A Comprehensive Survey on Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) Detection Techniques

The increase in number of people using the Internet leads to increased cyberattack opportunities.Advanced Persistent Threats,or APTs,are among the most dangerous targeted cyberattacks.APT attacks utilize various advanced tools and techniques for attacking targets with specific goals.Even countries with advanced technologies,like the US,Russia,the UK,and India,are susceptible to this targeted attack.APT is a sophisticated attack that involves multiple stages and specific strategies.Besides,TTP(Tools,Techniques,and Procedures)involved in the APT attack are commonly new and developed by an attacker to evade the security system.However,APTs are generally implemented in multiple stages.If one of the stages is detected,we may apply a defense mechanism for subsequent stages,leading to the entire APT attack failure.The detection at the early stage of APT and the prediction of the next step in the APT kill chain are ongoing challenges.This survey paper will provide knowledge about APT attacks and their essential steps.This follows the case study of known APT attacks,which will give clear information about the APT attack process—in later sections,highlighting the various detection methods defined by different researchers along with the limitations of the work.Data used in this article comes from the various annual reports published by security experts and blogs and information released by the enterprise networks targeted by the attack.

Advanced Persistent Threat Detection and Mitigation Using Machine Learning Model

The detection of cyber threats has recently been a crucial research domain as the internet and data drive people’s livelihood.Several cyber-attacks lead to the compromise of data security.The proposed system offers complete data protection from Advanced Persistent Threat(APT)attacks with attack detection and defence mechanisms.The modified lateral movement detection algorithm detects the APT attacks,while the defence is achieved by the Dynamic Deception system that makes use of the belief update algorithm.Before termination,every cyber-attack undergoes multiple stages,with the most prominent stage being Lateral Movement(LM).The LM uses a Remote Desktop protocol(RDP)technique to authenticate the unauthorised host leaving footprints on the network and host logs.An anomaly-based approach leveraging the RDP event logs on Windows is used for detecting the evidence of LM.After extracting various feature sets from the logs,the RDP sessions are classified using machine-learning techniques with high recall and precision.It is found that the AdaBoost classifier offers better accuracy,precision,F1 score and recall recording 99.9%,99.9%,0.99 and 0.98%.Further,a dynamic deception process is used as a defence mechanism to mitigateAPTattacks.A hybrid encryption communication,dynamic(Internet Protocol)IP address generation,timing selection and policy allocation are established based on mathematical models.A belief update algorithm controls the defender’s action.The performance of the proposed system is compared with the state-of-the-art models.

A Cyber Kill Chain Approach for Detecting Advanced Persistent Threats

The number of cybersecurity incidents is on the rise despite significant investment in security measures.The existing conventional security approaches have demonstrated limited success against some of the more complex cyber-attacks.This is primarily due to the sophistication of the attacks and the availability of powerful tools.Interconnected devices such as the Internet of Things(IoT)are also increasing attack exposures due to the increase in vulnerabilities.Over the last few years,we have seen a trend moving towards embracing edge technologies to harness the power of IoT devices and 5G networks.Edge technology brings processing power closer to the network and brings many advantages,including reduced latency,while it can also introduce vulnerabilities that could be exploited.Smart cities are also dependent on technologies where everything is interconnected.This interconnectivity makes them highly vulnerable to cyber-attacks,especially by the Advanced Persistent Threat(APT),as these vulnerabilities are amplified by the need to integrate new technologies with legacy systems.Cybercriminals behind APT attacks have recently been targeting the IoT ecosystems,prevalent in many of these cities.In this paper,we used a publicly available dataset on Advanced Persistent Threats(APT)and developed a data-driven approach for detecting APT stages using the Cyber Kill Chain.APTs are highly sophisticated and targeted forms of attacks that can evade intrusion detection systems,resulting in one of the greatest current challenges facing security professionals.In this experiment,we used multiple machine learning classifiers,such as Naïve Bayes,Bayes Net,KNN,Random Forest and Support Vector Machine(SVM).We used Weka performance metrics to show the numeric results.The best performance result of 91.1%was obtained with the Naïve Bayes classifier.We hope our proposed solution will help security professionals to deal with APTs in a timely and effective manner.

