Name:Windows MSIExec Spawn WinDBG id:9a18f7c2-1fe3-47b8-9467-8b3976770a30 version:5 date:2024-11-28 author:Michael Haag, Splunk status:production type:TTP Description:The following analytic identifies the unusual behavior of MSIExec spawning WinDBG. It detects this activity by analyzing endpoint telemetry data, specifically looking for instances where 'msiexec.exe' is the parent process of 'windbg.exe'. This behavior is significant as it may indicate an attempt to debug or tamper with system processes, which is uncommon in typical user activity and could signify malicious intent. If confirmed malicious, this activity could allow an attacker to manipulate or inspect running processes, potentially leading to privilege escalation or persistence within the environment. Data_source:
-Sysmon EventID 1
-Windows Event Log Security 4688
-CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2
search:| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime from datamodel=Endpoint.Processes where Processes.parent_process_name=msiexec.exe Processes.process_name=windbg.exe by Processes.dest Processes.user Processes.parent_process_name Processes.parent_process_path Processes.parent_process Processes.process_name Processes.process_path Processes.process Processes.process_id Processes.parent_process_id | `drop_dm_object_name(Processes)` | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`| `windows_msiexec_spawn_windbg_filter`
how_to_implement: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:False positives will only be present if the MSIExec process legitimately spawns WinDBG. Filter as needed. References: -https://github.com/PaloAltoNetworks/Unit42-timely-threat-intel/blob/main/2023-10-25-IOCs-from-DarkGate-activity.txt drilldown_searches: name:'View the detection results for - "$user$" and "$dest$"' search:'%original_detection_search% | search user = "$user$" dest = "$dest$"' earliest_offset:'$info_min_time$' latest_offset:'$info_max_time$' name:'View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$user$" and "$dest$"' search:'| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$user$", "$dest$") 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: - 'Compromised Windows Host' - 'DarkGate Malware' asset_type:Endpoint atomic_guid: confidence:100 impact:100 message:An instance of $parent_process_name$ spawning $process_name$ was identified on endpoint $dest$ by user $user$. mitre_attack_id: - 'T1218.007' observable: name:'user' type:'User' - role: - 'Victim' name:'dest' type:'Hostname' - role: - 'Victim' name:'parent_process_name' type:'Process Name' - role: - 'Attacker' name:'process_name' type:'Process' - role: - 'Attacker' product: - 'Splunk Enterprise' - 'Splunk Enterprise Security' - 'Splunk Cloud' risk_score:100 required_fields: - 'Processes.dest' - 'Processes.user' - 'Processes.parent_process_name' - 'Processes.parent_process_path' - 'Processes.parent_process' - 'Processes.process_name' - 'Processes.process_path' - 'Processes.process' - 'Processes.process_id' - 'Processes.parent_process_id' security_domain:endpoint
