Detection: Windows Command Shell DCRat ForkBomb Payload

Description

The following analytic detects the execution of a DCRat "forkbomb" payload, which spawns multiple cmd.exe processes that launch notepad.exe instances in quick succession. This detection leverages Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) data, focusing on the rapid creation of cmd.exe and notepad.exe processes within a 30-second window. This activity is significant as it indicates a potential DCRat infection, a known Remote Access Trojan (RAT) with destructive capabilities. If confirmed malicious, this behavior could lead to system instability, resource exhaustion, and potential disruption of services.

Search

1
2| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` values(Processes.user) as user values(Processes.action) as action values(Processes.parent_process_exec) as parent_process_exec values(Processes.parent_process_guid) as parent_process_guid values(Processes.parent_process_id) as parent_process_id values(Processes.parent_process_path) as parent_process_path values(Processes.process) as process values(Processes.process_exec) as process_exec values(Processes.process_guid) as process_guid values(Processes.process_hash) as process_hash values(Processes.process_id) as process_id values(Processes.process_integrity_level) as process_integrity_level values(Processes.process_path) as process_path values(Processes.user_id) as user_id values(Processes.vendor_product) as vendor_product dc(Processes.parent_process_id) as parent_process_id_count dc(Processes.process_id) as process_id_count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime from datamodel=Endpoint.Processes where Processes.parent_process_name= "cmd.exe" (Processes.process_name = "notepad.exe" OR Processes.original_file_name= "notepad.exe") Processes.parent_process = "*.bat*" by Processes.parent_process_name Processes.process_name Processes.original_file_name Processes.parent_process Processes.dest Processes.user _time span=30s 
3| where parent_process_id_count>= 10 AND process_id_count >=10 
4| `drop_dm_object_name(Processes)` 
5| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` 
6| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)` 
7| `windows_command_shell_dcrat_forkbomb_payload_filter`

Data Source

Name	Platform	Sourcetype	Source
CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2	N/A	'crowdstrike:events:sensor'	'crowdstrike'
Sysmon EventID 1	Windows	'xmlwineventlog'	'XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational'

Macros Used

Annotations

Default Configuration

This detection is configured by default in Splunk Enterprise Security to run with the following settings:

Implementation

The detection is based on data that originates from Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) agents. These agents are designed to provide security-related telemetry from the endpoints where the agent is installed. To implement this search, you must ingest logs that contain the process GUID, process name, and parent process. Additionally, you must ingest complete command-line executions. These logs must be processed using the appropriate Splunk Technology Add-ons that are specific to the EDR product. The logs must also be mapped to the Processes node of the Endpoint data model. Use the Splunk Common Information Model (CIM) to normalize the field names and speed up the data modeling process.

Known False Positives

unknown

Associated Analytic Story

• Compromised Windows Host

• DarkCrystal RAT

Risk Based Analytics (RBA)

Risk Message:

Multiple cmd.exe processes with child process of notepad.exe executed on $dest$

References

• https://cert.gov.ua/article/405538

• https://malpedia.caad.fkie.fraunhofer.de/details/win.dcrat

• https://www.mandiant.com/resources/analyzing-dark-crystal-rat-backdoor

Detection Testing

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: 8