Detection rules › Splunk
Get ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy with Powershell Script Block
The following analytic detects the execution of the Get-ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy PowerShell cmdlet, which is used to retrieve the password policy in a Windows domain. This detection leverages PowerShell Script Block Logging (EventCode=4104) to identify the specific command execution. Monitoring this activity is significant as it can indicate an attempt to gather domain policy information, which is often a precursor to further malicious actions. If confirmed malicious, this activity could allow an attacker to understand password policies, aiding in password attacks or further domain enumeration.
MITRE ATT&CK coverage
| Tactic | Techniques |
|---|---|
| Discovery | T1201 Password Policy Discovery |
Event coverage
| Provider | Event | Title |
|---|---|---|
| PowerShell | Event ID 4104 | Creating Scriptblock text (MessageNumber of MessageTotal). |
Rule body splunk
name: Get ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy with Powershell Script Block
id: 1ff7ccc8-065a-11ec-91e4-acde48001122
version: 9
creation_date: '2021-08-27'
modification_date: '2026-05-13'
author: Teoderick Contreras, Mauricio Velazco, Splunk
status: production
type: Hunting
description: The following analytic detects the execution of the `Get-ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy` PowerShell cmdlet, which is used to retrieve the password policy in a Windows domain. This detection leverages PowerShell Script Block Logging (EventCode=4104) to identify the specific command execution. Monitoring this activity is significant as it can indicate an attempt to gather domain policy information, which is often a precursor to further malicious actions. If confirmed malicious, this activity could allow an attacker to understand password policies, aiding in password attacks or further domain enumeration.
data_source:
- Powershell Script Block Logging 4104
search: |-
`powershell` EventCode=4104 ScriptBlockText ="*Get-ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy*"
| fillnull
| stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime
BY dest signature signature_id
user_id vendor_product EventID
Guid Opcode Name
Path ProcessID ScriptBlockId
ScriptBlockText
| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
| `get_addefaultdomainpasswordpolicy_with_powershell_script_block_filter`
how_to_implement: The following Hunting analytic requires PowerShell operational logs to be imported. Modify the powershell macro as needed to match the sourcetype or add index. This analytic is specific to 4104, or PowerShell Script Block Logging.
known_false_positives: Administrators or power users may use this command for troubleshooting.
references:
- https://github.com/S1ckB0y1337/Active-Directory-Exploitation-Cheat-Sheet
- https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1201/
- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/activedirectory/get-addefaultdomainpasswordpolicy?view=windowsserver2019-ps
analytic_story:
- Active Directory Discovery
asset_type: Endpoint
mitre_attack_id:
- T1201
product:
- Splunk Enterprise
- Splunk Enterprise Security
- Splunk Cloud
category: endpoint
security_domain: endpoint
tests:
- name: True Positive Test
attack_data:
- data: https://media.githubusercontent.com/media/splunk/attack_data/master/datasets/attack_techniques/T1201/pwd_policy_discovery/windows-powershell-xml.log
source: XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-PowerShell/Operational
sourcetype: XmlWinEventLog
test_type: unit
Stages and Predicates
Stage 1: search
`powershell` EventCode=4104 ScriptBlockText ="*Get-ADDefaultDomainPasswordPolicy*"
Stage 2: fillnull
| fillnull
Stage 3: stats
| stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime
BY dest signature signature_id
user_id vendor_product EventID
Guid Opcode Name
Path ProcessID ScriptBlockId
ScriptBlockText
Stage 4: search
| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
Stage 5: search
| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
Stage 6: search
| `get_addefaultdomainpasswordpolicy_with_powershell_script_block_filter`
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 |
|---|---|---|
EventCode | eq |
|
ScriptBlockText | eq |
|