GitHub Actions Unusual Bot Push to Repository

Last updated 11 days ago on 2025-12-09

Created 11 days ago on 2025-12-09

About

Detects when the github-actions[bot] pushes code to a repository where it has not performed this behavior before in a certain time window. This may indicate a supply chain attack where malicious code running in a CI workflow attempts to modify repository contents, such as injecting backdoor workflow files.

Tags

Domain: CloudUse Case: Threat DetectionTactic: Initial AccessTactic: PersistenceData Source: GithubLanguage: kuery

Severity

low

Risk Score

MITRE ATT&CK™

Initial Access (TA0001)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

↳ Supply Chain Compromise (T1195)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

Execution (TA0002)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

↳ Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

False Positive Examples

Legitimate CI/CD automation that commits and pushes changes (e.g., auto-formatting, changelog updates, version bumps, Dependabot auto-merge) will trigger this alert on first use in a repository. Review the repository's workflow configurations to determine if bot pushes are expected.

License

Elastic License v2(external, opens in a new tab or window)

Definition

Rule Type: New Terms Rule
Integration Pack: Prebuilt Security Detection Rules
Index Patterns: logs-github.audit-*
Related Integrations: github(external, opens in a new tab or window)
Query

✄𐘗text code block:
✄𐘗event.dataset: "github.audit" and
    event.action: "git.push" and
    user.name: "github-actions[bot]"

Install detection rules in Elastic Security

Detect GitHub Actions Unusual Bot Push to Repository in the Elastic Security detection engine by installing this rule into your Elastic Stack.

To setup this rule, check out the installation guide for Prebuilt Security Detection Rules(external, opens in a new tab or window).