to persuade and infect their victims often using the package files (e.g pre/post install scripts etc.) to download additional tools or malicious software. If this rule fires it should indicate the installation of a malicious or suspicious package.
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Identifies modification of the dynamic linker preload shared object (ld.so.preload). Adversaries may execute malicious payloads by hijacking the dynamic linker used to load libraries.
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Modification of Safari Settings via Defaults Command
Identifies changes to the Safari configuration using the built-in defaults command. Adversaries may attempt to enable or disable certain Safari settings, such as enabling JavaScript from Apple Events to ease in the hijacking of the users browser.
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Modification of Standard Authentication Module or Configuration
Adversaries may modify the standard authentication module for persistence via patching the normal authorization process or modifying the login configuration to allow unauthorized access or elevate privileges.
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This rule uses alert data to determine when multiple alerts in different phases of an attack involving the same host are triggered. Analysts can use this to prioritize triage and response, as these hosts are more likely to be compromised.
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This rule uses alert data to determine when multiple different alerts involving the same user are triggered. Analysts can use this to prioritize triage and response, as these users are more likely to be compromised.
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Identifies suspicious usage of unshare to manipulate system namespaces. Unshare can be utilized to escalate privileges or escape container security boundaries. Threat actors have utilized this binary to allow themselves to escape to the host and access other resources or escalate privileges.
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Netcat Listener Established Inside A Container
This rule detects an established netcat listener running inside a container. Netcat is a utility used for reading and writing data across network connections, and it can be used for malicious purposes such as establishing a backdoor for persistence or exfiltrating data.
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Netcat Listener Established via rlwrap
Monitors for the execution of a netcat listener via rlwrap. rlwrap is a 'readline wrapper', a small utility that uses the GNU Readline library to allow the editing of keyboard input for any command. This utility can be used in conjunction with netcat to gain a more stable reverse shell.
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Network Activity Detected via cat
This rule monitors for the execution of the cat command, followed by a connection attempt by the same process. Cat is capable of transfering data via tcp/udp channels by redirecting its read output to a /dev/tcp or /dev/udp channel. This activity is highly suspicious, and should be investigated. Attackers may leverage this capability to transfer tools or files to another host in the network or exfiltrate data while attempting to evade detection in the process.
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Nping ran on a Linux host. Nping is part of the Nmap tool suite and has the ability to construct raw packets for a wide variety of security testing applications, including denial of service testing.
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Permission Theft - Detected - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame detected Permission Theft. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Permission Theft - Prevented - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame prevented Permission Theft. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Persistence via DirectoryService Plugin Modification
Identifies the creation or modification of a DirectoryService PlugIns (dsplug) file. The DirectoryService daemon launches on each system boot and automatically reloads after crash. It scans and executes bundles that are located in the DirectoryServices PlugIns folder and can be abused by adversaries to maintain persistence.
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Persistence via Docker Shortcut Modification
An adversary can establish persistence by modifying an existing macOS dock property list in order to execute a malicious application instead of the intended one when invoked.
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Persistence via Folder Action Script
Detects modification of a Folder Action script. A Folder Action script is executed when the folder to which it is attached has items added or removed, or when its window is opened, closed, moved, or resized. Adversaries may abuse this feature to establish persistence by utilizing a malicious script.
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Persistence via Login or Logout Hook
Identifies use of the Defaults command to install a login or logoff hook in MacOS. An adversary may abuse this capability to establish persistence in an environment by inserting code to be executed at login or logout.
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Detects potential buffer overflow attacks by querying the "Segfault Detected" pre-built rule signal index, through a threshold rule, with a minimum number of 100 segfault alerts in a short timespan. A large amount of segfaults in a short time interval could indicate application exploitation attempts.
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Potential Chroot Container Escape via Mount
Monitors for the execution of a file system mount followed by a chroot execution. Given enough permissions, a user within a container is capable of mounting the root file system of the host, and leveraging chroot to escape its containarized environment. This behavior pattern is very uncommon and should be investigated.
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Potential Command and Control via Internet Explorer
Identifies instances of Internet Explorer (iexplore.exe) being started via the Component Object Model (COM) making unusual network connections. Adversaries could abuse Internet Explorer via COM to avoid suspicious processes making network connections and bypass host-based firewall restrictions.
