Kubernetes Privileged Pod Created

Elastic Stack Serverless Security

This rule detects when a user creates a pod/container running in privileged mode. A highly privileged container has access to the node’s resources and breaks the isolation between containers. If compromised, an attacker can use the privileged container to gain access to the underlying host. Gaining access to the host may provide the adversary with the opportunity to achieve follow-on objectives, such as establishing persistence, moving laterally within the environment, or setting up a command and control channel on the host.

Rule type: query

Rule indices:

logs-kubernetes.*

Severity: medium

Risk score: 47

Runs every: 5m

Searches indices from: None (https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/reference/current/common-options.html#date-math[Date Math format], see also Additional look-back time)

Maximum alerts per execution: 100

References:

Tags:

Elastic
Kubernetes
Continuous Monitoring
Execution
Privilege Escalation

Version: 201

Rule authors:

Elastic

Rule license: Elastic License v2

Investigation guide

Rule query

		event.dataset : "kubernetes.audit_logs"
  and kubernetes.audit.annotations.authorization_k8s_io/decision:"allow"
  and kubernetes.audit.objectRef.resource:pods
  and kubernetes.audit.verb:create
  and kubernetes.audit.requestObject.spec.containers.securityContext.privileged:true
  and not kubernetes.audit.requestObject.spec.containers.image: ("docker.elastic.co/beats/elastic-agent:8.4.0")

	

Framework: MITRE ATT&CKTM

Tactic:
- Name: Privilege Escalation
- ID: TA0004
- Reference URL: https://attack.mitre.org/tactics/TA0004/
Technique:
- Name: Escape to Host
- ID: T1611
- Reference URL: https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1611/
Tactic:
- Name: Execution
- ID: TA0002
- Reference URL: https://attack.mitre.org/tactics/TA0002/
Technique:
- Name: Deploy Container
- ID: T1610
- Reference URL: https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1610/