Azure Automation Runbook Created

Name:Azure Automation Runbook Created
id:178d696d-6dc6-4ee8-9d25-93fee34eaf5b
version:12
date:2026-03-10
author:Mauricio Velazco, Brian Serocki, Splunk
status:production
type:TTP
Description:The following analytic detects the creation of a new Azure Automation Runbook within an Azure tenant. It leverages Azure Audit events, specifically the Azure Activity log category, to identify when a new Runbook is created or updated. This activity is significant because adversaries with privileged access can use Runbooks to maintain persistence, escalate privileges, or execute malicious code. If confirmed malicious, this could lead to unauthorized actions such as creating Global Administrators, executing code on VMs, and compromising the entire Azure environment.
Data_source:

• -Azure Audit Create or Update an Azure Automation Runbook

search:`azure_audit` operationName.value="Microsoft.Automation/automationAccounts/runbooks/write" object!=AzureAutomationTutorial* status.value=Succeeded

| dedup object

| rename claims.ipaddr as src, subscriptionId as vendor_account, operationName.value as operationName

| stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime
BY dest user src
vendor_account vendor_product object
object_path

| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`

| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`

| `azure_automation_runbook_created_filter`

how_to_implement:You must install the latest version of Splunk Add-on for Microsoft Cloud Services from Splunkbase (https://splunkbase.splunk.com/app/3110/#/details). You must be ingesting Azure Audit events into your Splunk environment. Specifically, this analytic leverages the Azure Activity log category.
known_false_positives:Administrators may legitimately create Azure Automation Runbooks. Filter as needed.
References:
  -https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/overview
  -https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/automation-runbook-types
  -https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/automation/manage-runbooks
  -https://www.inversecos.com/2021/12/how-to-detect-malicious-azure.html
  -https://www.netspi.com/blog/technical/cloud-penetration-testing/maintaining-azure-persistence-via-automation-accounts/
  -https://microsoft.github.io/Azure-Threat-Research-Matrix/Persistence/AZT503/AZT503-3/
  -https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1136/003/
drilldown_searches:
 name:'View the detection results for - "$user$"'
 search:'%original_detection_search% | search user = "$user$"'
 earliest_offset:'$info_min_time$'
 latest_offset:'$info_max_time$'
 name:'View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$user$"'
 search:'| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$user$") starthoursago=168 | stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime values(search_name) as "Search Name" values(risk_message) as "Risk Message" values(analyticstories) as "Analytic Stories" values(annotations._all) as "Annotations" values(annotations.mitre_attack.mitre_tactic) as "ATT&CK Tactics" by normalized_risk_object | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`'
 earliest_offset:'$info_min_time$'
 latest_offset:'$info_max_time$'
tags:
  analytic_story:
    - 'Azure Active Directory Persistence'
  asset_type:Azure Tenant
  mitre_attack_id:
    - 'T1136.003'
  product:
    - 'Splunk Enterprise'
    - 'Splunk Enterprise Security'
    - 'Splunk Cloud'
  security_domain:audit

tests:
 name:'True Positive Test'
 attack_data:
  data: https://media.githubusercontent.com/media/splunk/attack_data/master/datasets/attack_techniques/T1078.004/azure_automation_runbook/azure-activity.log
  source: mscs:azure:audit
  sourcetype: mscs:azure:audit
manual_test:None