Kubectl Permission Discovery

Last updated 2 days ago on 2026-02-05

Created 8 months ago on 2025-06-17

About

This rule detects the use of the "kubectl auth --can-i" command, which is used to check permissions in Kubernetes clusters. Attackers may use this command to enumerate permissions and discover potential misconfigurations in the cluster, allowing them to gain unauthorized access or escalate privileges.

Tags

Domain: EndpointDomain: ContainerDomain: KubernetesOS: LinuxUse Case: Threat DetectionTactic: DiscoveryData Source: Elastic DefendData Source: Elastic EndgameData Source: Auditd ManagerData Source: CrowdstrikeData Source: SentinelOneData Source: Elastic Defend for ContainersLanguage: eql

Severity

medium

Risk Score

MITRE ATT&CK™

Discovery (TA0007)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

↳ Container and Resource Discovery (T1613)(external, opens in a new tab or window)

License

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

Definition

Rule Type

Event Correlation Rule

Integration Pack

Prebuilt Security Detection Rules

Index Patterns

auditbeat-*endgame-*logs-auditd_manager.auditd-*logs-crowdstrike.fdr*logs-endpoint.events.process*logs-sentinel_one_cloud_funnel.*logs-cloud_defend.process*

Related Integrations

endpoint(external, opens in a new tab or window)

auditd_manager(external, opens in a new tab or window)

crowdstrike(external, opens in a new tab or window)

sentinel_one_cloud_funnel(external, opens in a new tab or window)

cloud_defend(external, opens in a new tab or window)

Query

✄𐘗text code block:
✄𐘗process where host.os.type == "linux" and event.type == "start" and
event.action in ("exec", "exec_event", "start", "ProcessRollup2", "executed", "process_started") and
process.name == "kubectl" and process.args == "auth" and process.args == "can-i"

Install detection rules in Elastic Security

Detect Kubectl Permission Discovery 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).