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Potential Container Escape via Modified notify_on_release File
This rule detects modification of the cgroup notify_on_release file from inside a container. When the notify_on_release flag is enabled (1) in a cgroup, then whenever the last task in the cgroup exits or attaches to another cgroup, the command specified in the release_agent file is run and invoked from the host. A privileged container with SYS_ADMIN capabilities, enables a threat actor to mount a cgroup directory and modify the notify_on_release flag in order to take advantage of this feature, which could be used for further privilege escalation and container escapes to the host machine.
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Potential Container Escape via Modified release_agent File
This rule detects modification of the CGroup release_agent file from inside a privileged container. The release_agent is a script that is executed at the termination of any process on that CGroup and is invoked from the host. A privileged container with SYS_ADMIN capabilities, enables a threat actor to mount a CGroup directory and modify the release_agent which could be used for further privilege escalation and container escapes to the host machine.
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Identifies the execution of the PRoot utility, an open-source tool for user-space implementation of chroot, mount --bind, and binfmt_misc. Adversaries can leverage an open-source tool PRoot to expand the scope of their operations to multiple Linux distributions and simplify their necessary efforts. In a normal threat scenario, the scope of an attack is limited by the varying configurations of each Linux distribution. With PRoot, it provides an attacker with a consistent operational environment across different Linux distributions, such as Ubuntu, Fedora, and Alpine. PRoot also provides emulation capabilities that allow for malware built on other architectures, such as ARM, to be run.The post-exploitation technique called bring your own filesystem (BYOF), can be used by the threat actors to execute malicious payload or elevate privileges or perform network scans or orchestrate another attack on the environment. Although PRoot was originally not developed with malicious intent it can be easily tuned to work for one.
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Identifies potential attempts to disable Security-Enhanced Linux (SELinux), which is a Linux kernel security feature to support access control policies. Adversaries may disable security tools to avoid possible detection of their tools and activities.
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Potential Enumeration via Active Directory Web Service
Identifies processes loading Active Directory related modules followed by a network connection to the ADWS dedicated TCP port. Adversaries may abuse the ADWS Windows service that allows Active Directory to be queried via this web service.
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Potential External Linux SSH Brute Force Detected
Identifies multiple external consecutive login failures targeting a user account from the same source address within a short time interval. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts across multiple users with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain access to these accounts.
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Potential Hidden Local User Account Creation
Identifies attempts to create a local account that will be hidden from the macOS logon window. This may indicate an attempt to evade user attention while maintaining persistence using a separate local account.
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Potential Internal Linux SSH Brute Force Detected
Identifies multiple internal consecutive login failures targeting a user account from the same source address within a short time interval. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts across multiple users with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain access to these accounts.
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Potential JAVA/JNDI Exploitation Attempt
Identifies an outbound network connection by JAVA to LDAP, RMI or DNS standard ports followed by a suspicious JAVA child processes. This may indicate an attempt to exploit a JAVA/NDI (Java Naming and Directory Interface) injection vulnerability.
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Potential Kerberos Attack via Bifrost
Identifies use of Bifrost, a known macOS Kerberos pentesting tool, which can be used to dump cached Kerberos tickets or attempt unauthorized authentication techniques such as pass-the-ticket/hash and kerberoasting.
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Potential Linux Credential Dumping via Proc Filesystem
Identifies the execution of the mimipenguin exploit script which is linux adaptation of Windows tool mimikatz. Mimipenguin exploit script is used to dump clear text passwords from a currently logged-in user. The tool exploits a known vulnerability CVE-2018-20781. Malicious actors can exploit the cleartext credentials in memory by dumping the process and extracting lines that have a high probability of containing cleartext passwords.
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Identifies the execution of the unshadow utility which is part of John the Ripper, a password-cracking tool on the host machine. Malicious actors can use the utility to retrieve the combined contents of the '/etc/shadow' and '/etc/password' files. Using the combined file generated from the utility, the malicious threat actors can use them as input for password-cracking utilities or prepare themselves for future operations by gathering credential information of the victim.
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This rule monitors for a set of Linux utilities that can be used for tunneling and port forwarding. Attackers can leverage tunneling and port forwarding techniques to bypass network defenses, establish hidden communication channels, and gain unauthorized access to internal resources, facilitating data exfiltration, lateral movement, and remote control.
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Potential macOS SSH Brute Force Detected
Identifies a high number (20) of macOS SSH KeyGen process executions from the same host. An adversary may attempt a brute force attack to obtain unauthorized access to user accounts.
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Identifies executables with names resembling legitimate business applications but lacking signatures from the original developer. Attackers may trick users into downloading malicious executables that masquerade as legitimate applications via malicious ads, forum posts, and tutorials, effectively gaining initial access.
