Full Report
There has been a huge explosion of different free and open-source options for EDR in the security space. Which is nice because the commercial offerings are stupid expensive. In this […] The post Webcast: Your Free and Open Source EDR Options! appeared first on Black Hills Information Security, Inc..
Analysis Summary
# Tool/Technique: Open Source EDR Solutions (OpenEDR, Elastic, Velociraptor, OSSEC, WAZUH)
## Overview
This summary focuses on the discussion of various Free and Open-Source Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions presented in a Black Hills Information Security webcast on May 19, 2021. The context highlights a significant increase in free and open-source EDR options as viable alternatives to costly commercial offerings, emphasizing their necessity for security monitoring and incident response.
## Technical Details
- Type: Tool (EDR Frameworks/Solutions)
- Platform: Primarily Windows (implied by typical EDR usage, though specific platforms vary by tool)
- Capabilities: Endpoint monitoring, detection, data collection, threat hunting, incident response support.
- First Seen: The webcast discusses tools that have evolved over time, referencing established projects like OSSEC, and newer/featured ones like OpenEDR and Velociraptor.
## MITRE ATT&CK Mapping
The primary utility of these EDR solutions falls under Defensive Capabilities and Detection. While the tools themselves are defensive, their ability to detect specific adversary actions maps broadly across the framework:
- **TA0005 - Defense Evasion** (Detection potential)
- T1055 - Process Injection (Detection potential)
- **TA0003 - Persistence** (Detection potential)
- T1547 - Boot or Logon Autostart Execution (Detection potential)
- **TA0001 - Initial Access** (Detection potential)
- T1190 - Exploit Public-Facing Application (Detection potential)
*(Note: As these are defensive tools, the mapping reflects the types of activities they are designed to detect, not the actions of the tool itself, unless the tool has offensive capabilities.)*
## Functionality
### Core Capabilities
- **Endpoint Visibility:** Providing deep telemetry from endpoints necessary for proactive security monitoring.
- **Cost-Effectiveness:** Offering powerful alternatives to expensive commercial EDR platforms.
- **Incident Response Foundation:** Essential components for any effective Incident Response (IR) operation.
### Advanced Features (Specific to featured tools)
- **Velociraptor:** Mentioned specifically with a dedicated demo, suggesting advanced data collection and hunting capabilities.
- **Elastic:** Referenced in the context of EDR (formerly mentioned alongside Endgame).
- **OSSEC/WAZUH:** Discussed as established security monitoring solutions that offer foundational EDR-like capabilities (e.g., integrity monitoring, log analysis).
- **OpenEDR:** Featured as a specific open-source EDR project (originally from Comodo).
## Indicators of Compromise
This summary focuses on defensive tools; therefore, there are no embedded malware IOCs listed. Instead, the focus is on *detection* of IOCs.
- File Hashes: N/A (Focus on detection coverage)
- File Names: N/A
- Registry Keys: N/A
- Network Indicators: N/A
- Behavioral Indicators: Detection of common malware behaviors, process creation, file modifications, registry changes, and network connections indicative of malicious activity.
## Associated Threat Actors
These tools are predominantly used by **Defenders, Blue Teams, and Incident Responders**. They are not typically used maliciously by threat actors, although some open-source security frameworks can be repurposed.
## Detection Methods
The very nature of these tools dictates the detection method:
- **Behavioral Detection:** Real-time event logging and analysis of system calls and process execution.
- **Signature-based Detection:** Relying on codified rules or signatures within the EDR/HIDS (e.g., WAZUH/OSSEC rules).
- **Threat Hunting:** Utilizing the collected data (e.g., in Elastic or Velociraptor) to search retroactively for anomalous activity.
## Mitigation Strategies
The material strongly recommends adoption as a mitigation strategy:
- **Implement Open Source EDR:** Organizations are strongly advised to deploy one of these free/open-source solutions if commercial offerings are too expensive.
- **Baseline Monitoring:** Establish comprehensive logging and monitoring coverage across endpoints.
- **Continuous Evaluation:** Reviewing capabilities against benchmarks like MITRE Evaluations to ensure defensive effectiveness.
## Related Tools/Techniques
- Commercial EDR Solutions (Implicit comparison)
- OSSEC
- WAZUH
- OpenEDR
- Velociraptor (A specific tool highlighted for demonstration)
- Elastic Security Platform