Detection of Adversarial Process Discovery Behavior

Technique Detected:  Process Discovery | T1057

ID: DET0034
Domains: Enterprise
Analytics: AN0095, AN0096, AN0097, AN0098, AN0099
Version: 1.0
Created: 21 October 2025
Last Modified: 21 October 2025

Analytics

AN0095

Identifies adversary behavior that launches commands or invokes APIs to enumerate active processes (e.g., tasklist.exe, Get-Process, or CreateToolhelp32Snapshot). Detects execution combined with parent process lineage, network session context, or remote origin.

Log Sources
Data Component Name Channel
Process Creation (DC0032) WinEventLog:Security EventCode=4688
Process Access (DC0035) WinEventLog:Sysmon EventCode=10
Mutable Elements
Field Description
ParentProcessName Used to scope suspicious discovery from non-interactive or non-standard parent processes like Office macros, WMI, or script engines
CommandLinePattern Adversaries may obfuscate or vary process discovery commands (e.g., aliases, PowerShell variants)
TimeWindow Helps detect bursty discovery behavior within a short timeframe

AN0096

Detects execution of common process enumeration utilities (e.g., ps, top, htop) or access to /proc with suspicious ancestry. Correlates command usage with interactive shell context and user role.

Log Sources
Data Component Name Channel
Process Creation (DC0032) auditd:SYSCALL execve
File Access (DC0055) auditd:SYSCALL openat
Process Access (DC0035) linux:osquery Process State
Mutable Elements
Field Description
AccessedPath Filter based on suspicious /proc directory enumeration or high-volume ls/readlink usage
UserContext Helps tune for root vs. low-priv users during interactive vs. scripted activity

AN0097

Monitors execution of ps, top, or launchctl with unusual parent processes or from terminal scripts. Also detects AppleScript-based process listing or system_profiler SPApplicationsDataType misuse.

Log Sources
Data Component Name Channel
Process Creation (DC0032) macos:unifiedlog process launch
Process Metadata (DC0034) macos:osquery Process Context
Mutable Elements
Field Description
ParentApp Tunable to detect discovery from non-UI tools or script-based execution (osascript, zsh, cron)

AN0098

Detects process enumeration using esxcli system process list or ps on ESXi shell or via unauthorized SSH sessions. Correlates with interactive sessions and abnormal user roles.

Log Sources
Data Component Name Channel
Command Execution (DC0064) esxi:shell interactive shell
Process Metadata (DC0034) esxi:auth user session
Mutable Elements
Field Description
User Admins are expected to run these commands—flag if non-admin or unknown users do

AN0099

Monitors CLI-based execution of show process or equivalent on routers/switches. Correlates unusual device access, unauthorized roles, or config mode changes.

Log Sources
Data Component Name Channel
Command Execution (DC0064) networkdevice:cli CLI command
Process Metadata (DC0034) networkdevice:syslog Admin activity
Mutable Elements
Field Description
Username Tunable based on authorized operators for network infrastructure
CommandString Pattern match or regex scope for discovery commands