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Potential Microsoft Office Sandbox Evasion
Identifies the creation of a suspicious zip file prepended with special characters. Sandboxed Microsoft Office applications on macOS are allowed to write files that start with special characters, which can be combined with an AutoStart location to achieve sandbox evasion.
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This threshold rule monitors for the rapid execution of unix utilities that are capable of conducting network scans. Adversaries may leverage built-in tools such as ping, netcat or socat to execute ping sweeps across the network while attempting to evade detection or due to the lack of network mapping tools available on the compromised host.
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Potential Persistence via Atom Init Script Modification
Identifies modifications to the Atom desktop text editor Init File. Adversaries may add malicious JavaScript code to the init.coffee file that will be executed upon the Atom application opening.
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Potential Persistence via Login Hook
Identifies the creation or modification of the login window property list (plist). Adversaries may modify plist files to run a program during system boot or user login for persistence.
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Potential Persistence via Periodic Tasks
Identifies the creation or modification of the default configuration for periodic tasks. Adversaries may abuse periodic tasks to execute malicious code or maintain persistence.
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Identifies use of the Secure Copy Protocol (SCP) to copy files locally by abusing the auto addition of the Secure Shell Daemon (sshd) to the authorized application list for Full Disk Access. This may indicate attempts to bypass macOS privacy controls to access sensitive files.
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Potential Privacy Control Bypass via TCCDB Modification
Identifies the use of sqlite3 to directly modify the Transparency, Consent, and Control (TCC) SQLite database. This may indicate an attempt to bypass macOS privacy controls, including access to sensitive resources like the system camera, microphone, address book, and calendar.
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Potential Privilege Escalation through Writable Docker Socket
This rule monitors for the usage of Docker runtime sockets to escalate privileges on Linux systems. Docker sockets by default are only be writable by the root user and docker group. Attackers that have permissions to write to these sockets may be able to create and run a container that allows them to escalate privileges and gain further access onto the host file system.
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Potential Privilege Escalation via Container Misconfiguration
This rule monitors for the execution of processes that interact with Linux containers through an interactive shell without root permissions. Utilities such as runc and ctr are universal command-line utilities leveraged to interact with containers via root permissions. On systems where the access to these utilities are misconfigured, attackers might be able to create and run a container that mounts the root folder or spawn a privileged container vulnerable to a container escape attack, which might allow them to escalate privileges and gain further access onto the host file system.
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This rule detects potential privilege escalation attempts through Looney Tunables (CVE-2023-4911). Looney Tunables is a buffer overflow vulnerability in GNU C Library's dynamic loader's processing of the GLIBC_TUNABLES environment variable.
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Identifies a potential exploitation of InstallerTakeOver (CVE-2021-41379) default PoC execution. Successful exploitation allows an unprivileged user to escalate privileges to SYSTEM.
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Identifies an attempt to exploit a local privilege escalation (CVE-2023-2640 and CVE-2023-32629) via a flaw in Ubuntu's modifications to OverlayFS. These flaws allow the creation of specialized executables, which, upon execution, grant the ability to escalate privileges to root on the affected machine.
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Identifies an attempt to exploit a local privilege escalation in polkit pkexec (CVE-2021-4034) via unsecure environment variable injection. Successful exploitation allows an unprivileged user to escalate to the root user.
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Potential Privilege Escalation via Python cap_setuid
This detection rule monitors for the execution of a system command with setuid or setgid capabilities via Python, followed by a uid or gid change to the root user. This sequence of events may indicate successful privilege escalation. Setuid (Set User ID) and setgid (Set Group ID) are Unix-like OS features that enable processes to run with elevated privileges, based on the file owner or group. Threat actors can exploit these attributes to escalate privileges to the privileges that are set on the binary that is being executed.
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This rule monitors a sequence involving a program compilation event followed by its execution and a subsequent alteration of UID permissions to root privileges. This behavior can potentially indicate the execution of a kernel or software privilege escalation exploit.
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This rule monitors for the execution of the systemd-run command by a user with a UID that is larger than the maximum allowed UID size (INT_MAX). Some older Linux versions were affected by a bug which allows user accounts with a UID greater than INT_MAX to escalate privileges by spawning a shell through systemd-run.
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Potential Protocol Tunneling via Chisel Server
This rule monitors for common command line flags leveraged by the Chisel server utility followed by a received connection within a timespan of 1 minute. Chisel is a command-line utility used for creating and managing TCP and UDP tunnels, enabling port forwarding and secure communication between machines. Attackers can abuse the Chisel utility to establish covert communication channels, bypass network restrictions, and carry out malicious activities by creating tunnels that allow unauthorized access to internal systems.
