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Every technique
T1059.012Not expressible in Sigma

Hypervisor CLI

ExecutionESXi

Where this stands

No Sigma rule can address this — the telemetry MITRE names has no Sigma logsource behind it.

None of MITRE's analytics for this technique name a log source that maps to a Sigma logsource — they describe abstract data ("Process::None"), API-hook telemetry, or prose channels with no reliable field names behind them.

What the technique is

Adversaries may abuse hypervisor command line interpreters (CLIs) to execute malicious commands. Hypervisor CLIs typically enable a wide variety of functionality for managing both the hypervisor itself and the guest virtual machines it hosts. For example, on ESXi systems, tools such as esxcli and vim-cmd allow administrators to configure firewall rules and log forwarding on the hypervisor, list virtual machines, start and stop virtual machines, and more. Adversaries may be able to leverage these tools in order to support further actions, such as File and Directory Discovery or Data Encrypted for Impact.

Read it on attack.mitre.org

What MITRE says you would watch

  • AN1537

    Detects suspicious use of ESXi native CLI tools like esxcli and vim-cmd by unauthorized users or outside expected maintenance windows. Focus is on actions such as stopping VMs, reconfiguring network/firewall settings, and enabling SSH or logging.

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