Linux Auditd Auditd Daemon Shutdown

SPLUNK detection rule by Teoderick Contreras, Splunk · Apache-2.0

The following analytic detects the unexpected termination of the Linux Audit daemon (auditd) by monitoring for log entries of type DAEMON_END. This event signifies that the audit logging service has stopped, either due to a legitimate system shutdown, manual administrative action, or potentially malicious tampering. Since auditd is responsible for recording critical security events, its sudden stoppage may indicate an attempt to disable security monitoring or evade detection during an attack. This detection should be correlated with system logs to determine whether the shutdown was part of routine maintenance or an anomaly. If confirmed as malicious, this could lead to a compromised system where security events are no longer being logged, allowing attackers to operate undetected. Therefore, monitoring and alerting on auditd shutdown events is crucial for maintaining the integrity of system security monitoring.

name: Linux Auditd Auditd Daemon Shutdown
id: 6e2574b3-e24b-4321-ae3c-ba83a75bb714
version: 6
creation_date: '2024-08-12'
modification_date: '2026-05-13'
author: Teoderick Contreras, Splunk
status: production
type: Anomaly
description: The following analytic detects the unexpected termination of the Linux Audit daemon (auditd) by monitoring for log entries of type DAEMON_END. This event signifies that the audit logging service has stopped, either due to a legitimate system shutdown, manual administrative action, or potentially malicious tampering. Since auditd is responsible for recording critical security events, its sudden stoppage may indicate an attempt to disable security monitoring or evade detection during an attack. This detection should be correlated with system logs to determine whether the shutdown was part of routine maintenance or an anomaly. If confirmed as malicious, this could lead to a compromised system where security events are no longer being logged, allowing attackers to operate undetected. Therefore, monitoring and alerting on auditd shutdown events is crucial for maintaining the integrity of system security monitoring.
data_source:
    - Linux Auditd Daemon End
search: |-
    `linux_auditd` type=DAEMON_END
      | rename host as dest
      | stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime
        BY type op res
           auid dest pid
      | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
      | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
      | `linux_auditd_auditd_daemon_shutdown_filter`
how_to_implement: To implement this detection, the process begins by ingesting auditd data, that consist SYSCALL, TYPE, EXECVE and PROCTITLE events, which captures command-line executions and process details on Unix/Linux systems. These logs should be ingested and processed using Splunk Add-on for Unix and Linux (https://splunkbase.splunk.com/app/833), which is essential for correctly parsing and categorizing the data. The next step involves normalizing the field names  to match the field names set by the Splunk Common Information Model (CIM) to ensure consistency across different data sources and enhance the efficiency of data modeling. This approach enables effective monitoring and detection of linux endpoints where auditd is deployed
known_false_positives: Administrator or network operator can use this application for automation purposes. Please update the filter macros to remove false positives.
references:
    - https://docs.redhat.com/en/documentation/red_hat_enterprise_linux/6/html/security_guide/sec-audit_record_types
drilldown_searches:
    - name: View the detection results for - "$dest$"
      search: '%original_detection_search% | search  dest = "$dest$"'
      earliest_offset: $info_min_time$
      latest_offset: $info_max_time$
    - name: View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$dest$"
      search: '| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$dest$") | stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime values(search_name) as "Search Name" values(risk_message) as "Risk Message" values(analyticstories) as "Analytic Stories" values(annotations._all) as "Annotations" values(annotations.mitre_attack.mitre_tactic) as "ATT&CK Tactics" by normalized_risk_object | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`'
      earliest_offset: 7d
      latest_offset: "0"
intermediate_findings:
    entities:
        - field: dest
          type: system
          score: 20
          message: Auditd service event - [$type$] event occurred on host - [$dest$].
analytic_story:
    - Compromised Linux Host
asset_type: Endpoint
mitre_attack_id:
    - T1685.004
product:
    - Splunk Enterprise
    - Splunk Enterprise Security
    - Splunk Cloud
category: endpoint
security_domain: endpoint
tests:
    - name: True Positive Test
      attack_data:
        - data: https://media.githubusercontent.com/media/splunk/attack_data/master/datasets/attack_techniques/T1562.012/auditd_daemon_end/linux_daemon_end.log
          source: auditd
          sourcetype: auditd
      test_type: unit

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5d2994bb-0610-4ab4-97a7-0fd07724a665

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Executable code, not a declarative rule

This submission is arbitrary [[ currentRule.format ? currentRule.format.toUpperCase() : '' ]] code, not a declarative detection rule — review it as you would any script before running it, and note that it cannot be safely aggregated or auto-executed alongside YARA/Sigma/Suricata/CRS rules.

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Not a security issue — this rule is valid and was accepted as-is. These are optional fields/conventions its own format recommends, mainly affecting its quality score and how well it documents itself for other reviewers.

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