Adversaries may modify mail and mail application data to remove evidence of their activity. Email applications allow users and other programs to export and delete mailbox data via command line tools or use of APIs. Mail application data can be emails, email metadata, or logs generated by the application or operating system, such as export requests. Adversaries may manipulate emails and mailbox data to remove logs, artifacts, and metadata, such as evidence of [Phishing](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1566)/[Internal Spearphishing](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1534), [Email Collection](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1114), [Mail Protocols](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1071/003) for command and control, or email-based exfiltration such as [Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1048). For example, to remove evidence on Exchange servers adversaries have used the ExchangePowerShell [PowerShell](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1059/001) module, including Remove-MailboxExportRequest to remove evidence of mailbox exports.(Citation: Volexity SolarWinds)(Citation: ExchangePowerShell Module) On Linux and macOS, adversaries may also delete emails through a command line utility called mail or use [AppleScript](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1059/002) to interact with APIs on macOS.(Citation: Cybereason Cobalt Kitty 2017)(Citation: mailx man page) Adversaries may also remove emails and metadata/headers indicative of spam or suspicious activity (for example, through the use of organization-wide transport rules) to reduce the likelihood of malicious emails being detected by security products.(Citation: Microsoft OAuth Spam 2022)

Linked Issues

Issuelinks
Linktype Issue
is related to Techniques
is blocked by Behavioral Detection of Mailbox Data and Log Deletion for Anti-Forensics
is blocked by Restrict File and Directory Permissions
is blocked by Audit
is blocked by Remote Data Storage
is blocked by Alternate Storage Site
is blocked by Alternate Processing Site
is blocked by Data Backups
is blocked by Security, Compliance & Resilience Controls Oversight
is blocked by Secure Baseline Configurations
is blocked by Continuous Monitoring
is blocked by Cybersecurity & Data Protection Attributes
is blocked by Use of External Technology Assets, Applications and/or Services (TAAS)
is blocked by Media & Data Retention
is blocked by Malicious Code Protection (Anti-Malware)
is blocked by Endpoint File Integrity Monitoring (FIM)
is blocked by Separation of Duties (SoD)
is blocked by Account Management
is blocked by Access Enforcement
is blocked by Least Privilege
is blocked by Access Control For Mobile Devices
is blocked by Data Flow Enforcement – Access Control Lists (ACLs)
is blocked by Remote Access
is blocked by Wireless Networking
is blocked by Information In Shared Resources
is blocked by Distributed Processing & Storage
Impressum German English