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Identifies the execution of the EarthWorm tunneler. Adversaries may tunnel network communications to and from a victim system within a separate protocol to avoid detection and network filtering, or to enable access to otherwise unreachable systems.
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Identifies suspicious commands executed via a web server, which may suggest a vulnerability and remote shell access. Attackers may exploit a vulnerability in a web application to execute commands via a web server, or place a backdoor file that can be abused to gain code execution as a mechanism for persistence.
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Identifies remote access to the registry to potentially dump credential data from the Security Account Manager (SAM) registry hive in preparation for credential access and privileges elevation.
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Potential Remote File Execution via MSIEXEC
Identifies the execution of the built-in Windows Installer, msiexec.exe, to install a remote package. Adversaries may abuse msiexec.exe to launch local or network accessible MSI files.
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Potential Reverse Shell
This detection rule identifies suspicious network traffic patterns associated with TCP reverse shell activity. This activity consists of a parent-child relationship where a network event is followed by the creation of a shell process. An attacker may establish a Linux TCP reverse shell to gain remote access to a target system.
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Potential Reverse Shell via Background Process
Monitors for the execution of background processes with process arguments capable of opening a socket in the /dev/tcp channel. This may indicate the creation of a backdoor reverse connection, and should be investigated further.
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Potential Reverse Shell via Child
This detection rule identifies suspicious network traffic patterns associated with TCP reverse shell activity. This activity consists of a network event that is followed by the creation of a shell process with suspicious command line arguments. An attacker may establish a Linux TCP reverse shell to gain remote access to a target system.
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Potential Reverse Shell via Java
This detection rule identifies the execution of a Linux shell process from a Java JAR application post an incoming network connection. This behavior may indicate reverse shell activity via a Java application.
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Potential Reverse Shell via Suspicious Binary
This detection rule detects the creation of a shell through a chain consisting of the execution of a suspicious binary (located in a commonly abused location or executed manually) followed by a network event and ending with a shell being spawned. Stageless reverse tcp shells display this behaviour. Attackers may spawn reverse shells to establish persistence onto a target system.
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Potential Reverse Shell via Suspicious Child Process
This detection rule detects the creation of a shell through a suspicious process chain. Any reverse shells spawned by the specified utilities that are initialized from a single process followed by a network connection attempt will be captured through this rule. Attackers may spawn reverse shells to establish persistence onto a target system.
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Identifies processes that are capable of downloading files with command line arguments containing URLs to SSH-IT's autonomous SSH worm. This worm intercepts outgoing SSH connections every time a user uses ssh.
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Potential Successful Linux FTP Brute Force Attack Detected
An FTP (file transfer protocol) brute force attack is a method where an attacker systematically tries different combinations of usernames and passwords to gain unauthorized access to an FTP server, and if successful, the impact can include unauthorized data access, manipulation, or theft, compromising the security and integrity of the server and potentially exposing sensitive information. This rule identifies multiple consecutive authentication failures targeting a specific user account from the same source address and within a short time interval, followed by a successful authentication.
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Potential Successful Linux RDP Brute Force Attack Detected
An RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) brute force attack involves an attacker repeatedly attempting various username and password combinations to gain unauthorized access to a remote computer via RDP, and if successful, the potential impact can include unauthorized control over the compromised system, data theft, or the ability to launch further attacks within the network, jeopardizing the security and confidentiality of the targeted system and potentially compromising the entire network infrastructure. This rule identifies multiple consecutive authentication failures targeting a specific user account within a short time interval, followed by a successful authentication.
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Potential Successful SSH Brute Force Attack
Identifies multiple SSH login failures followed by a successful one from the same source address. Adversaries can attempt to login into multiple users with a common or known password to gain access to accounts.
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This rule monitors for the execution of a suspicious sudo command that is leveraged in CVE-2019-14287 to escalate privileges to root. Sudo does not verify the presence of the designated user ID and proceeds to execute using a user ID that can be chosen arbitrarily. By using the sudo privileges, the command "sudo -u#-1" translates to an ID of 0, representing the root user. This exploit may work for sudo versions prior to v1.28.
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This rule monitors for the potential edit of a suspicious file. In Linux, when editing a file through an editor, a temporary .swp file is created. By monitoring for the creation of this .swp file, we can detect potential file edits of suspicious files. The execution of this rule is not a clear sign of the file being edited, as just opening the file through an editor will trigger this event. Attackers may alter any of the files added in this rule to establish persistence, escalate privileges or perform reconnaisance on the system.
