Exfiltration via Personal NAS Device

A Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solution refers to policies, technologies, and controls that prevent the accidental and/or deliberate loss, misuse, or theft of data by members of an organization. Typically, DLP technology would take the form of a software agent installed on organization endpoints (such as laptops and servers).

Typical DLP technology will alert on the potential loss of data, or activity which might indicate the potential for data loss. A DLP technology may also provide automated responses to prevent data loss on a device.

A Data Classification Policy establishes a standard for handling data by setting out criteria for how data should be classified and subsequently managed and secured. A classification can be applied to data in such a way that the classification is recorded in the body of the data (such as a footer in a text document) and/or within the metadata of a file.

An Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) is a set of rules outlining acceptable and unacceptable uses of an organization's computer systems and network resources. It acts as a deterrent to prevent employees from conducting illegitimate activities by clearly defining expectations, reinforcing legal and ethical standards, establishing accountability, specifying consequences for violations, and promoting education and awareness about security risks.

An agent capable of User Activity Monitoring (UAM) is a software agent installed on organization endpoints (such as laptops); typically, User Activity Monitoring agents are only deployed on endpoints where a human user Is expected to conduct the activity.

The User Activity Monitoring agent will typically record Operating System, application, and network activity occurring on an endpoint, with a focus on activity that is or can be conducted by a human user. The purpose of this monitoring is to identify undesirable and/or malicious activity being conducted by a human user (in this context, an Insider Threat).

Typical User Activity Monitoring platforms operate in an agent/server model where activity logs are sent to a server for automatic correlation against a rule set. This rule set is used to surface activity that may represent Insider Threat related activity such as capturing screenshots, copying data, compressing files or installing risky software.

Other platforms providing related functionality are frequently referred to as User Behaviour Analytics (UBA) platforms.

An agent capable of User Behaviour Analytics (UBA) is a software agent installed on organizational endpoints (such as laptops). Typically, User Activity Monitoring agents are only deployed on endpoints where a human user is expected to conduct the activity.

The User Behaviour Analytics agent will typically record Operating System, application, and network activity occurring on an endpoint, focusing on activity that is or can be conducted by a human user. Typically, User Behaviour Analytics platforms operate in an agent/server model where activity logs are sent to a server for automatic analysis. In the case of User Behaviour Analytics, this analysis will typically be conducted against a baseline that has previously been established.

A User Behaviour Analytic platform will typically conduct a period of ‘baselining’ when the platform is first installed. This baselining period establishes the normal behavior parameters for an organization’s users, which are used to train a Machine Learning (ML) model. This ML model can then be later used to automatically identify activity that is predicted to be an anomaly, which is hoped to surface user behavior that is undesirable, risky, or malicious.

Other platforms providing related functionality are frequently referred to as User Activity Monitoring (UAM) platforms.

Google's Chrome browser stores the history of accessed websites and files downloaded.

On Windows, this information is stored in the following location:

C:/Users/<Username>/AppData/Local/Google/Chrome/User Data/Default/

On macOS:

/Users/<Username>/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/

On Linux:

/home/<Username>/.config/google-chrome/Default/

Where /Default/ is referenced in the paths above, this is the default profile for Chrome, and can be replaced if a custom profile is used. In this location one database file is relevant, history.sqlite.
 

This database file can be opened in software such as DB Browser For SQLite. The ‘downloads’ and ‘urls’ tables are of immediate interest to understand recent activity within Chrome.

Microsoft's Edge browser stores the history of accessed websites and files downloaded.

On Windows, this information is stored in the following location:

C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Edge\User Data\Default\

On macOS:

/Users/<Username>/Library/Application Support/Microsoft Edge/Default/

On Linux:

/home/<Username>/.config/microsoft-edge/Default/

Where /Default/ is referenced in the paths above, this is the default profile for Edge, and can be replaced if a custom profile is used. In this location one database file is relevant, history.sqlite.
 

This database file can be opened in software such as DB Browser For SQLite. The ‘downloads’ and ‘urls’ tables are of immediate interest to understand recent activity within Chrome.

Mozilla's Firefox browser stores the history of accessed websites.

On Windows, this information is stored in the following location:

C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<Profile Name>\

On macOS:

/Users/<Username>/Library/Application Support/Firefox/Profiles/<Profile Name>/

On Linux:

/home/<Username>/.mozilla/firefox/<Profile Name>/

In this location two database files are relevant, places.sqlite (browser history and bookmarks) and favicons.sqlite (favicons for visited websites and bookmarks).
 

These database files can be opened in software such as DB Browser For SQLite.

The MRU (Most Recently Used) Map Network Drive is a Windows registry key located at HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Map Network Drive MRU. This key stores information about recently mapped network drives. By examining the entries in this key, investigators can identify which network drives were mapped by the computer to which drive letter.

In Microsoft Windows, when a subject maps a network drive persistently, a key named after the drive letter will appear in the Windows registry location HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Network\.  Each subkey under the Network key corresponds to a mapped network drive and contains information about the drive, including the network share path and the username used to connect to it.

Shellbags are a set of Windows registry keys that contain details about a user-viewed folder, such as its size, position, thumbnail, and timestamps. Typically Shellbag information is created for folders that have been opened and closed with Windows File Explorer and default settings adjusted. However, Shellbag information can be created under various situations across different versions of Windows.

Shellbags are located in the following registry keys:

Windows XP

NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\BagMRU
NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam\Bags

Windows 7 and later

NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
UsrClass.dat\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\BagMRU
UsrClass.dat\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags
 

Shellbags can disclose information about network drives that have been mapped to the system, such as FTP servers and samba shares, including the drive letter and any files accessed from the drive.

TypedPaths is a Windows registry key located at NTUSER.DAT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\TypedPaths. This key records the last 25 paths entered or pasted into the path bar of Windows File Explorer. By analyzing the entries within TypedPaths registry key, investigators can uncover information about recent access to network resources through Explorer.