ID | Technique | Tactic |
---|---|---|
T1548.001 | Setuid and Setgid | Defense Evasion |
T1548 | Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism | Privilege Escalation |
Detection: Linux Auditd Setuid Using Chmod Utility
Description
The following analytic detects the execution of the chmod utility to set the SUID or SGID bit on files, which can allow users to temporarily gain root or group-level access. This detection leverages data from Linux Auditd, focusing on process names and command-line arguments related to chmod. This activity is significant as it can indicate an attempt to escalate privileges or maintain persistence on a system. If confirmed malicious, an attacker could gain elevated access, potentially compromising sensitive data or critical system functions.
Search
1`linux_auditd` `linux_auditd_normalized_proctitle_process`
2| rename host as dest
3| where LIKE (process_exec, "%chmod %") AND (LIKE (process_exec, "% u+s %") OR LIKE (process_exec, "% g+s %") OR LIKE (process_exec, "% 4777 %") OR LIKE (process_exec, "% 4577 %"))
4| stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime by process_exec proctitle normalized_proctitle_delimiter dest
5| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
6| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
7| `linux_auditd_setuid_using_chmod_utility_filter`
Data Source
Name | Platform | Sourcetype | Source |
---|---|---|---|
Linux Auditd Proctitle | Linux | 'linux:audit' |
'/var/log/audit/audit.log' |
Macros Used
Name | Value |
---|---|
linux_auditd | sourcetype="linux:audit" |
linux_auditd_setuid_using_chmod_utility_filter | search * |
linux_auditd_setuid_using_chmod_utility_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 implement this detection, the process begins by ingesting auditd data, that consist SYSCALL, TYPE, EXECVE and PROCTITLE events, which captures command-line executions and process details on Unix/Linux systems. These logs should be ingested and processed using Splunk Add-on for Unix and Linux (https://splunkbase.splunk.com/app/833), which is essential for correctly parsing and categorizing the data. The next step involves normalizing the field names to match the field names set by the Splunk Common Information Model (CIM) to ensure consistency across different data sources and enhance the efficiency of data modeling. This approach enables effective monitoring and detection of linux endpoints where auditd is deployed
Known False Positives
Administrator or network operator can execute this command. Please update the filter macros to remove false positives.
Associated Analytic Story
Risk Based Analytics (RBA)
Risk Message | Risk Score | Impact | Confidence |
---|---|---|---|
A [$process_exec$] event occurred on host - [$dest$] to set the SUID or SGID bit on files using the chmod utility. | 81 | 90 | 90 |
References
Detection Testing
Test Type | Status | Dataset | Source | Sourcetype |
---|---|---|---|---|
Validation | ✅ Passing | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Unit | ✅ Passing | Dataset | /var/log/audit/audit.log |
linux:audit |
Integration | ✅ Passing | Dataset | /var/log/audit/audit.log |
linux:audit |
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: 2