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This rule monitors for the execution of the "chown" and "chmod" commands with command line flags that could indicate a wildcard injection attack. Linux wildcard injection is a type of security vulnerability where attackers manipulate commands or input containing wildcards (e.g., *, ?, []) to execute unintended operations or access sensitive data by tricking the system into interpreting the wildcard characters in unexpected ways.
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Potential Upgrade of Non-interactive Shell
Identifies when a non-interactive terminal (tty) is being upgraded to a fully interactive shell. Attackers may upgrade a simple reverse shell to a fully interactive tty after obtaining initial access to a host, in order to obtain a more stable connection.
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Potential Windows Session Hijacking via CcmExec
This detection rule identifies when 'SCNotification.exe' loads an untrusted DLL, which is a potential indicator of an attacker attempt to hijack/impersonate a Windows user session.
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Privilege Escalation via Root Crontab File Modification
Identifies modifications to the root crontab file. Adversaries may overwrite this file to gain code execution with root privileges by exploiting privileged file write or move related vulnerabilities.
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Privileges Elevation via Parent Process PID Spoofing
Identifies parent process spoofing used to create an elevated child process. Adversaries may spoof the parent process identifier (PPID) of a new process to evade process-monitoring defenses or to elevate privileges.
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Process Created with a Duplicated Token
Identifies the creation of a process impersonating the token of another user logon session. Adversaries may create a new process with a different token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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Process Created with an Elevated Token
Identifies the creation of a process running as SYSTEM and impersonating a Windows core binary privileges. Adversaries may create a new process with a different token to escalate privileges and bypass access controls.
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Process Injection - Detected - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame detected Process Injection. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Process Injection - Prevented - Elastic Endgame
Elastic Endgame prevented Process Injection. Click the Elastic Endgame icon in the event.module column or the link in the rule.reference column for additional information.
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Identifies a new process starting from a process ID (PID), lock or reboot file within the temporary file storage paradigm (tmpfs) directory /var/run directory. On Linux, the PID files typically hold the process ID to track previous copies running and manage other tasks. Certain Linux malware use the /var/run directory for holding data, executables and other tasks, disguising itself or these files as legitimate PID files.
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Prompt for Credentials with OSASCRIPT
Identifies the use of osascript to execute scripts via standard input that may prompt a user with a rogue dialog for credentials.
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This rule monitors for the execution of the ProxyChains utility. ProxyChains is a command-line tool that enables the routing of network connections through intermediary proxies, enhancing anonymity and enabling access to restricted resources. Attackers can exploit the ProxyChains utility to hide their true source IP address, evade detection, and perform malicious activities through a chain of proxy servers, potentially masking their identity and intentions.
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Quarantine Attrib Removed by Unsigned or Untrusted Process
Detects deletion of the quarantine attribute by an unusual process (xattr). In macOS, when applications or programs are downloaded from the internet, there is a quarantine flag set on the file. This attribute is read by Apple's Gatekeeper defense program at execution time. An adversary may disable this attribute to evade defenses.
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Identifies powershell.exe being used to download an executable file from an untrusted remote destination.
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Remote XSL Script Execution via COM
Identifies the execution of a hosted XSL script using the Microsoft.XMLDOM COM interface via Microsoft Office processes. This behavior may indicate adversarial activity to execute malicious JScript or VBScript on the system.
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Screensaver Plist File Modified by Unexpected Process
Identifies when a screensaver plist file is modified by an unexpected process. An adversary can maintain persistence on a macOS endpoint by creating a malicious screensaver (.saver) file and configuring the screensaver plist file to execute code each time the screensaver is activated.
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Identifies the use of a compression utility to collect known files containing sensitive information, such as credentials and system configurations.
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Identifies the use of a compression utility to collect known files containing sensitive information, such as credentials and system configurations inside a container.
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Sensitive Keys Or Passwords Searched For Inside A Container
This rule detects the use of system search utilities like grep and find to search for private SSH keys or passwords inside a container. Unauthorized access to these sensitive files could lead to further compromise of the container environment or facilitate a container breakout to the underlying host machine.
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Shell Execution via Apple Scripting
Identifies the execution of the shell process (sh) via scripting (JXA or AppleScript). Adversaries may use the doShellScript functionality in JXA or do shell script in AppleScript to execute system commands.
