T1048 Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol
EnterpriseAdversaries may steal data by exfiltrating it over a different protocol than that of the existing command and control channel. The data may also be sent to an alternate network location from the main command and control server. Alternate protocols include FTP, SMTP, HTTP/S, DNS, SMB, or any other network protocol not being used as the main command and control channel. Adversaries may also opt to encrypt and/or obfuscate these alternate channels. Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol can be done using various common operating system utilities such as Net/SMB or FTP. On macOS and Linux <code>curl</code> may be used to invoke protocols such as HTTP/S or FTP/S to exfiltrate data from a system. Many IaaS and SaaS platforms (such as Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SharePoint, GitHub, and AWS S3) support the direct download of files, emails, source code, and other sensitive information via the web console or Cloud API.
platforms
Platforms this applies to.
tactics
ATT&CK tactics this technique serves.
sub-techniques (3)
More specific entries beneath this one.
mitigations
ATT&CK mitigations that reduce this.
detected by (9)
Data components that detect this.
countered by (D3FEND)
D3FEND countermeasures that counter this.
Detect
NIST CSF 2.0 — areas of relevance (Protect / Detect)
NIST CSF 2.0 areas this most relates to (evidence-ranked).
- PR.DSData Securitymoderate · backed by 10 of 23 mapped controls
- DE.CMContinuous Monitoringmoderate · backed by 7 of 23 mapped controls
- ID.AMAsset Managementmoderate · backed by 5 of 23 mapped controls
Derived from MITRE CTID (Apache-2.0) and the NIST 800-53 ↔ CSF crosswalk (public domain). Indicative relevance along the Protect/Detect axis — not a compliance assessment or coverage claim.
mitigating controls (23)
Security controls that mitigate this.
known-exploited CVEs (4)
Related CVEs.
| ID | severity | exploitable | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2022-26501US | critical9.8OT critical | KEV | ||
Veeam Backup & Replication 10.x and 11.x has Incorrect Access Control (issue 1 of 2). | ||||
| CVE-2022-26500US | high8.8OT critical | KEV | ||
Improper limitation of path names in Veeam Backup & Replication 9.5U3, 9.5U4,10.x, and 11.x allows remote authenticated users access to internal API functions that allows attackers… | ||||
| CVE-2017-6742US | high8.8OT critical | KEV | ||
A vulnerability in the SNMP implementation of could allow an authenticated, remote attacker to cause a reload of the affected system or to remotely execute code. An attacker could… | ||||
| CVE-2013-0641US | high7.8OT critical | KEV | ||
Buffer overflow in Adobe Reader and Acrobat 9.x before 9.5.4, 10.x before 10.1.6, and 11.x before 11.0.02 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted PDF docume… | ||||
groups (2)
Threat groups associated with this.
software (7)
Malware and tools associated with this.
Detected by (Sigma) (12)
Sigma detection rules related to this.
source
Where this definition is published.