Elastic Security Detection Rules

Entra ID OAuth user_impersonation Scope for Unusual User and Client

Last updated 18 days ago on 2025-10-06
Created 4 months ago on 2025-07-03

About

Identifies rare occurrences of OAuth workflow for a user principal that is single factor authenticated, with an OAuth scope containing user_impersonation for a token issued by Entra ID. Adversaries may use this scope to gain unauthorized access to user accounts, particularly when the sign-in session status is unbound, indicating that the session is not associated with a specific device or session. This behavior is indicative of potential account compromise or unauthorized access attempts. This rule flags when this pattern is detected for a user principal that has not been seen in the last 10 days, indicating potential abuse or unusual activity.
Tags
Domain: CloudDomain: IdentityUse Case: Threat DetectionData Source: AzureData Source: Microsoft Entra IDData Source: Microsoft Entra ID Sign-In LogsTactic: Initial AccessLanguage: kuery
Severity
medium
Risk Score
47
MITRE ATT&CK™

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

↳ Valid Accounts (T1078)(opens in a new tab or window)

Defense Evasion (TA0005)(opens in a new tab or window)

↳ Use Alternate Authentication Material (T1550)(opens in a new tab or window)

↳ Impersonation (T1656)(opens in a new tab or window)

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

Definition

Rule Type
New Terms Rule
Integration Pack
Prebuilt Security Detection Rules
Index Patterns
filebeat-*logs-azure.signinlogs-*
Related Integrations

azure(opens in a new tab or window)

Query
event.dataset: azure.signinlogs and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.authentication_processing_details: *user_impersonation* and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.authentication_requirement: "singleFactorAuthentication" and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.token_issuer_type: "AzureAD" and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.token_protection_status_details.sign_in_session_status: "unbound" and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.user_type: "Member" and
    azure.signinlogs.properties.conditional_access_status: "notApplied" and
    not user_agent.original: Mozilla*PKeyAuth/1.0 and
    not azure.signinlogs.properties.device_detail.operating_system: (Ios* or Android*) and
    event.outcome: "success"
    and not azure.signinlogs.properties.app_id: (
        "a5f63c0-b750-4f38-a71c-4fc0d58b89e2" or
        "6bc3b958-689b-49f5-9006-36d165f30e00" or
        "66a88757-258c-4c72-893c-3e8bed4d6899" or
        "cc15fd57-2c6c-4117-a88c-83b1d56b4bbe" or
        "0000000c-0000-0000-c000-000000000000"
    )

Install detection rules in Elastic Security

Detect Entra ID OAuth user_impersonation Scope for Unusual User and Client 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(opens in a new tab or window).