Entra ID High Risk Sign-in

[metadata]
creation_date = "2021/01/04"
integration = ["azure"]
maturity = "production"
updated_date = "2026/04/10"

[rule]
author = ["Elastic", "Willem D'Haese"]
description = """
Identifies high risk Microsoft Entra ID sign-ins by leveraging Microsoft's Identity Protection machine learning
and heuristics. Identity Protection categorizes risk into three tiers: low, medium, and high. While Microsoft does not
provide specific details about how risk is calculated, each level brings higher confidence that the user or sign-in is
compromised.
"""
from = "now-9m"
index = ["filebeat-*", "logs-azure.signinlogs-*"]
language = "kuery"
license = "Elastic License v2"
name = "Entra ID High Risk Sign-in"
note = """## Triage and analysis

### Investigating Entra ID High Risk Sign-in

This rule detects high-risk sign-ins in Microsoft Entra ID as identified by Identity Protection. These sign-ins are flagged with a risk level of `high` during the authentication process, indicating a strong likelihood of compromise based on Microsoft’s machine learning and heuristics. This alert is valuable for identifying accounts under active attack or compromise using valid credentials.

### Possible investigation steps

- Review the `azure.signinlogs.properties.user_id` and associated identity fields to determine the impacted user.
- Inspect the `risk_level_during_signin` field and confirm it is set to `high`. If `risk_level_aggregated` is also present and high, this suggests sustained risk across multiple sign-ins.
- Check `source.ip`, `source.geo.country_name`, and `source.as.organization.name` to evaluate the origin of the sign-in attempt. Flag unexpected geolocations or ASNs (e.g., anonymizers or residential ISPs).
- Review the `device_detail` fields such as `operating_system` and `browser` for new or unrecognized devices.
- Validate the `client_app_used` (e.g., legacy protocols, desktop clients) and `app_display_name` (e.g., Office 365 Exchange Online) to assess if risky legacy methods were involved.
- Examine `applied_conditional_access_policies` to verify if MFA or blocking policies were triggered or bypassed.
- Check `authentication_details.authentication_method` to see if multi-factor authentication was satisfied (e.g., "Mobile app notification").
- Correlate this activity with other alerts or sign-ins from the same account within the last 24–48 hours.
- Contact the user to confirm if the sign-in was expected. If not, treat the account as compromised and proceed with containment.

### False positive analysis

- Risky sign-ins may be triggered during legitimate travel, VPN use, or remote work scenarios from unusual locations.
- In some cases, users switching devices or networks rapidly may trigger high-risk scores.
- Automated scanners or penetration tests using known credentials may mimic high-risk login behavior.
- Confirm whether the risk was remediated automatically by Microsoft Identity Protection before proceeding with escalations.

### Response and remediation

- If compromise is suspected, immediately disable the user account and revoke active sessions and tokens.
- Initiate credential reset and ensure multi-factor authentication is enforced.
- Review audit logs and sign-in history for the account to assess lateral movement or data access post sign-in.
- Inspect activity on services such as Exchange, SharePoint, or Azure resources to understand the impact.
- Determine if the attacker leveraged other accounts or escalated privileges.
- Use the incident findings to refine conditional access policies, such as enforcing MFA for high-risk sign-ins or blocking legacy protocols.
- Review and tighten policies that allow sign-ins from high-risk geographies or unknown devices.
"""
references = [
    "https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/conditional-access/howto-conditional-access-policy-risk",
    "https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/identity-protection/overview-identity-protection",
    "https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/identity-protection/howto-identity-protection-investigate-risk",
]
risk_score = 73
rule_id = "37994bca-0611-4500-ab67-5588afe73b77"
severity = "high"
tags = [
    "Domain: Cloud",
    "Data Source: Azure",
    "Data Source: Microsoft Entra ID",
    "Data Source: Microsoft Entra ID Sign-in Logs",
    "Use Case: Identity and Access Audit",
    "Resources: Investigation Guide",
    "Tactic: Initial Access",
]
timestamp_override = "event.ingested"
type = "query"

query = '''
data_stream.dataset:azure.signinlogs and
  (
    azure.signinlogs.properties.risk_level_during_signin:high or
    azure.signinlogs.properties.risk_level_aggregated:high
  )
'''


[[rule.threat]]
framework = "MITRE ATT&CK"
[[rule.threat.technique]]
id = "T1078"
name = "Valid Accounts"
reference = "https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1078/"
[[rule.threat.technique.subtechnique]]
id = "T1078.004"
name = "Cloud Accounts"
reference = "https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1078/004/"


[rule.threat.tactic]
id = "TA0001"
name = "Initial Access"
reference = "https://attack.mitre.org/tactics/TA0001/"