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SoftwareUpdate Preferences Modification
Identifies changes to the SoftwareUpdate preferences using the built-in defaults command. Adversaries may abuse this in an attempt to disable security updates.
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SSH Authorized Keys File Modification
The Secure Shell (SSH) authorized_keys file specifies which users are allowed to log into a server using public key authentication. Adversaries may modify it to maintain persistence on a victim host by adding their own public key(s).
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This rule detects the creation or modification of an authorized_keys or sshd_config file inside a container. The Secure Shell (SSH) authorized_keys file specifies which users are allowed to log into a server using public key authentication. Adversaries may modify it to maintain persistence on a victim host by adding their own public key(s). Unexpected and unauthorized SSH usage inside a container can be an indicator of compromise and should be investigated.
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This rule detects an incoming SSH connection established inside a running container. Running an ssh daemon inside a container should be avoided and monitored closely if necessary. If an attacker gains valid credentials they can use it to gain initial access or establish persistence within a compromised environment.
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This rule detects an SSH or SSHD process executed from inside a container. This includes both the client ssh binary and server ssh daemon process. SSH usage inside a container should be avoided and monitored closely when necessary. With valid credentials an attacker may move laterally to other containers or to the underlying host through container breakout. They may also use valid SSH credentials as a persistence mechanism.
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Identifies files written or modified in the startup folder by unsigned processes. Adversaries may abuse this technique to maintain persistence in an environment.
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Identifies the attempted use of a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability for the Sudo binary in Unix-like systems (CVE-2021-3156). Successful exploitation allows an unprivileged user to escalate to the root user.
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The malware known as SUNBURST targets the SolarWind's Orion business software for command and control. This rule detects post-exploitation command and control activity of the SUNBURST backdoor.
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Suspicious /proc/maps Discovery
Monitors for /proc//maps file reads. The /proc//maps file in Linux provides a memory map for a specific process, detailing the memory segments, permissions, and what files are mapped to these segments. Attackers may read a process's memory map to identify memory addresses for code injection or process hijacking.
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Suspicious Automator Workflows Execution
Identifies the execution of the Automator Workflows process followed by a network connection from it's XPC service. Adversaries may drop a custom workflow template that hosts malicious JavaScript for Automation (JXA) code as an alternative to using osascript.
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Suspicious Browser Child Process
Identifies the execution of a suspicious browser child process. Adversaries may gain access to a system through a user visiting a website over the normal course of browsing. With this technique, the user's web browser is typically targeted for exploitation.
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Suspicious Calendar File Modification
Identifies suspicious modifications of the calendar file by an unusual process. Adversaries may create a custom calendar notification procedure to execute a malicious program at a recurring interval to establish persistence.
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Detects attempts to exploit privilege escalation vulnerabilities related to the Adobe Acrobat Reader PrivilegedHelperTool responsible for installing updates. For more information, refer to CVE-2020-9615, CVE-2020-9614 and CVE-2020-9613 and verify that the impacted system is patched.
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Suspicious Content Extracted or Decompressed via Funzip
Identifies when suspicious content is extracted from a file and subsequently decompressed using the funzip utility. Malware may execute the tail utility using the "-c" option to read a sequence of bytes from the end of a file. The output from tail can be piped to funzip in order to decompress malicious code before it is executed. This behavior is consistent with malware families such as Bundlore.
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Suspicious CronTab Creation or Modification
Identifies attempts to create or modify a crontab via a process that is not crontab (i.e python, osascript, etc.). This activity should not be highly prevalent and could indicate the use of cron as a persistence mechanism by a threat actor.
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Suspicious Data Encryption via OpenSSL Utility
Identifies when the openssl command-line utility is used to encrypt multiple files on a host within a short time window. Adversaries may encrypt data on a single or multiple systems in order to disrupt the availability of their target's data and may attempt to hold the organization's data to ransom for the purposes of extortion.
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Monitors for dynamic linker discovery via the od utility. od (octal dump) is a command-line utility in Unix operating systems used for displaying data in various formats, including octal, hexadecimal, decimal, and ASCII, primarily used for examining and debugging binary files or data streams. Attackers can leverage od to analyze the dynamic linker by identifying injection points and craft exploits based on the observed behaviors and structures within these files.
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Suspicious Hidden Child Process of Launchd
Identifies the execution of a launchd child process with a hidden file. An adversary can establish persistence by installing a new logon item, launch agent, or daemon that executes upon login.
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Suspicious Interactive Shell Spawned From Inside A Container
This rule detects when an interactive shell is spawned inside a running container. This could indicate a potential container breakout attempt or an attacker's attempt to gain unauthorized access to the underlying host.
