Detection: Windows Modify Registry ValleyRAT C2 Config

Updated Date: 2024-09-30 ID: ac59298a-8d81-4c02-8c9b-ffdac993891f Author: Teoderick Contreras, Splunk Type: TTP Product: Splunk Enterprise Security

Description

The following analytic detects modifications to theregistry related to ValleyRAT C2 configuration. Specifically, it monitors changes in registry keys where ValleyRAT saves the IP address and port information of its command-and-control (C2) server. This activity is a key indicator of ValleyRAT attempting to establish persistent communication with its C2 infrastructure. By identifying these unauthorized registry modifications, security analysts can quickly detect malicious configurations and investigate the associated threats. Early detection of these changes helps prevent further exploitation and limits the malware’s ability to exfiltrate data or control infected systems.

Search

1
2| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count FROM datamodel=Endpoint.Registry WHERE (Registry.registry_path= "*\\Console\\IpDateInfo" AND Registry.registry_value_data="Binary Data") OR (Registry.registry_path= "*\\Console\\SelfPath" AND Registry.registry_value_data="*.exe") BY Registry.dest Registry.user Registry.registry_path Registry.registry_key_name Registry.registry_value_name Registry.registry_value_data Registry.registry_hive Registry.process_guid 
3| `drop_dm_object_name(Registry)` 
4| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` 
5| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)` 
6| `windows_modify_registry_valleyrat_c2_config_filter`

Data Source

Name	Platform	Sourcetype	Source
Sysmon EventID 12	Windows	`'xmlwineventlog'`	`'XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational'`
Sysmon EventID 13	Windows	`'xmlwineventlog'`	`'XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational'`

Macros Used

Name	Value
security_content_ctime	`convert timeformat="%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S" ctime($field$)`
windows_modify_registry_valleyrat_c2_config_filter	`search *`

windows_modify_registry_valleyrat_c2_config_filter is an empty macro by default. It allows the user to filter out any results (false positives) without editing the SPL.

Annotations

- MITRE ATT&CK

+ Kill Chain Phases

+ NIST

+ CIS

- Threat Actors

ID	Technique	Tactic
T1112	Modify Registry	Defense Evasion

KillChainPhase.EXPLOITAITON

NistCategory.DE_CM

Cis18Value.CIS_10

APT19

APT32

APT38

APT41

Aquatic Panda

Blue Mockingbird

Dragonfly

Earth Lusca

Ember Bear

FIN8

Gamaredon Group

Gorgon Group

Indrik Spider

Kimsuky

LuminousMoth

Magic Hound

Patchwork

Saint Bear

Silence

TA505

Threat Group-3390

Turla

Volt Typhoon

Wizard Spider

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 Notable	Yes
Rule Title	`%name%`
Rule Description	`%description%`
Notable Event Fields	user, dest
Creates Risk Event	True

This configuration file applies to all detections of type TTP. These detections will use Risk Based Alerting and generate Notable Events.

Implementation

To successfully implement this search, you need to be ingesting logs with the registry value name, registry path, and registry value data from your endpoints. If you are using Sysmon, you must have at least version 2.0 of the official Sysmon TA. https://splunkbase.splunk.com/app/5709

Known False Positives

unknown

Associated Analytic Story

ValleyRAT

Risk Based Analytics (RBA)

Risk Message	Risk Score	Impact	Confidence
A registry modification related to ValleyRAT on [$dest$]	90	90	100

The Risk Score is calculated by the following formula: Risk Score = (Impact * Confidence/100). Initial Confidence and Impact is set by the analytic author.

References

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: 3