In the thrilling game of cyber cat-and-mouse, the ‘mice’ seem to be constantly inventing new ways to outsmart the ‘cats’. One such cunning mouse is the so-called “Mockingjay” attack. As novel as it is insidious, Mockingjay introduces an innovative method to evade traditional defenses and infiltrate systems without sounding any alarms. Grab a coffee, and let’s dive into the world of double DLL sideloading and process injection.
Inside the Lair of the Mockingjay: A Technical Perspective
To comprehend the Mockingjay attack, we need to start with a basic understanding of Dynamic-Link Libraries (DLLs). Essentially, a DLL is a module containing functions that applications can call upon. In a classic DLL sideloading attack, a cyber villain tricks an application into loading a malicious DLL, thus executing their nefarious code.
But Mockingjay isn’t your regular DLL sideloading attack. It employs a double twist, exploiting a misconfigured DLL (like the msys-2.0.dll found in Visual Studio 2022 Community) that contains a default Read-Write-Execute (RWX) section. This DLL is craftily altered to load malware, bypassing the watchful eyes of Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) tools.
How, you may wonder? The Mockingjay attack smartly uses two injection methods: self-injection and remote process injection. The former loads the rogue DLL into the address space of a custom application, allowing code execution via the RWX section. The latter performs the same operation but on a remote process, like ssh.exe. This process circumvents the need for memory allocation, permission setting, or thread creation within the target process, the usual red flags for EDR systems, helping it to slip under the radar undetected.
Decoding Mockingjay: ELI5 Version
Let’s simplify this. Imagine being a guard at a museum. Your task is to spot and stop any thief based on specific suspicious behaviors and appearances. You’re doing great, catching every robber that fits the criteria. However, one day a thief walks in, looking and behaving exactly like a regular visitor. He skillfully swaps a priceless artifact with a fake without creating a scene, and strolls out unnoticed.
In this story, Mockingjay is that sly thief. It avoids typical ‘suspicious’ actions like creating noise (memory allocation) or looking out of place (permission setting), and simply blends in with the crowd, performing its swap (injecting the code) without causing suspicion.
EDR Tools’ Achilles Heel
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) systems are typically excellent guards, monitoring specific Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and system calls to catch typical process injection attacks. But Mockingjay is the atypical thief. Instead of making noise by invoking monitored APIs or system calls, it silently alters the contents of an already misconfigured DLL to load its malware. It avoids gaining additional permissions as this would wave a red flag for EDR software. It strolls right past our guards, without tripping any alarms.
The Proactive Knight: Behavioral Threat Hunting
This scenario is a wake-up call that our cybersecurity strategies need to evolve. We need to move beyond just monitoring specific APIs or system calls and start watching out for abnormal behavioral patterns. This is where behavioral threat hunting enters the game.
Instead of waiting for the alarms to go off, behavioral threat hunting involves proactively looking for signs of compromise. It’s about understanding the overall behavior and utilizing machine learning to spot unusual patterns. The ultimate goal is to detect threats before they cause havoc, by identifying and understanding new attack techniques.
In the case of Mockingjay, while there may not be an explicit API call to trigger an EDR alert, a system monitoring for abnormal behavioral patterns could detect the change in the DLL’s content.
Your Move: Level Up with HUNTER Community
As Mockingjay and its brethren become more sophisticated, we need to level up our defenses. It’s time to equip ourselves with the right tools to safeguard our systems and networks.
If you want to stay ahead of threats like Mockingjay, consider getting a free Community account on the HUNTER platform. With access to dozens of behavioral threat hunting packages, you’ll be armed with the knowledge and tools necessary to spot and combat threats like Mockingjay and many others. After all, there’s no time like the present to arm yourself for the battles of the future. Sign up today, and let’s ensure the chirping intruder doesn’t slip by unnoticed.