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Monitors for the elevation of regular user permissions to root permissions through the kworker process. kworker, or kernel worker, processes are part of the kernel's workqueue mechanism. They are responsible for executing work that has been scheduled to be done in kernel space, which might include tasks like handling interrupts, background activities, and other kernel-related tasks. Attackers may attempt to evade detection by masquerading as a kernel worker process, and hijack the execution flow by hooking certain functions/syscalls through a rootkit in order to provide easy access to root via a special modified command.
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Suspicious Mining Process Creation Event
Identifies service creation events of common mining services, possibly indicating the infection of a system with a cryptominer.
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This rule detects commonly abused network utilities running inside a container. Network utilities like nc, nmap, dig, tcpdump, ngrep, telnet, mitmproxy, zmap can be used for malicious purposes such as network reconnaissance, monitoring, or exploitation, and should be monitored closely within a container.
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Monitors for the generation of a passwd password entry via openssl, followed by a file write activity on the "/etc/passwd" file. The "/etc/passwd" file in Linux stores user account information, including usernames, user IDs, group IDs, home directories, and default shell paths. Attackers may exploit a misconfiguration in the "/etc/passwd" file permissions or other privileges to add a new entry to the "/etc/passwd" file with root permissions, and leverage this new user account to login as root.
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Suspicious Renaming of ESXI Files
Identifies instances where VMware-related files, such as those with extensions like ".vmdk", ".vmx", ".vmxf", ".vmsd", ".vmsn", ".vswp", ".vmss", ".nvram", and ".vmem", are renamed on a Linux system. The rule monitors for the "rename" event action associated with these file types, which could indicate malicious activity.
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Suspicious Renaming of ESXI index.html File
Identifies instances where the "index.html" file within the "/usr/lib/vmware/*" directory is renamed on a Linux system. The rule monitors for the "rename" event action associated with this specific file and path, which could indicate malicious activity.
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Suspicious Termination of ESXI Process
Identifies instances where VMware processes, such as "vmware-vmx" or "vmx," are terminated on a Linux system by a "kill" command. The rule monitors for the "end" event type, which signifies the termination of a process. The presence of a "kill" command as the parent process for terminating VMware processes may indicate that a threat actor is attempting to interfere with the virtualized environment on the targeted system.
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This rule monitors for the execution of suspicious linux tools through ProxyChains. ProxyChains is a command-line tool that enables the routing of network connections through intermediary proxies, enhancing anonymity and enabling access to restricted resources. Attackers can exploit the ProxyChains utility to hide their true source IP address, evade detection, and perform malicious activities through a chain of proxy servers, potentially masking their identity and intentions.
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SystemKey Access via Command Line
Keychains are the built-in way for macOS to keep track of users' passwords and credentials for many services and features, including Wi-Fi and website passwords, secure notes, certificates, and Kerberos. Adversaries may collect the keychain storage data from a system to acquire credentials.
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Tainted Kernel Module Load
This rule monitors the syslog log file for messages related to instances of a tainted kernel module load. Rootkits often leverage kernel modules as their main defense evasion technique. Detecting tainted kernel module loads is crucial for ensuring system security and integrity, as malicious or unauthorized modules can compromise the kernel and lead to system vulnerabilities or unauthorized access.
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Tainted Out-Of-Tree Kernel Module Load
This rule monitors the syslog log file for messages related to instances of a out-of-tree kernel module load, indicating the taining of the kernel. Rootkits often leverage kernel modules as their main defense evasion technique. Detecting tainted kernel module loads is crucial for ensuring system security and integrity, as malicious or unauthorized modules can compromise the kernel and lead to system vulnerabilities or unauthorized access.
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TCC Bypass via Mounted APFS Snapshot Access
Identifies the use of the mount_apfs command to mount the entire file system through Apple File System (APFS) snapshots as read-only and with the noowners flag set. This action enables the adversary to access almost any file in the file system, including all user data and files protected by Apple’s privacy framework (TCC).
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Timestomping using Touch Command
Timestomping is an anti-forensics technique which is used to modify the timestamps of a file, often to mimic files that are in the same folder.
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Unexpected Child Process of macOS Screensaver Engine
Identifies when a child process is spawned by the screensaver engine process, which is consistent with an attacker's malicious payload being executed after the screensaver activated on the endpoint. An adversary can maintain persistence on a macOS endpoint by creating a malicious screensaver (.saver) file and configuring the screensaver plist file to execute code each time the screensaver is activated.