Insider threat detection approach for tobacco industry based on heterogeneous graph embedding

In the tobacco industry,insider employee attack is a thorny problem that is difficult to detect.To solve this issue,this paper proposes an insider threat detection method based on heterogeneous graph embedding.First,the interrelationships between logs are fully considered,and log entries are converted into heterogeneous graphs based on these relationships.Second,the heterogeneous graph embedding is adopted and each log entry is represented as a low-dimensional feature vector.Then,normal logs and malicious logs are classified into different clusters by clustering algorithm to identify malicious logs.Finally,the effectiveness and superiority of the method is verified through experiments on the CERT dataset.The experimental results show that this method has better performance compared to some baseline methods.

APT攻击与检测研究

随着网络在社会的应用越来越广泛和深入,信息安全的重要性也得到越来越多的关注,高级持续性威胁(Advanced Persistent Threat,APT)已成为高等级网络安全威胁的主要组成部分,其相对传统安全威胁具有隐蔽性强、时间跨度久、针对性强等特点,对传统安全防御体系造成严重威胁。该文介绍历史上一些典型的APT攻击案例,梳理APT的攻击特点和典型流程,最后探讨现有的对抗APT比较有效的检测方法。

Beyond Defense: Proactive Approaches to Disaster Recovery and Threat Intelligence in Modern Enterprises

As cyber threats keep changing and business environments adapt, a comprehensive approach to disaster recovery involves more than just defensive measures. This research delves deep into the strategies required to respond to threats and anticipate and mitigate them proactively. Beginning with understanding the critical need for a layered defense and the intricacies of the attacker’s journey, the research offers insights into specialized defense techniques, emphasizing the importance of timely and strategic responses during incidents. Risk management is brought to the forefront, underscoring businesses’ need to adopt mature risk assessment practices and understand the potential risk impact areas. Additionally, the value of threat intelligence is explored, shedding light on the importance of active engagement within sharing communities and the vigilant observation of adversary motivations. “Beyond Defense: Proactive Approaches to Disaster Recovery and Threat Intelligence in Modern Enterprises” is a comprehensive guide for organizations aiming to fortify their cybersecurity posture, marrying best practices in proactive and reactive measures in the ever-challenging digital realm.

一种应对APT攻击的安全架构:异常发现

威胁是一种对特定系统、组织及其资产造成破坏的潜在因素,反映的是攻击实施者依照其任务需求对被攻击对象长期持续地施以各种形式攻击的过程.面对高级可持续威胁(advanced persistent threat,APT),在其造成严重经济损失之前,现有的安全架构无法协助防御者及时发现威胁的存在.在深入剖析威胁的外延和内涵的基础上,详细探讨了威胁防御模型.提出了一种应对APT攻击的安全防御理论架构:异常发现,以立足解决威胁发现的难题.异常发现作为防御策略和防护部署工作的前提,通过实时多维地发现环境中存在的异常、解读未知威胁、分析攻击实施者的目的,为制定具有针对性的应对策略提供必要的信息.设计并提出了基于异常发现的安全体系技术架构:"慧眼",通过高、低位协同监测的技术,从APT攻击的源头、途径和终端3个层面监测和发现.

基于大数据分析的APT攻击检测研究综述

高级持续性威胁(APT,advanced persistent threat)已成为高安全等级网络的最主要威胁之一,其极强的针对性、伪装性和阶段性使传统检测技术无法有效识别,因此新型攻击检测技术成为APT攻击防御领域的研究热点。首先,结合典型APT攻击技术和原理,分析攻击的6个实施阶段,并归纳攻击特点;然后,综述现有APT攻击防御框架研究的现状,并分析网络流量异常检测、恶意代码异常检测、社交网络安全事件挖掘和安全事件关联分析等4项基于网络安全大数据分析的APT攻击检测技术的研究内容与最新进展;最后,提出抗APT攻击的系统综合防御框架和智能反馈式系统安全检测框架,并指出相应技术在应对APT攻击过程中面临的挑战和下一步发展方向。

