Detect Masquerade Task or Service in Microsoft Sentinel
Adversaries may attempt to manipulate the name of a task or service to make it appear legitimate or benign. Tasks/services executed by the Task Scheduler or systemd will typically be given a name and/or description. Windows services will have a service name as well as a display name. Adversaries may give tasks or services names that are similar or identical to those of legitimate ones, such as 'Windows Update Security', 'Google Chrome Security Update', or 'Microsoft Network Realtime Inspection Service'.
MITRE ATT&CK
- Tactic
- Defense Evasion
- Technique
- T1036 Masquerading
- Sub-technique
- T1036.004 Masquerade Task or Service
- Canonical reference
- https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1036/004/
KQL Detection Query
let SuspiciousServiceNames = dynamic(["Windows Update Security", "Microsoft Network Realtime", "Windows Advanced Task Manager", "Google Chrome Security Update", "Windows Video Service", "Windows Power Efficiency", "System Authorization Service", "Windows Management Help", "Microsoft Support", "Windows User Service"]);
DeviceEvents
| where Timestamp > ago(24h)
| where ActionType == "ServiceInstalled"
| where AdditionalFields has_any (SuspiciousServiceNames)
or AdditionalFields matches regex @"(?i)(svchost|update|security|microsoft|google|chrome|adobe|windows).*service"
| project Timestamp, DeviceName, AccountName, ActionType, AdditionalFields
| sort by Timestamp descDetects installation of Windows services with names mimicking legitimate Microsoft or third-party services. Correlates against known malicious service display names used by threat actors including Shamoon, Maze ransomware, Carbanak, and FIN7. Also uses regex pattern matching for service names that combine trusted vendor keywords with generic service terms.
Data Sources
Required Tables
False Positives & Tuning
- Legitimate Windows Update-related services installed during OS or feature updates
- Third-party security software that creates services with names containing 'Security' or 'Update'
- Enterprise software deployment tools (SCCM, Intune) creating services during application installation
- Google Chrome, Adobe, and other software creating legitimate update services
Other platforms for T1036.004
Testing Methodology
Validate this detection against 3 adversary techniques from Atomic Red Team. Each test below lists the behaviour to exercise and the telemetry you should expect to see. Executable commands and cleanup steps are available with Pro.
- Test 1Create Masquerading Windows Service
Expected signal: Windows System Event ID 7045: A service was installed with ServiceName=WindowsUpdateSecurity and DisplayName='Windows Update Security Patches'. Sysmon Event ID 12/13: Registry key creation under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WindowsUpdateSecurity.
- Test 2Create Masquerading Scheduled Task
Expected signal: Security Event ID 4698: A scheduled task was created with TaskName=AdobeFlashSync. Sysmon Event ID 1: schtasks.exe process creation with /create command line.
- Test 3Create Masquerading Systemd Service (Linux)
Expected signal: File creation event for /etc/systemd/system/dbus-inotifier.service. Process execution of systemctl daemon-reload. Auditd events for write to /etc/systemd/system/.
References (6)
- https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1036/004/
- http://researchcenter.paloaltonetworks.com/2016/11/unit42-shamoon-2-return-disttrack-wiper/
- https://vms.drweb.com/virus/?i=4276269
- https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb490996.aspx
- https://www.freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/systemd.service.html
- https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/blob/master/atomics/T1036.004/T1036.004.md
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