The Lateral Movement tactic in the MITRE ATT&CK framework is the effort of a malicious actor to move horizontally across an organization’s network after gaining an initial foothold. While initial access is always about breaching the organization’s network perimeter, this tactic seeks to further expand the attacker’s reach within the network and control areas by exploiting internal connections, access credentials, and misconfigurations. This is a significant phase for attackers who seek to escalate privileges, access sensitive data, or locate high-value assets.
With knowledge of lateral movement techniques and defense, the attacker will not be able to easily move within your network, as this may lead to the containment of possible threats to the organization.
What is Lateral Movement in MITRE ATT&CK?
Lateral movement consists of tactics that enable the attacker to proceed with his objectives by conducting the following activities:
- Privilege escalation: Get an account that grants the holder all privileges to access the restricted resources.
- Access Multiple Systems: Enables attackers to move back and forth between endpoints and servers, and change user accounts, thereby gaining as much control as possible or gathering intelligence about the organization. x
- Evasion: Stealthily blend in with legitimate network activity to evade security monitoring.
Mostly, adversaries are making lateral movements to gain access to sensitive resources like databases or domain controllers, while trying to remain as low-profile as possible and persist within the network.
General Techniques Utilized in Lateral Movement:
The MITRE ATT&CK framework has identified several key techniques that adversaries utilize during lateral movement. Below are some of the major methods, along with mitigation tips.
1. Remote Services (T1021)
- Attackers utilize remote services such as RDP, SSH, and SMB to access and control systems across the network.
- Example: An attacker uses stolen RDP credentials to remotely access a server for further reconnaissance.
- Mitigation: Limit access to remote services for those individuals who require it. Also, enforce MFA on remote services and monitor login attempts for suspicious activity.
2. Pass the Hash (T1550.002)
- This attack occurs when attackers authenticate using password hashes without obtaining the plaintext password, often exploiting weak network segmentation.
- Example: An attacker obtains the NTLM hash from an exploited machine and then uses those hash values to log in to other systems on the same network.
- Countermeasure: Implementation of Password policies, Credential Guard with Windows Defender, and segregation of the network so that it does not leak password hashes.
3. Pass the Ticket (T1550.003)
- Attackers utilize Kerberos tickets acquired from one system to authenticate on other systems, bypassing the need for actual credentials.
- Example: An attacker has acquired a compromised user’s TGT and further uses it to acquire access to other systems.
- Mitigation: Refresh Kerberos tickets frequently, implement MFA, and monitor for abnormal Kerberos authentication requests.
4. Internal Spear Phishing (T1534)
- Threat actors may send targeted phishing emails from the compromised network to gain additional credentials or privilege escalation.
- Example: An attacker sends a phishing email from a compromised executive’s account to IT staff requesting sensitive access.
- Mitigation: Use email filtering tools, educate employees on internal phishing risks, and monitor for suspicious internal email patterns.
5. Exploitation of Remote Services (T1210)
- Attackers can use network service-sensitive internal system vulnerabilities to move laterally without credentials.
- Example: An attacker discovers and exploits an unpatched vulnerability in an internal web application, using the obtained information to access sensitive data.
- Mitigation: Regular security patches, use of vulnerability management solutions, and segmenting critical systems from general network traffic.
6. Windows Admin Shares (T1077)
- Attackers use administrative shares such as C$, ADMIN$, and IPC$ to access files, run commands remotely, and distribute malware.
- Example: An attacker uses admin shares to upload malicious scripts to several workstations to run them.
- Mitigation: Reduce the use of administrative shares, implement least privilege principles, and monitor file sharing activities on critical assets.
7. Replication Through Removable Media (T1091)
- The attackers can transfer malware or access credentials between systems physically through USB drives or other removable media.
- Example: The attacker introduces malware through a USB drive, and the malware spreads throughout the network since other users connect to the infected drive.
- Mitigation: Disable auto-run on removable media, control access to USB ports, and use EDR to scan removable media.
Why Lateral Movement is Important?
Lateral movement is a vital component of an attacker’s operation because it allows them to:
- Access Targeted Assets: Move laterally from the point of initial access to identify and access assets of value.
- Obtain Sensitive Information: Access critical systems and databases by moving laterally, amassing the data that will be exfiltrated or ransomed.
- Achieve Persistence: Implement redundancy into their network presence to maintain access if any portion of the attack is detected.
Through this lateral movement, attackers have the ability to maximize their campaign’s impact while reducing the probability of detection. Understanding and awareness of these techniques and detection will prevent wide compromise.
Conclusion:
This enables an attacker to extend control and access in the network further; the campaigns can be executed much more strongly. Thus, the organizations can minimize the adversary’s ability to navigate within the network through network activity monitoring, implementing least-privilege access, and multi-factor authentication. This is a necessary step toward preventing major breaches from occurring and securing all critical assets from unauthorized access.
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