Detection: Windows IIS Server PSWA Console Access

Updated Date: 2024-10-17 ID: 914ab191-fa8a-48cb-83a6-0565e061f934 Author: Michael Haag, Splunk Type: Hunting Product: Splunk Enterprise Security

Description

This analytic detects access attempts to the PowerShell Web Access (PSWA) console on Windows IIS servers. It monitors web traffic for requests to PSWA-related URIs, which could indicate legitimate administrative activity or potential unauthorized access attempts. By tracking source IP, HTTP status, URI path, and HTTP method, it helps identify suspicious patterns or brute-force attacks targeting PSWA. This detection is crucial for maintaining the security of remote PowerShell management interfaces and preventing potential exploitation of this powerful administrative tool.

1
2| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime from datamodel=Web where Web.dest IN ("/pswa/*") by Web.src Web.status Web.uri_path Web.dest Web.http_method Web.uri_query 
3| `drop_dm_object_name("Web")`
4| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` 
5| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)` 
6| `windows_iis_server_pswa_console_access_filter`

Data Source

Name Platform Sourcetype Source
Windows IIS Windows icon Windows 'IIS:Configuration:Operational' 'IIS:Configuration:Operational'

Macros Used

Name Value
security_content_ctime convert timeformat="%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%S" ctime($field$)
windows_iis_server_pswa_console_access_filter search *
windows_iis_server_pswa_console_access_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
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
KillChainPhase.DELIVERY
NistCategory.DE_AE
Cis18Value.CIS_13
APT28
APT29
APT39
APT41
APT5
Agrius
Axiom
BackdoorDiplomacy
BlackTech
Blue Mockingbird
Cinnamon Tempest
Dragonfly
Earth Lusca
Ember Bear
FIN13
FIN7
Fox Kitten
GALLIUM
GOLD SOUTHFIELD
HAFNIUM
INC Ransom
Ke3chang
Kimsuky
Magic Hound
Moses Staff
MuddyWater
Play
Rocke
Sandworm Team
Threat Group-3390
ToddyCat
Volatile Cedar
Volt Typhoon
Winter Vivern
menuPass

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 False
This configuration file applies to all detections of type hunting.

Implementation

To successfully implement this search you need to be ingesting information on Web traffic, Exchange OR IIS logs, mapped to Web datamodel in the Web node. In addition, confirm the latest CIM App 4.20 or higher is installed.

Known False Positives

False positives may occur if legitimate PSWA processes are used for administrative tasks. Careful review of the logs is recommended to distinguish between legitimate and malicious activity.

Associated Analytic Story

Risk Based Analytics (RBA)

Risk Message Risk Score Impact Confidence
Access to the PowerShell Web Access (PSWA) console detected from $src$. 32 40 80
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 ms:iis:splunk ms:iis:splunk
Integration ✅ Passing Dataset ms:iis:splunk ms:iis:splunk

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