AWS RDS Deletion Protection Disabled

Severity: high
Group by: awsRegion, recipientAccountId, requestParameters.dBInstanceIdentifier
Log types: AWS.CloudTrail
Tags: AWS, Defense Evasion, Impact, Impair Defenses, Inhibit System Recovery, RDS
Reference: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_DeleteInstance.html
Source: github.com/panther-labs/panther-analysis

Detects when deletion protection is disabled on an RDS instance or cluster. This is often a precursor to database deletion and may indicate ransomware or data destruction attacks where attackers first disable protections before deleting resources.

MITRE ATT&CK coverage

Tactic	Techniques
Stealth	`T1562` Impair Defenses
Impact	`T1490` Inhibit System Recovery

Rules detecting the same action

Other rules on this platform that filter on the same API call or operation.

AWS RDS DB Instance Made Public (Elastic)
AWS RDS DB Instance or Cluster Deletion Protection Disabled (Elastic)
AWS RDS DB Instance or Cluster Password Modified (Elastic)
AWS RDS Instance Modified to be Publicly Accessible (Panther)
AWS RDS Master Password Change (Sigma)
AWS RDS Master Password Updated (Panther)
AWS RDS Snapshot Deleted (Elastic)
Modification or Deletion of an AWS RDS Cluster (Sigma)

Rule body yaml

AnalysisType: rule
Filename: aws_rds_deletion_protection_disabled.py
RuleID: "AWS.RDS.DeletionProtectionDisabled"
DisplayName: "AWS RDS Deletion Protection Disabled"
Enabled: true
LogTypes:
  - AWS.CloudTrail
Tags:
  - AWS
  - Defense Evasion
  - Impact
  - Impair Defenses
  - Inhibit System Recovery
  - RDS
Severity: High
Description: >
  Detects when deletion protection is disabled on an RDS instance or cluster. This is often
  a precursor to database deletion and may indicate ransomware or data destruction attacks
  where attackers first disable protections before deleting resources.
Runbook: |
  1. Find all RDS modification events by the user ARN in the 24 hours before the alert
  2. Check if this user has disabled deletion protection in the past 90 days to determine if this is normal behavior
  3. Look for database deletion attempts from this user in the 2 hours after this modification
  5. Immediately re-enable deletion protection if unauthorized using ModifyDBInstance or ModifyDBCluster with deletionProtection:true
Reference: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AmazonRDS/latest/UserGuide/USER_DeleteInstance.html
Reports:
  MITRE ATT&CK:
    - TA0005:T1562  # Impair Defenses
    - TA0040:T1490  # Inhibit System Recovery
DedupPeriodMinutes: 60
SummaryAttributes:
  - eventName
  - userIdentity:principalId
  - requestParameters:dBInstanceIdentifier
  - requestParameters:dBClusterIdentifier
  - requestParameters:deletionProtection
  - p_any_aws_account_ids
Threshold: 1
Tests:
  - Name: RDS Instance Deletion Protection Disabled
    ExpectedResult: true
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: AssumedRole
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE:user"
        arn: "arn:aws:sts::123456789012:assumed-role/PowerUserRole/user"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "ASIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
        sessionContext:
          sessionIssuer:
            type: Role
            principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE"
            arn: "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/PowerUserRole"
            accountId: "123456789012"
            userName: PowerUserRole
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBInstance
      awsRegion: us-east-1
      sourceIPAddress: "203.0.113.45"
      userAgent: "aws-cli/2.13.0"
      requestParameters:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-mysql"
        deletionProtection: false
        applyImmediately: true
      responseElements:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-mysql"
        dBInstanceStatus: "modifying"
        deletionProtection: false
        pendingModifiedValues:
          deletionProtection: false
      requestID: "a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890"
      eventID: "f1e2d3c4-b5a6-7890-1234-567890abcdef"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

