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Potential NetScaler Log Poisoning Command Injection Attempt

Detects shell syntax in NetScaler Pitboss records or in Citrix records that combine Pitboss, packet-engine, or core terminology with shell syntax. This may indicate that attacker-controlled data poisoned an appliance…

Description

Detects shell syntax in NetScaler Pitboss records or in Citrix records that combine Pitboss, packet-engine, or core terminology with shell syntax. This may indicate that attacker-controlled data poisoned an appliance log consumed by a privileged script. The behavior includes CVE-2026-88771, but the detection is intended to identify similar NetScaler log-poisoning command-injection attempts without requiring a specific vulnerability, failure phrase, or command.

Detection logic

Its licence does not clear it for publishing here

Sunturai publishes a detection's own text where the licence it arrived under has been reviewed and permits it, and Elastic License 2.0 has not. The query as its source wrote it, its canonical form and the hash that pins this revision are in the workspace record.

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Detection requirements

Platform
ContainersESXiIaaSIdentity ProviderLinuxmacOSNetwork DevicesOffice SuiteSaaSWindows

The rule states no platform. This is derived from the 2 ATT&CK techniques it maps to.

Log source category
event_index

Known benign triggers

  • Authorized security testing may deliberately write a harmless forged Pitboss or PPE record to validate exposure or detection. Confirm the source and testing window. Normal Pitboss and packet-engine records should not contain shell separators, command substitution, pipes, or redirection.

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