基于攻击图的APT脆弱节点评估方法

高级可持续性威胁(advanced persistent threat,APT)具有行为隐蔽性强、攻击周期持久的特点,增加了攻击检测的难度。据此,引入攻击图理论评估网络系统在APT攻击下的脆弱节点,提出了一种基于攻击图的APT脆弱节点评估方法,有效地提高了发现攻击的概率。对APT攻击行为的异常特征进行提取和定义,对目标网络系统建立风险属性攻击图(risk attribute attack graph,RAAG)模型;基于APT攻击行为特征的脆弱性对系统节点的行为脆弱性进行评估,并以通用漏洞评分系统(common vulnerability scoring system,CVSS)标准做为参照评估系统节点的通联脆弱性;基于上述2个方面的评估,计算系统中各节点的整体脆弱性,并发现目标网络系统在面向APT攻击时的脆弱节点。实验结果表明,所提方法能够对APT攻击行为特征进行合理量化,对系统节点的脆弱性进行有效评估,在APT攻击检测率上有较好表现。

基于LDA模型的海量APT通信日志特征研究

为实现高级持续性威胁(APT)的通信检测,提出一种对服务器端和主机端日志数据的检测方法。通过建立IP地址数据库,采用DBSCAN聚类算法对海量日志数据进行收集和处理得到异常通信日志。利用高级持续性威胁14种通信特征的隐含狄利克雷分布(LDA)建模对异常通信日志进行检测。实验结果表明,与潜在语义分析和概率潜在语义分析检测模型相比,LDA建模提高了APT通信检测的效率和准确度。

非对称信息条件下APT攻防博弈模型

针对目前缺少对高级持续威胁(APT)攻击理论建模分析的问题,提出了一种基于Flip It模型的非对称信息条件下的攻防博弈模型。首先,将网络系统中的目标主机等资产抽象为目标资源节点,将攻防场景描述为攻防双方对目标资源的交替控制;然后,考虑到攻防双方在博弈中观察到的反馈信息的不对称性以及防御效果的不彻底性,给出了在防御者采取更新策略时攻防双方的收益模型及最优策略的条件,同时给出并分别证明了达到同步博弈与序贯博弈均衡条件的定理;最后通过数例分析了影响达到均衡时的策略及防御收益的因素,并比较了同步博弈均衡与序贯博弈均衡。结果表明周期策略是防御者的最优策略,并且与同步博弈均衡相比,防御者通过公布其策略达到序贯博弈均衡时的收益更大。实验结果表明所提模型能够在理论上指导应对隐蔽性APT攻击的防御策略。

APT攻击分层表示模型

针对攻击链模型攻击阶段划分过细且无法表示攻击手段的问题,提出了一种高级可持续性威胁(APT)攻击分层表示模型(APT-HARM)。通过总结分析大量公开的APT事件报告和参考APT攻击链模型与分层攻击表示模型(HARM),将APT攻击分为攻击链和攻击树上下两层,并将其形式化定义。首先,将APT攻击分为由侦察、渗透、行动和撤出四个阶段组成的攻击链,并研究了各阶段特点;然后,研究各阶段中采取的攻击手段,并依据其逻辑关系组成攻击树。APT攻击按照攻击链分阶段依次进行,各阶段按照攻击树流程依次执行。案例分析表明,本模型相较攻击链模型具有粒度划分合理、攻击描述完备准确的优点。APT-HARM形式化地定义了APT攻击,为APT攻击的预测和防范提供了一种思路。

基于通信特征的APT攻击检测方法

高级持续性威胁(APT)已经在全球范围内产生了严重的危害,APT攻击检测已经成为网络安全防护领域的重点。由于APT具有攻击手段多样,持续时间长等特点,传统的检测技术已经起不到理想的效果。利用从国际安全公司报告中提取的APT通信特征,提出了一种基于通信特征的APT攻击检测方法。为了提高该方法的检测效果,还提出了利用bloom filter对报文进行快速筛选和精确匹配相结合的双层通信特征匹配算法。实验结果表明,该方法具有较高的检测率和较低的误报率。

基于活动行为特征的APT攻击检测方法研究

APT(高级持续性威胁)是专门针对特定组织所作的复杂且多方位的高级渗透攻击。本文提出了一种基于活动行为特征关联分析的APT攻击行为检测模型,从恶意行为代码感知、软件安全漏洞感知、典型攻击行为感知、综合关联分析四个方面来实现对APT攻击行为的监测预警,并将其有效应用于APT攻击检测系统,为未来APT攻击防御产品的研发提供了一种新的思路。

