CAPEC-642: Replace Binaries
Description
Adversaries know that certain binaries will be regularly executed as part of normal processing. If these binaries are not protected with the appropriate file system permissions, it could be possible to replace them with malware. This malware might be executed at higher system permission levels. A variation of this pattern is to discover self-extracting installation packages that unpack binaries to directories with weak file permissions which it does not clean up appropriately. These binaries can be replaced by malware, which can then be executed.
- Likelihood of attack
- Not rated by MITRE
- Typical severity
- High
- Abstraction
- DetailedA low-level, detailed pattern, often for a particular technology.
Mechanism of attack: Subvert Access Control
Prerequisites
- The attacker must be able to place the malicious binary on the target machine.
Mitigations
- Insure that binaries commonly used by the system have the correct file permissions. Set operating system policies that restrict privilege elevation of non-Administrators. Use auditing tools to observe changes to system services.
Related weaknesses (CWE)
ATT&CK techniques (CAPEC taxonomy mapping)
Across MITRE's defensive frameworks
Linked through the 3 ATT&CK techniques above.
Counter with D3FEND
Defensive techniques MITRE D3FEND maps to the same ATT&CK techniques.
- D3-AVEAsset Vulnerability Enumeration3 shared
- D3-RSRestore Software3 shared
- D3-SWISoftware Inventory3 shared
- D3-SUSoftware Update3 shared
- D3-DADynamic Analysis2 shared
- D3-EFAEmulated File Analysis2 shared
- D3-EALExecutable Allowlisting2 shared
- D3-EDLExecutable Denylisting2 shared
- D3-CFContent Filtering2 shared
- D3-CMContent Modification2 shared
- D3-DFDecoy File2 shared
- D3-FAFile Analysis2 shared
Detect with CAR
MITRE CAR analytics that cover the same ATT&CK techniques.
- CAR-2014-07-001Service Search Path Interception1 shared
- CAR-2021-02-001Webshell-Indicative Process Tree1 shared
- CAR-2021-11-001Registry Edit with Creation of SafeDllSearchMode Key Set to 01 shared
- CAR-2014-02-001Service Binary Modifications1 shared
- CAR-2013-03-001Reg.exe called from Command Shell1 shared
- CAR-2020-05-003Rare LolBAS Command Lines1 shared
- CAR-2013-01-002Autorun Differences1 shared
- CAR-2013-04-002Quick execution of a series of suspicious commands1 shared