Suspicious Process File Path
Description
The following analytic will detect a suspicious process running in a file path where a process is not commonly seen and is most commonly used by malicious software. This behavior has been used by adversaries where they drop and run an exe in a path that is accessible without admin privileges.
- Type: TTP
- Product: Splunk Enterprise, Splunk Enterprise Security, Splunk Cloud
- Datamodel: Endpoint- Datasource: Splunk Add-on for Sysmon
- Last Updated: 2021-05-05
- Author: Teoderick Contreras, Splunk
- ID: 9be25988-ad82-11eb-a14f-acde48001122
Annotations
ATT&CK
ID | Technique | Tactic |
---|---|---|
T1543 | Create or Modify System Process | Persistence, Privilege Escalation |
Kill Chain Phase
- Exploitation
NIST
CIS20
CVE
Search
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| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count values(Processes.process_name) as process_name values(Processes.process) as process min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime from datamodel=Endpoint.Processes where Processes.process_path = "*\\windows\\fonts\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\windows\\temp\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\users\\public\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\windows\\debug\\*" OR Processes.process_path.file_path = "*\\Users\\Administrator\\Music\\*" OR Processes.process_path.file_path = "*\\Windows\\servicing\\*" OR Processes.process_path.file_path = "*\\Users\\Default\\*" OR Processes.process_path.file_path = "*Recycle.bin*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\Windows\\Media\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "\\Windows\\repair\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\temp\\*" OR Processes.process_path = "*\\PerfLogs\\*" by Processes.parent_process_name Processes.parent_process Processes.process_path Processes.dest Processes.user
| `drop_dm_object_name(Processes)`
| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
| `suspicious_process_file_path_filter`
Macros
The SPL above uses the following Macros:
Note that suspicious_process_file_path_filter is a empty macro by default. It allows the user to filter out any results (false positives) without editing the SPL.
Required field
- _time
- Processes.process_name
- Processes.process
- Processes.parent_process_name
- Processes.parent_process
- Processes.process_path
- Processes.dest
- Processes.user
How To Implement
To successfully implement this search you need to be ingesting information on process that include the name of the process responsible for the changes from your endpoints into the Endpoint
datamodel in the Processes
node.
Known False Positives
Administrators may allow execution of specific binaries in non-standard paths. Filter as needed.
Associated Analytic story
RBA
Risk Score | Impact | Confidence | Message |
---|---|---|---|
35.0 | 70 | 50 | Suspicioues process $Processes.process_path.file_path$ running from suspicious location |
Reference
- https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/hk/threat-encyclopedia/malware/trojan.ps1.powtran.a/
- https://www.microsoft.com/security/blog/2022/01/15/destructive-malware-targeting-ukrainian-organizations/
Test Dataset
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 | version: 1