Detection: Unsuccessful Netbackup backups

REMOVED DETECTION

This detection has been removed from the Splunk Threat Research content library and is no longer maintained or supported.

Reason: Detection deprecated as it no longer effectively identifies the intended malicious activity

Removed in version: 5.2.0

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us at research@splunk.com.

Updated Date: 2026-05-13 ID: a34aae96-ccf8-4aaa-952c-3ea21444444f Author: David Dorsey, Splunk Type: Hunting Product: Splunk Enterprise Security

Description

This search gives you the hosts where a backup was attempted and then failed.

Search

1`netbackup` 
2| stats latest(_time) as latestTime by COMPUTERNAME, MESSAGE 
3| search MESSAGE="An error occurred, failed to backup." 
4| `security_content_ctime(latestTime)` 
5| rename COMPUTERNAME as dest, MESSAGE as signature 
6| table latestTime, dest, signature 
7| `unsuccessful_netbackup_backups_filter`

Data Source

No data sources specified for this detection.

Macros Used

Name	Value
netbackup	`sourcetype="netbackup_logs"`
unsuccessful_netbackup_backups_filter	``

unsuccessful_netbackup_backups_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

Default Configuration

This detection is configured by default in Splunk Enterprise Security to run with the following settings:

Setting	Value
Disabled	true
Cron Schedule	`N/A`
Earliest Time	`N/A`
Latest Time	`N/A`
Schedule Window	`N/A`
Creates Finding (Notable)	No
Creates Intermediate Finding (Risk Event)	No

Hunting detections do not generate a Finding (Notable) or Intermediate Findings (Risk Events).

Implementation

To successfully implement this search you need to obtain data from your backup solution, either from the backup logs on your endpoints or from a central server responsible for performing the backups. If you do not use Netbackup, you can modify this search for your specific backup solution.

Known False Positives

None identified

Associated Analytic Story

Monitor Backup Solution

Detection Testing

Test Type	Status	Dataset	Source	Sourcetype
Validation	Not Applicable	N/A	N/A	N/A
Unit	Not Applicable	N/A	`N/A`	`N/A`

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: 4