| ID | Name |
|---|---|
| T1132.001 | Standard Encoding |
| T1132.002 | Non-Standard Encoding |
Adversaries may encode data with a non-standard data encoding system to make the content of command and control traffic more difficult to detect. Command and control (C2) information can be encoded using a non-standard data encoding system that diverges from existing protocol specifications. Non-standard data encoding schemes may be based on or related to standard data encoding schemes, such as a modified Base64 encoding for the message body of an HTTP request.[1] [2]
| ID | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| S0031 | BACKSPACE |
Newer variants of BACKSPACE will encode C2 communications with a custom system.[3] |
| S0239 | Bankshot |
Bankshot encodes commands from the control server using a range of characters and gzip.[4] |
| S0687 | Cyclops Blink |
Cyclops Blink can use a custom binary scheme to encode messages with specific commands and parameters to be executed.[5] |
| S0260 | InvisiMole |
InvisiMole can use a modified base32 encoding to encode data within the subdomain of C2 requests.[6] |
| S0346 | OceanSalt |
OceanSalt can encode data with a NOT operation before sending the data to the control server.[7] |
| S0495 | RDAT |
RDAT can communicate with the C2 via subdomains that utilize base64 with character substitutions.[8] |
| S0596 | ShadowPad |
| ID | Mitigation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| M1031 | Network Intrusion Prevention |
Network intrusion detection and prevention systems that use network signatures to identify traffic for specific adversary malware can be used to mitigate activity at the network level. Signatures are often for unique indicators within protocols and may be based on the specific obfuscation technique used by a particular adversary or tool, and will likely be different across various malware families and versions. Adversaries will likely change tool C2 signatures over time or construct protocols in such a way as to avoid detection by common defensive tools. |
| ID | Data Source | Data Component |
|---|---|---|
| DS0029 | Network Traffic | Network Traffic Content |
Analyze network data for uncommon data flows (e.g., a client sending significantly more data than it receives from a server). Processes utilizing the network that do not normally have network communication or have never been seen before are suspicious. Analyze packet contents to detect communications that do not follow the expected protocol behavior for the port that is being used.[10]