Detection rules › Splunk
Indirect Command Execution (Sysmon)
An adversary may use default tools, usually not restricted, to gain execution without using cmd
MITRE ATT&CK coverage
| Tactic | Techniques |
|---|---|
| Privilege Escalation | |
| Stealth |
References
Telemetry coverage
| Provider | Record / event type |
|---|---|
| Sysmon | Event ID 1: Process creation |
Rule body
id: '5971.18224'
title: Indirect Command Execution
description: 'An adversary may use default tools, usually not restricted, to gain
execution without using cmd. Threat Actor Association: Andariel, APT28 - Software
Association: IcedId - Atomics T1548.002 Test#3 Atomics T1202 Test #1 Atomics T1202
Test #2'
logic_format: Splunk
logic: '`get_endpoint_data` `get_endpoint_data_sysmon` ("EventCode=1" OR "<EventID>1<")
(TERM(forfiles) OR TERM(fodhelper) OR TERM(ftp) OR TERM(pcalua)) | regex parent_process_name="(?i)(forfiles|fodhelper|ftp|pcalua)\.exe"
| table _time, host, user parent_*, process, process_*, signature_id | bin span=1s
| stats values(*) as * by _time, host '
techniques:
- defense-evasion:indirect command execution
- privilege-escalation:abuse elevation control mechanism
technique_id:
- T1202
- T1548
data_category:
- Windows Sysmon
references:
- https://pentestlab.blog/tag/pcalua-exe/
- https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/blob/master/atomics/T1202/T1202.md#atomic-test-1---indirect-command-execution---pcaluaexe
Stages and Predicates
Stage 1: search
`get_endpoint_data` `get_endpoint_data_sysmon` ("EventCode=1" OR "<EventID>1<") (TERM(forfiles) OR TERM(fodhelper) OR TERM(ftp) OR TERM(pcalua))
Stage 2: regex
| regex parent_process_name="(?i)(forfiles|fodhelper|ftp|pcalua)\.exe"
Stage 3: table
| table _time, host, user parent_*, process, process_*, signature_id
Stage 4: bucket
| bin span=1s
Stage 5: stats
| stats values(*) as * by _time, host
Indicators
These rows show field, operator, and value matches.
| Field | Kind | Values | Search |
|---|---|---|---|
parent_process_name | regex_match |
| field:"parent_process_name" kind:regex_match |
Search terms
These SPL tokens match against raw event text.
| Stage | Term |
|---|---|
| 1 | "EventCode=1" |
| 1 | "<EventID>1<" |
| 1 | forfiles |
| 1 | fodhelper |
| 1 | ftp |
| 1 | pcalua |