Techniques
Sample rules
Windows List ENV Variables Via SET Command From Uncommon Parent
- source: splunk
- technicques:
- T1055
Description
The following analytic identifies a suspicious process command line fetching environment variables using the cmd.exe “set” command, with a non-shell parent process. It leverages data from Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) agents, focusing on command-line executions and parent process names. This activity could be significant as it is commonly associated with malware like Qakbot, which uses this technique to gather system information. If confirmed malicious, this behavior could indicate that the parent process has been compromised, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary commands, escalate privileges, or persist within the environment.
Detection logic
| tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime FROM datamodel=Endpoint.Processes
WHERE Processes.process_name="cmd.exe" Processes.process IN ("*/c set", "*/c \"set")
AND
NOT Processes.parent_process_name IN ("cmd.exe", "explorer.exe", "powershell*" "pwsh.exe")
BY Processes.action Processes.dest Processes.original_file_name
Processes.parent_process Processes.parent_process_exec Processes.parent_process_guid
Processes.parent_process_id Processes.parent_process_name Processes.parent_process_path
Processes.process Processes.process_exec Processes.process_guid
Processes.process_hash Processes.process_id Processes.process_integrity_level
Processes.process_name Processes.process_path Processes.user
Processes.user_id Processes.vendor_product
| `drop_dm_object_name(Processes)`
| `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
| `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
| `windows_list_env_variables_via_set_command_from_uncommon_parent_filter`