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Identifies attempt to load an untrusted driver. Adversaries may modify code signing policies to enable execution of unsigned or self-signed code.
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Unusual Discovery Signal Alert with Unusual Process Command Line
This rule leverages alert data from various Discovery building block rules to alert on signals with unusual unique host.id, user.id and process.command_line entries.
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Unusual Discovery Signal Alert with Unusual Process Executable
This rule leverages Discovery building block rule alert data to alert on signals with unusual unique host.id, user.id and process.executable entries.
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Unusual User Privilege Enumeration via id
This rule monitors for a sequence of 20 "id" command executions within 1 second by the same parent process. This behavior is unusual, and may be indicative of the execution of an enumeration script such as LinPEAS or LinEnum. These scripts leverage the "id" command to enumerate the privileges of all users present on the system.
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Veeam Backup Library Loaded by Unusual Process
Identifies potential credential decrypt operations by PowerShell or unsigned processes using the Veeam.Backup.Common.dll library. Attackers can use Veeam Credentials to target backups as part of destructive operations such as Ransomware attacks.
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Virtual Machine Fingerprinting
An adversary may attempt to get detailed information about the operating system and hardware. This rule identifies common locations used to discover virtual machine hardware by a non-root user. This technique has been used by the Pupy RAT and other malware.
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Virtual Machine Fingerprinting via Grep
An adversary may attempt to get detailed information about the operating system and hardware. This rule identifies common locations used to discover virtual machine hardware by a non-root user. This technique has been used by the Pupy RAT and other malware.
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Virtual Private Network Connection Attempt
Identifies the execution of macOS built-in commands to connect to an existing Virtual Private Network (VPN). Adversaries may use VPN connections to laterally move and control remote systems on a network.
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WebProxy Settings Modification
Identifies the use of the built-in networksetup command to configure webproxy settings. This may indicate an attempt to hijack web browser traffic for credential access via traffic sniffing or redirection.
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WPAD Service Exploit
Identifies probable exploitation of the Web Proxy Auto-Discovery Protocol (WPAD) service. Attackers who have access to the local network or upstream DNS traffic can inject malicious JavaScript to the WPAD service which can lead to a full system compromise.
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Potential Linux Reverse Connection through Port Knocking
Monitors for a sequence of network activity on atypical ports, prior to receiving a single packet on such a non-standard port, which potentially indicates signal port knocking activity. Port knocking is a covert method of externally opening ports by sending a sequence of packets to previously closed ports, which adversaries may leverage to discreetly gain access without directly alerting traditional monitoring systems.
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Potential Process Herpaderping Attempt
Identifies process execution followed by a file overwrite of an executable by the same parent process. This may indicate an evasion attempt to execute malicious code in a stealthy way.
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Deprecated - Potential Reverse Shell via Suspicious Parent Process
This detection rule detects the creation of a shell through a suspicious parent child relationship. Any reverse shells spawned by the specified utilities that use a forked process to initialize the connection attempt will be captured through this rule. Attackers may spawn reverse shells to establish persistence onto a target system.
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Iodine is a tool for tunneling Internet protocol version 4 (IPV4) traffic over the DNS protocol to circumvent firewalls, network security groups, and network access lists while evading detection.
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This rule detects the execution of a process where the LD_PRELOAD environment variable is set. LD_PRELOAD can be used to inject a shared library into a binary at or prior to execution. A threat actor may do this in order to load a malicious shared library for the purposes of persistence, privilege escalation, and defense evasion. This activity is not common and will potentially indicate malicious or suspicious behavior.
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Suspicious Network Connection Attempt by Root
Identifies an outbound network connection attempt followed by a session id change as the root user by the same process entity. This particular instantiation of a network connection is abnormal and should be investigated as it may indicate a potential reverse shell activity via a privileged process.
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Potential SSH Brute Force Detected on Privileged Account
Identifies multiple consecutive login failures targeting a root user account from the same source address and within a short time interval. Adversaries will often brute force login attempts on privileged accounts with a common or known password, in an attempt to gain privileged access to systems.
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Reverse Shell Created via Named Pipe
Identifies a reverse shell via the abuse of named pipes on Linux with the help of OpenSSL or Netcat. First in, first out (FIFO) files are special files for reading and writing to by Linux processes. For this to work, a named pipe is created and passed to a Linux shell where the use of a network connection tool such as Netcat or OpenSSL has been established. The stdout and stderr are captured in the named pipe from the network connection and passed back to the shell for execution.
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