MITRE ATT&CKtechnique

T1548 Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism

Published 2020-01-30 Modified 2026-05-12 Official page ↗
Domain
enterprise
Tactics
Privilege Escalation
Platforms
Linux, macOS, Windows, IaaS, Office Suite, Identity Provider
Version
2.0
Created
2020-01-30

Description

Adversaries may circumvent mechanisms designed to control privilege elevation to gain higher-level permissions. Most modern systems contain native elevation control mechanisms that are intended to limit privileges that a user can perform on a machine. Authorization has to be granted to specific users in order to perform tasks that can be considered of higher risk. An adversary can perform several methods to take advantage of built-in control mechanisms in order to escalate privileges on a system.

Related

Tactic · MITRE ATT&CK (1)

  • TA0004 Privilege Escalation tactic

Referenced by MITRE ATT&CK · mitigates (8)

  • M1038 Execution Prevention mitigation
  • M1047 Audit mitigation
  • M1051 Update Software mitigation
  • M1052 User Account Control mitigation
  • M1018 User Account Management mitigation
  • M1022 Restrict File and Directory Permissions mitigation
  • M1026 Privileged Account Management mitigation
  • M1028 Operating System Configuration mitigation

Referenced by MITRE ATT&CK · subtechnique of (6)

  • T1548.006 TCC Manipulation sub-technique
  • T1548.005 Temporary Elevated Cloud Access sub-technique
  • T1548.001 Setuid and Setgid sub-technique
  • T1548.002 Bypass User Account Control sub-technique
  • T1548.003 Sudo and Sudo Caching sub-technique
  • T1548.004 Elevated Execution with Prompt sub-technique

Referenced by MITRE ATT&CK · uses (2)

  • G1048 UNC3886 group
  • S1130 Raspberry Robin software (malware)

Referenced by CAPEC · att&ck technique (4)

Referenced by Compliance · mitigates (26)

  • CIS-5.4 Restrict Administrator Privileges to Dedicated Administrator Accounts CIS Safeguard v8.1
  • CIS-6.8 Define and Maintain Role-Based Access Control CIS Safeguard v8.1
  • CIS-7.3 Perform Automated Operating System Patch Management CIS Safeguard v8.1
  • CIS-7.7 Remediate Detected Vulnerabilities CIS Safeguard v8.1
  • NIST-AC-16 Security and Privacy Attributes NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-AC-2 Account Management NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-AC-3 Access Enforcement NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-AC-5 Separation of Duties NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-AC-6 Least Privilege NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CA-7 Continuous Monitoring NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-2 Baseline Configuration NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-3 Configuration Change Control NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-5 Access Restrictions for Change NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-6 Configuration Settings NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-7 Least Functionality NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-CM-8 System Component Inventory NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-IA-2 Identification and Authentication (Organizational Users) NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-RA-5 Vulnerability Monitoring and Scanning NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SC-18 Mobile Code NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SC-34 Non-modifiable Executable Programs NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-12 Information Management and Retention NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-16 Memory Protection NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-2 Flaw Remediation NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-3 Malicious Code Protection NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-4 System Monitoring NIST 800-53 control
  • NIST-SI-7 Software, Firmware, and Information Integrity NIST 800-53 control

References