Windows Exchange Autodiscover SSRF Abuse
This analytic identifies potential exploitation attempts of ProxyShell (CVE-2021-34473, CVE-2021-34523, CVE-2021-31207) and ProxyNotShell (CVE-2022-41040, CVE-2022-41082) vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server.…
Description
This analytic identifies potential exploitation attempts of ProxyShell (CVE-2021-34473, CVE-2021-34523, CVE-2021-31207) and ProxyNotShell (CVE-2022-41040, CVE-2022-41082) vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server. The detection focuses on identifying the SSRF attack patterns used in these exploit chains. The analytic monitors for suspicious POST requests to /autodiscover/autodiscover.json endpoints that may indicate attempts to enumerate LegacyDN attributes as part of initial reconnaissance. It also detects requests containing X-Rps-CAT parameters that could indicate attempts to impersonate Exchange users and access the PowerShell backend. Additionally, it looks for MAPI requests that may be used to obtain user SIDs, along with suspicious user agents (particularly Python-based) commonly used in automated exploit attempts. If successful, these attacks can lead to remote code execution as SYSTEM, allowing attackers to deploy webshells, access mailboxes, or gain persistent access to the Exchange server and potentially the broader network environment.
Detection logic
Detection requirements
- Platform
- ContainersESXiIaaSLinuxmacOSNetwork DevicesWindows
The rule states no platform. This is derived from the 2 ATT&CK techniques it maps to.
- Log source category
- windows_iis
Known benign triggers
- False positives are limited.
MITRE ATT&CK mappings
0 exclusive techniques.This is coverage no other published rule has; it is not this rule's total technique count.
References
From the source
- At source
- Open at source
- Upstream identifier
- d436f9e7-0ee7-4a47-864b-6dea2c4e2752
- Tagged by the source as
- BlackByte RansomwareProxyNotShellProxyShellSeashell BlizzardWeb ServerwebSplunk CloudSplunk EnterpriseSplunk Enterprise Securitynetwork
Licence
- Published under
- Apache License 2.0Read the licence
- Attribution
- Required
- Obtained under
- Apache-2.0Read the origin licence
Authorship
- Written by
- Published
- Aug 26, 2026
- Version
- 1