DFIR Global

The MITRE ATT&CK Privilege Escalation (TA0004) tactic outlines techniques that adversaries use to gain higher-level permissions on a system or network, typically starting with lower-level access. By escalating privileges, attackers can perform more advanced activities, such as accessing sensitive data, manipulating system settings, or executing unauthorized commands. Techniques include exploiting software vulnerabilities, bypassing user access controls, or abusing legitimate system processes to gain administrative or root-level control.

Common techniques include exploiting misconfigurations, manipulating access tokens, and using valid accounts.

For more information, visit the MITRE ATT&CK Privilege Escalation page.

Key Techniques:

1. Exploitation of Vulnerabilities: Attackers exploit known or zero-day vulnerabilities in operating systems or applications to gain higher-level access. This could involve bypassing user access controls, exploiting privilege-related bugs, or leveraging kernel vulnerabilities to escalate permissions.
2. Access Token Manipulation: This technique involves the misuse or manipulation of security tokens used to authenticate users and determine access permissions. Adversaries may impersonate tokens associated with higher-privileged accounts, allowing them to execute actions under elevated privileges.
3. Valid Accounts: Attackers may leverage existing valid user accounts, particularly those with administrative privileges, to escalate their access. By compromising high-privilege accounts, attackers can achieve a significant level of control without needing to exploit vulnerabilities.
4. Abusing Built-In Tools: Tools and services that are natively part of operating systems (such as sudo on Linux or runas on Windows) can be exploited to escalate privileges. Attackers may use these tools in unintended ways to gain unauthorized access or carry out tasks that require elevated permissions.
5. DLL Hijacking/Injection: Attackers may inject malicious code into dynamic link libraries (DLLs) used by legitimate software, leading to elevated permissions when the software is executed. This tactic often leverages software with weak DLL loading mechanisms to hijack processes with elevated rights.
6. Scheduled Tasks/Jobs Manipulation: By creating or modifying scheduled tasks or jobs, attackers can execute scripts or programs with elevated permissions at regular intervals. This provides both privilege escalation and persistence.
7. Sudo and Sudo Caching: On Unix-based systems, attackers may exploit weaknesses in how sudo caches user credentials. If they can bypass these protections, they can escalate privileges to run commands as root or another privileged user.

Mitigation Strategies:

1. Patch Management: Regularly update and patch systems to close vulnerabilities that attackers could exploit for privilege escalation. This includes timely updates for operating systems, applications, and third-party tools.
2. Access Control: Enforce the principle of least privilege, ensuring that users and services have only the permissions they need. Restrict administrative or root-level access and limit the use of privileged accounts.
3. Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Implement MFA for privileged accounts to add an extra layer of security, making it harder for attackers to gain access using compromised credentials.
4. Monitoring: Continuously monitor and log privilege escalation attempts. Alerts for unusual user behavior, privilege changes, or the creation of new scheduled tasks can help detect and prevent escalation attacks.
5. Application Whitelisting: Use application control policies to restrict which applications and scripts can run with elevated privileges. This helps prevent unauthorized or malicious processes from escalating privileges.

These strategies help organizations reduce the risk of adversaries exploiting privilege escalation techniques and strengthen their overall security posture.

For more information, you can visit the MITRE ATT&CK Privilege Escalation page.