DET0203 Detection Strategy for Ptrace-Based Process Injection on Linux
| Item |
Value |
| ID |
DET0203 |
| Version |
1.0 |
| Created |
21 October 2025 |
| Last Modified |
21 October 2025 |
Technique Detected: T1055.008 (Ptrace System Calls)
Analytics
Linux
AN0579
Detects ptrace-based process injection by correlating audit logs of ptrace syscalls, memory modifications (e.g., poketext, pokedata), and suspicious register manipulation on a target process not normally debugged by the originator. Alerts on processes attempting to ptrace non-child or privileged processes, especially those followed by abnormal memory or execution behavior.
Log Sources
Mutable Elements
| Field |
Description |
| TargetProcessNameFilter |
List of sensitive or rarely-debugged processes (e.g., sshd, systemd, container daemons) to alert on if ptraced |
| TimeWindowBetweenPtraceAndMemoryWrite |
Threshold time (e.g., <10 seconds) between ptrace attach and pokedata syscall |
| UserContextMismatch |
Flag when UID of tracer differs from UID of target process (e.g., privilege escalation or container breakout) |
| ProcessRelationshipConstraint |
Allowlist relationships (e.g., parent-child) under which ptrace is considered benign |