  - Name: RDS Cluster Deletion Protection Disabled with Backup Changes - Critical
    ExpectedResult: true
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: IAMUser
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE"
        arn: "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/contractor"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
        userName: contractor
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBCluster
      awsRegion: us-west-2
      sourceIPAddress: "198.51.100.50"
      userAgent: "Boto3/1.26.0"
      requestParameters:
        dBClusterIdentifier: "aurora-production"
        deletionProtection: false
        backupRetentionPeriod: 0
        applyImmediately: true
      responseElements:
        dBClusterIdentifier: "aurora-production"
        status: "modifying"
        deletionProtection: false
        backupRetentionPeriod: 0
      requestID: "b2c3d4e5-f6a7-8901-bcde-f1234567890a"
      eventID: "g2f3e4d5-c6b7-8901-2345-678901bcdefg"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

  - Name: RDS Deletion Protection Disabled and Made Public - Critical
    ExpectedResult: true
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: AssumedRole
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE:attacker"
        arn: "arn:aws:sts::123456789012:assumed-role/CompromisedRole/attacker"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "ASIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBInstance
      awsRegion: us-east-1
      sourceIPAddress: "185.220.101.50"
      userAgent: "python-requests/2.28.0"
      requestParameters:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "customer-database"
        deletionProtection: false
        publiclyAccessible: true
        applyImmediately: true
      responseElements:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "customer-database"
        dBInstanceStatus: "modifying"
        deletionProtection: false
        publiclyAccessible: true
      requestID: "c3d4e5f6-a7b8-9012-cdef-1234567890ab"
      eventID: "h3g4f5e6-d7c8-9012-3456-789012cdefgh"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

  - Name: RDS Deletion Protection Enabled - No Alert
    ExpectedResult: false
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: AssumedRole
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE:admin"
        arn: "arn:aws:sts::123456789012:assumed-role/AdminRole/admin"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "ASIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBInstance
      awsRegion: us-east-1
      sourceIPAddress: "10.0.1.100"
      userAgent: "console.amazonaws.com"
      requestParameters:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-db"
        deletionProtection: true
        applyImmediately: true
      responseElements:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-db"
        dBInstanceStatus: "modifying"
        deletionProtection: true
      requestID: "d4e5f6a7-b8c9-0123-def0-1234567890bc"
      eventID: "i4h5g6f7-e8d9-0123-4567-890123defghi"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

  - Name: RDS Modification Without Deletion Protection Change
    ExpectedResult: false
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: AssumedRole
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE:dba"
        arn: "arn:aws:sts::123456789012:assumed-role/DBARole/dba"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "ASIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBInstance
      awsRegion: us-east-1
      sourceIPAddress: "10.0.1.50"
      userAgent: "aws-cli/2.13.0"
      requestParameters:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-db"
        allocatedStorage: 500
        applyImmediately: false
      responseElements:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-db"
        dBInstanceStatus: "modifying"
        allocatedStorage: 500
      requestID: "e5f6a7b8-c9d0-1234-ef01-234567890bcd"
      eventID: "j5i6h7g8-f9e0-1234-5678-901234efghij"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

  - Name: RDS Modification Failed
    ExpectedResult: false
    Log:
      eventVersion: "1.08"
      userIdentity:
        type: IAMUser
        principalId: "AIDAI23HXS3EXAMPLE"
        arn: "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:user/developer"
        accountId: "123456789012"
        accessKeyId: "AKIAIOSFODNN7EXAMPLE"
        userName: developer
      eventTime: "2024-01-15T18:20:00Z"
      eventSource: rds.amazonaws.com
      eventName: ModifyDBInstance
      awsRegion: us-east-1
      sourceIPAddress: "10.0.2.100"
      userAgent: "aws-cli/2.13.0"
      requestParameters:
        dBInstanceIdentifier: "production-db"
        deletionProtection: false
      errorCode: AccessDenied
      errorMessage: "User is not authorized to perform: rds:ModifyDBInstance"
      requestID: "f6a7b8c9-d0e1-2345-f012-34567890bcde"
      eventID: "k6j7i8h9-g0f1-2345-6789-012345fghijk"
      readOnly: false
      eventType: AwsApiCall
      managementEvent: true
      recipientAccountId: "123456789012"
      eventCategory: Management

Detection logic

Condition

eventSource eq "rds.amazonaws.com"
eventName in ["ModifyDBInstance", "ModifyDBCluster"]
errorCode is_null
requestParameters.deletionProtection eq "False"

Indicators

Each row is a field, operator, and value that the rule matches. The corpus column counts how many other rules in the catalog look for the same combination: high numbers point to widely-used, community-vetted indicators. Blank or 1 shows that the indicator is specific to this rule.

