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Windows ntdsutil Abuse Indicators via ESENT Events Containing ntds.dit

Flags ESENT application events mentioning ntds.dit that may indicate ntdsutil attempts to access the AD database.

FreeReviewedSigma · Medium · v2
Product
windows
Service
application
Author
Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published
2022-08-14
Updated
2026-07-31
AnalysisDetection

ATT&CK techniques

Cred Access

  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Execution

  5. Persistence

  6. Priv Esc

  7. Defense Evasion

  8. Cred Access

  9. Discovery

  10. Lateral Movement

  11. Collection

  12. C2

  13. Exfiltration

  14. Impact

What it detects

This rule flags Windows application telemetry where ESENT-related events (Event IDs 216, 325, 326, and 327) include the string "ntds.dit" in event data. Attackers may use ntdsutil to access or extract Active Directory database contents, making this indicator valuable for credential-access investigations. It relies on Windows application logs with ESENT provider events and event fields that contain the ntds.dit identifier.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1003.003 — drag to rearrange
Malicious NTDS.dit Extraction via Ntdsutil (via process_creation)
Malicious NTDS Extraction via ntdsutil IFM (via process_creation)
Malicious NTDS Database Staging to Audit Directory (via file_event)
IFM Creation Detected from Commandline - Installation from Media (via process_creation)
Malicious Credential Hive Copy from Volume Shadow Copy
Malicious File Copy via Esentutl Volume Shadow Access (via process_creation)
Malicious NTDS Extraction via NetExec (via process_creation)
Malicious Active Directory Database Dump via ntdsutil IFM (via process_creation)
Malicious NTDS Extraction via Ntdsutil IFM Media Creation
Windows ntdsutil Abuse Indicators via ESENT Events Containing ntds.dit
Pivot detection · T1003.003 · 9 related

Changelog

v2
  1. v2
    Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
  2. v1
    No changelog recorded for this version.2026-07-30

Detection content is published as a reviewed draft. Tune thresholds and exclusions against your own telemetry before enabling this rule for alerting.