APT攻击详解与检测技术

高级持续性威胁(APT)以窃取特定目标的机密情报或者是破坏计算机系统为目的,严重威胁着企业、社会甚至是国家层面的信息安全。针对现有APT攻击检测技术不能完全有效地检测出APT攻击的问题,提出了APT攻击的检测思路。首先,从定义和实际情况出发对APT攻击的特征进行了总结,围绕APT攻击的生命周期详细分析了APT攻击的过程,并列举了常用的技术手段;然后,归纳了传统检测技术在应对APT攻击时的困难之处,总结了目前APT攻击检测技术以及它们的优缺点;最后,提出了检测APT攻击的思路。对APT攻击的检测应充分考虑对未知威胁的检测、对APT攻击的判断、对部分历史数据的分析以及实时性检测。

结合动态行为和静态特征的APT攻击检测方法

针对APT攻击网络流量难以获得,模拟的数据与现实又很难匹配的问题,提出了一种基于动态行为和静态特征结合的APT攻击检测方法。采用Noriben沙箱提取待测软件的进程行为、文件行为、注册表行为和网络行为构建动态行为特征集,基于Transformer-Encoder算法识别APT恶意软件的准确率达到了95.8%。对识别出的APT恶意软件进行组织分类,提取软件调用的DLL(dynamic link library)和API(application programming interface),并组合成DLL:API的特征形式,将1D-CNN(one dimensional convolutional neural networks)算法应用于APT恶意软件组织分类的准确率达到了98.7%,比之前的方法提高了5个百分点。与热门的深度学习算法和机器学习算法的实验效果做对比,数据表明,提出的方法相比其他方法,准确率有较大提升。

高等级安全网络抗APT攻击方案研究

文章在分析高安全等级网络所面临的APT攻击风险基础上,简述了高安全等级网络抗APT攻击方案的主要思想,阐述了高安全等级网络抗APT攻击方案设计,并提出了高安全等级网络抗APT攻击的思想和策略。

APT样本逻辑表达式生成算法

深入研究已知APT攻击事件,以威胁情报共享理论为基础,提出一种APT样本逻辑表达式生成算法IOCG。该算法能够自动生成可机读的IOCs,解决现有IOC的逻辑关系固定,逻辑项个数不变,规模庞大以及无法对一类样本生成表达式的局限性。同时能够减少冗余及无用APT样本特征处理时间消耗,提高情报分析共享速率,积极应对复杂多变的APT攻击态势。实验采用自助法对APT1样本进行抽样,将样本分成实验集及训练集,再分别利用该算法与IOC_Aware插件对训练集生成逻辑表达式,对比表达式本身及检测效果上的差异。实验结果表明,该算法是有效的,并能提高检测效果。

面向APT时空行为的受损主机检测

高级持续性威胁(APT)给企业、政府等组织带来沉重的损失。然而大多数检测方法没有同时考虑到APT攻击本质上的两个特性,即时间性和空间性。被入侵主机的行为模式与被入侵之前相比会产生一系列时序性的异常。在空间性方面,受损主机往往会继续渗透其他主机。因此,提出一种基于时空特性检测APT受损主机的方法。该方法针对APT攻击中必不可少的身份验证行为进行检测,构建主机认证图,从图中提取特征,利用LSTM学习主机的时序性特征,建立主机关联图,利用GAT提取主机间的空间特征。该方法利用神经网络提取特征,无须人工的特征选择。该方法在公共数据LANL上进行实验,F_(1)得分达到了0.979。

工业控制网络中APT攻击检测系统设计

高级持续性威胁(advanced persistent threat,APT)是当今工控网络安全首要威胁,而传统的基于特征匹配的工业入侵检测系统往往无法检测出最新型的APT攻击;现有研究者认为,敏感数据窃密是APT攻击的重要目的之一;为了能准确识别出APT攻击的窃密行为,对APT攻击在窃密阶段受控主机与控制与命令(Control and Command,C&C)服务器通信时TCP会话流特征进行深入研究,采用深度流检测技术,并提出一种基于多特征空间加权组合SVM分类检测算法对APT攻击异常会话流进行检测;实验表明,采用深度流检测技术对隐蔽APT攻击具备良好的检测能力,而基于多特征空间加权组合SVM分类检测算法较传统单一分类检测的检测精度更高,误报率更低,对工控网络安全领域的研究具有推进作用。