Name:Windows Service Deletion In Registry id:daed6823-b51c-4843-a6ad-169708f1323e version:3 date:2024-09-30 author:Teoderick Contreras, Splunk status:production type:Anomaly Description:The following analytic detects the deletion of a service from the Windows Registry under CurrentControlSet\Services. It leverages data from the Endpoint.Registry datamodel, specifically monitoring registry paths and actions related to service deletion. This activity is significant as adversaries may delete services to evade detection and hinder incident response efforts. If confirmed malicious, this action could disrupt legitimate services, impair system functionality, and potentially allow attackers to maintain a lower profile within the environment, complicating detection and remediation efforts. Data_source:
-Sysmon EventID 12
-Sysmon EventID 13
search:| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime FROM datamodel=Endpoint.Registry where Registry.registry_path= "*\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Services*" AND (Registry.action = deleted OR (Registry.registry_value_name = DeleteFlag AND Registry.registry_value_data = 0x00000001 AND Registry.action=modified)) by Registry.registry_key_name Registry.user Registry.registry_path Registry.registry_value_data Registry.registry_value_name Registry.action Registry.dest | `drop_dm_object_name(Registry)` | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)` | `windows_service_deletion_in_registry_filter`
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 `Registry` node. Also make sure that this registry was included in your config files ex. sysmon config to be monitored. known_false_positives:This event can be seen when administrator delete a service or uninstall/reinstall a software that creates service entry, but it is still recommended to check this alert with high priority. References: -https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/brute-ratel-c4-tool/ drilldown_searches: name:'View the detection results for - "$dest$"' search:'%original_detection_search% | search dest = "$dest$"' earliest_offset:'$info_min_time$' latest_offset:'$info_max_time$' name:'View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$dest$"' search:'| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$dest$") 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: - 'Brute Ratel C4' - 'PlugX' asset_type:Endpoint confidence:30 impact:60 message:A service was deleted on $dest$ within the Windows registry. mitre_attack_id: - 'T1489' observable: name:'dest' type:'Endpoint' - role: - 'Victim' product: - 'Splunk Enterprise' - 'Splunk Enterprise Security' - 'Splunk Cloud' required_fields: - '_time' - 'Registry.registry_key_name' - 'Registry.registry_path' - 'Registry.user' - 'Registry.dest' - 'Registry.registry_value_name' - 'Processes.process_id' - 'Processes.process_name' - 'Processes.process' - 'Processes.dest' - 'Processes.parent_process_name' - 'Processes.parent_process' - 'Processes.process_guid' risk_score:18 security_domain:endpoint
