Windows ESX Admins Group Creation via Net

name: Windows ESX Admins Group Creation via Net
id: 3d7df60b-3332-4667-8090-afe03e08dce0
version: 9
date: '2026-03-10'
author: Michael Haag, Splunk
status: production
type: TTP
data_source:
    - Sysmon EventID 1
    - Windows Event Log Security 4688
    - CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2
description: This analytic detects attempts to create an "ESX Admins" group using the Windows net.exe or net1.exe commands. This activity may indicate an attempt to exploit the VMware ESXi Active Directory Integration Authentication Bypass vulnerability (CVE-2024-37085). Attackers can use this method to gain unauthorized access to ESXi hosts by recreating the "ESX Admins" group after its deletion from Active Directory.
search: |-
    | tstats `security_content_summariesonly` count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime FROM datamodel=Endpoint.Processes
      WHERE `process_net` Processes.process="*group*" Processes.process="*ESX Admins*"
        AND
        Processes.process="*/add*"
      BY Processes.action Processes.dest Processes.original_file_name
         Processes.parent_process Processes.parent_process_exec Processes.parent_process_guid
         Processes.parent_process_id Processes.parent_process_name Processes.parent_process_path
         Processes.process Processes.process_exec Processes.process_guid
         Processes.process_hash Processes.process_id Processes.process_integrity_level
         Processes.process_name Processes.process_path Processes.user
         Processes.user_id Processes.vendor_product
    | `drop_dm_object_name(Processes)`
    | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
    | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
    | `windows_esx_admins_group_creation_via_net_filter`
how_to_implement: To successfully implement this search, you need to be ingesting data that records process activity from your hosts to populate the Endpoint data model in the Processes node. If you are using Sysmon, you must have at least version 6.0.4 of the Sysmon TA.
known_false_positives: Legitimate administrators might create an "ESX Admins" group for valid reasons. Verify that the group creation is authorized and part of normal administrative tasks. Consider the context of the action, such as the user performing it and any related activities.
references:
    - https://support.broadcom.com/web/ecx/support-content-notification/-/external/content/SecurityAdvisories/0/24505
    - https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2024/07/29/ransomware-operators-exploit-esxi-hypervisor-vulnerability-for-mass-encryption/
    - https://www.securityweek.com/microsoft-says-ransomware-gangs-exploiting-just-patched-vmware-esxi-flaw/
drilldown_searches:
    - name: View the detection results for - "$user$" and "$dest$"
      search: '%original_detection_search% | search  user = "$user$" dest = "$dest$"'
      earliest_offset: $info_min_time$
      latest_offset: $info_max_time$
    - name: View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$user$" and "$dest$"
      search: '| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$user$", "$dest$") starthoursago=168  | 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: $info_min_time$
      latest_offset: $info_max_time$
rba:
    message: An attempt to create an "ESX Admins" group was detected on $dest$ by user $user$.
    risk_objects:
        - field: user
          type: user
          score: 50
        - field: dest
          type: system
          score: 50
    threat_objects: []
tags:
    analytic_story:
        - VMware ESXi AD Integration Authentication Bypass CVE-2024-37085
    asset_type: Endpoint
    mitre_attack_id:
        - T1136.002
        - T1136.001
    product:
        - Splunk Enterprise
        - Splunk Enterprise Security
        - Splunk Cloud
    security_domain: endpoint
    cve:
        - CVE-2024-37085
tests:
    - name: True Positive Test
      attack_data:
        - data: https://media.githubusercontent.com/media/splunk/attack_data/master/datasets/attack_techniques/T1136.001/atomic_red_team/windows-sysmon-esxadmins.log
          source: XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational
          sourcetype: XmlWinEventLog