Field	Kind	Values
`errorCode`	is_null	(no value, null check)
`eventName`	in	`ModifyDBCluster` `ModifyDBInstance`
`eventSource`	eq	`rds.amazonaws.com`
`requestParameters.deletionProtection`	eq	`False`

Output fields

Fields the rule emits when it matches. Chronicle authors list these in the outcome block; they appear on the detection and $risk_score drives alerting. Sentinel / Defender XDR rules build them up through project / summarize / extend stages. Sentinel maps these into alert fields via entityMappings and customDetails; Defender XDR custom detections surface them as alert fields directly.

Field	Source
`eventName`
`eventSource`
`awsRegion`
`recipientAccountId`
`sourceIPAddress`
`userAgent`
`userIdentity`
`dBInstanceIdentifier`	`requestParameters.dBInstanceIdentifier`
`userName`	`userIdentity.userName`

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`type:`	`events` / `rules` / `providers`
`vendor:`	`sigma` / `elastic` / `splunk` / `kusto` / `chronicle` (vendor name alone also works: `sigma:`, `kql:`, `secops:`…)
`tactic:`	TA-id, slug, or name: `credential_access`, `TA0006`
`technique:`	technique or sub-technique ID: `T1003`, `T1003.001` (alias `tech:`)
`severity:`	`critical` / `high` / `medium` / `low` / `informational` (alias `sev:`)
`risk_score`	Numeric comparison on the Elastic risk score (0 to 100): `risk_score>50`, `risk_score<=20`, `risk_score=99` (alias `risk`; Elastic rules only)
`stages:`	Rules with exactly N pipeline stages
`correlation:`	`single_event` / `sequence` / `alternatives` / `alternatives_cross_log` / `all_required` / `correlated`
`with:`	Co-occurrence event-id; stacks (`with:4624 with:4769`) to require all, while a comma list in one occurrence (`with:4624,4769`) is an either-or group. Implies multi-event
`like:`	Structural neighbors of a rule slug (equivalents + subsumption stricter / broader): `like:comsvcs_lsass_memory_dump-splunk-sysmon`
`groupby:`	Entity-grouping substring match against `group_by_keys`: `groupby:user`, `groupby:host`
`uses:`	Rules whose predicate tree touches the field (any kind, any value): `uses:CommandLine`
`excludes:`	Rules with top-level `not()` clauses on the field (FP whitelists): `excludes:ParentImage`
`field:` / `value:`	Predicate search; narrows rule cards to those with a matching leaf and drives the indicator tier. Unquoted = substring, wildcards allowed (`value:mimikatz`)
`indicator:`	Shorthand for `field:F value:V`: `indicator:Image=*\powershell.exe`
`kind:`	Filter by predicate kind. Narrows rule cards to those carrying a matching predicate leaf (`vendor:elastic kind:cidr_match`) and drives the indicator tier: `contains` / `starts_with` / `ends_with` / `regex` / `cidr` / `eq` / `in` … (operator aliases `op:`/`match:`)
`has:` / `no:`	`sample`, `field`, `notes`, `refs`, `trace`, `thirdparty`, `rule`, `pattern`, `timewindow`, `threshold`, `newterms`, `sigma`/`elastic`/`splunk`/`kusto`/`chronicle`
`-op:val`	Exclude matches; works on most operators but not `type:`/`like:`/`has:`/`no:` (use `no:<flag>` to exclude a rule flag): `tactic:execution -vendor:splunk`. Standalone `-kind:`/`-field:`/`-value:` drop every rule carrying a matching predicate leaf (`type:rules -kind:is_null`)
`field:"…"` / `value:"…"`	Quoted value = anchored exact match (also allows spaces): `value:"net user"`
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`vendors:` / `stage:`	Singular and plural spellings fold to the canonical operator and value: `tactics:` = `tactic:`, `type:event` = `type:events`, `correlation:sequences` = `correlation:sequence`, `has:thresholds` = `has:threshold`
`"quoted phrase"`	Exact-match a multi-word phrase (free text)