Detection: Linux File Creation In Init Boot Directory

Updated Date: 2024-05-30 ID: 97d9cfb2-61ad-11ec-bb2d-acde48001122 Author: Teoderick Contreras, Splunk Type: Anomaly Product: Splunk Enterprise Security

Description

The following analytic detects the creation of files in Linux init boot directories, which are used for automatic execution upon system startup. It leverages file system logs to identify new files in directories such as /etc/init.d/ and /etc/rc.d/. This activity is significant as it is a common persistence technique used by adversaries, malware authors, and red teamers. If confirmed malicious, this could allow an attacker to maintain persistence on the compromised host, potentially leading to further exploitation and unauthorized control over the system.

1
2| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime FROM datamodel=Endpoint.Filesystem where Filesystem.file_path IN ("*/etc/init.d/*", "*/etc/rc.d/*", "*/sbin/init.d/*", "*/etc/rc.local*") by Filesystem.dest Filesystem.file_name Filesystem.process_guid Filesystem.file_path 
3| `drop_dm_object_name(Filesystem)` 
4| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)` 
5| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` 
6| `linux_file_creation_in_init_boot_directory_filter`

Data Source

Name Platform Sourcetype Source Supported App
Sysmon for Linux EventID 11 Linux icon Linux 'sysmon:linux' 'Syslog:Linux-Sysmon/Operational' N/A

Macros Used

Name Value
security_content_ctime convert timeformat="%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S" ctime($field$)
linux_file_creation_in_init_boot_directory_filter search *
linux_file_creation_in_init_boot_directory_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
T1037.004 RC Scripts Persistence
T1037 Boot or Logon Initialization Scripts Privilege Escalation
KillChainPhase.EXPLOITAITON
KillChainPhase.INSTALLATION
NistCategory.DE_AE
Cis18Value.CIS_10
APT29
APT29
Rocke

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 Risk Event True
This configuration file applies to all detections of type anomaly. These detections will use Risk Based Alerting.

Implementation

To successfully implement this search, you need to be ingesting logs with the file name, file path, and process_guid executions from your endpoints. If you are using Sysmon, you can use the Add-on for Linux Sysmon from Splunkbase

Known False Positives

Administrator or network operator can create file in this folders for automation purposes. Please update the filter macros to remove false positives.

Associated Analytic Story

Risk Based Analytics (RBA)

Risk Message Risk Score Impact Confidence
A file $file_name$ is created in $file_path$ on $dest$ 49 70 70
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 Syslog:Linux-Sysmon/Operational sysmon:linux
Integration ✅ Passing Dataset Syslog:Linux-Sysmon/Operational sysmon:linux

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: 2