ID | Technique | Tactic |
---|---|---|
T1486 | Data Encrypted for Impact | Impact |
Detection: High Process Termination Frequency
Description
The following analytic identifies a high frequency of process termination events on a computer within a short period. It leverages Sysmon EventCode 5 logs to detect instances where 15 or more processes are terminated within a 3-second window. This behavior is significant as it is commonly associated with ransomware attempting to avoid exceptions during file encryption. If confirmed malicious, this activity could indicate an active ransomware attack, potentially leading to widespread file encryption and significant data loss.
Search
1`sysmon` EventCode=5
2|bin _time span=3s
3|stats values(Image) as proc_terminated min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime count by _time dest EventCode ProcessID
4| where count >= 15
5| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
6| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
7| `high_process_termination_frequency_filter`
Data Source
Name | Platform | Sourcetype | Source | Supported App |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sysmon EventID 5 | Windows | 'xmlwineventlog' |
'XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational' |
N/A |
Macros Used
Name | Value |
---|---|
security_content_ctime | convert timeformat="%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S" ctime($field$) |
high_process_termination_frequency_filter | search * |
high_process_termination_frequency_filter
is an empty macro by default. It allows the user to filter out any results (false positives) without editing the SPL.
Annotations
Default Configuration
This detection is configured by default in Splunk Enterprise Security to run with the following settings:
Setting | Value |
---|---|
Disabled | true |
Cron Schedule | 0 * * * * |
Earliest Time | -70m@m |
Latest Time | -10m@m |
Schedule Window | auto |
Creates Risk Event | True |
Implementation
To successfully implement this search, you need to be ingesting logs with the Image (process full path of terminated process) from your endpoints. If you are using Sysmon, you must have at least version 6.0.4 of the Sysmon TA.
Known False Positives
admin or user tool that can terminate multiple process.
Associated Analytic Story
Risk Based Analytics (RBA)
Risk Message | Risk Score | Impact | Confidence |
---|---|---|---|
High frequency process termination (more than 15 processes within 3s) detected on host $dest$ | 72 | 90 | 80 |
References
-
https://www.mandiant.com/resources/fin11-email-campaigns-precursor-for-ransomware-data-theft
-
https://blog.virustotal.com/2020/11/keep-your-friends-close-keep-ransomware.html
Detection Testing
Test Type | Status | Dataset | Source | Sourcetype |
---|---|---|---|---|
Validation | ✅ Passing | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Unit | ✅ Passing | Dataset | XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational |
xmlwineventlog |
Integration | ✅ Passing | Dataset | XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational |
xmlwineventlog |
Replay any dataset to Splunk Enterprise by using our replay.py
tool or the UI.
Alternatively you can replay a dataset into a Splunk Attack Range
Source: GitHub | Version: 4