Analytics Story: NOBELIUM Group

Description

NOBELIUM, also known as APT29, The Dukes, Cozy Bear, CozyDuke, Blue Kitsune, and Midnight Blizzard, is a sophisticated nation-state threat actor, reportedly associated with Russian intelligence. Active since at least 2008, this group primarily targets government networks in Europe and NATO member countries, along with research institutes and think tanks. Their operations typically involve advanced persistent threats (APT), leveraging techniques like spear-phishing, malware deployment, and long-term network compromise to achieve information theft and espionage. Notably, APT29 has been implicated in significant cyber espionage incidents, including the 2015 breach of the Pentagon's Joint Staff email system and attacks on the Democratic National Committee in 2016. Their advanced tactics and persistent approach underscore the serious nature of threats posed by this group to global cybersecurity.

Why it matters

This Analytic Story groups detections designed to trigger on a comprehensive range of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) leveraged by the NOBELIUM Group, with a focus on their methods as observed in well-known public breaches.

Detections

Data Sources

Name ▲▼	Platform ▲▼	Sourcetype ▲▼	Source ▲▼
Windows Event Log Security 4688	Windows	XmlWinEventLog	XmlWinEventLog:Security
Sysmon EventID 1	Windows	XmlWinEventLog	XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational
CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2	Other	crowdstrike:events:sensor	crowdstrike
Azure Active Directory Update application	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
O365	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
O365 Update application.	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
Azure Active Directory Add member to role	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
O365 Add service principal.	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
O365 MailItemsAccessed	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
Azure Active Directory Add owner to application	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
Azure Active Directory Add service principal	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
Palo Alto Network Traffic	Network	pan:traffic	not_applicable
Cisco Secure Firewall Threat Defense Connection Event	Other	cisco:sfw:estreamer	not_applicable
O365 UserLoginFailed	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
Cisco Secure Access Firewall	Other	cisco:cloud_security:firewall	cisco_secure_access:firewall
Sysmon EventID 22	Windows	XmlWinEventLog	XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational
Sysmon EventID 7	Windows	XmlWinEventLog	XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational
Azure Active Directory	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
O365 Consent to application.	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
Azure Active Directory Sign-in activity	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
Azure Active Directory Add app role assignment to service principal	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD
O365 Add owner to application.	Other	o365:management:activity	o365
Windows Event Log System 7036	Windows	XmlWinEventLog	XmlWinEventLog:System
Azure Active Directory Consent to application	Azure	azure:monitor:aad	Azure AD

References

• https://msrc-blog.microsoft.com/2020/12/13/customer-guidance-on-recent-nation-state-cyber-attacks/
• https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2020/12/evasive-attacker-leverages-solarwinds-supply-chain-compromises-with-sunburst-backdoor.html
• https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2024/01/25/midnight-blizzard-guidance-for-responders-on-nation-state-attack/
• https://www.microsoft.com/security/blog/2021/03/04/goldmax-goldfinder-sibot-analyzing-nobelium-malware/
• https://attack.mitre.org/groups/G0016/

Source: GitHub | Version: 4