mandiant / mandiant/capa

add a feature for describing network activity

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dynamic enhancement
Dominant language
Python
Stars
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Forks
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Avg merge
11d 11h
Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

This feature should allow rule authors to describe pertinent network activity such as: a specific dest ip, a specific protocol, a specific port, specific bytes in a network packet, etc.

The initial suggestion is to implement that using a syntax similar to that of the filtering language for wireshark-filter and tshark; and to add support for applying those filters on sandbox-extracted pcap files or network activity reported by the sandbox.

(part of: #1533)

more information on the filtering language: https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/using-wireshark-display-filter-expressions/

example:

- network-traffic: http.request or ssl.handshake.type == 1 or tcp.flags eq 0x0002

pros:

  • allows for a much more expressive rule syntax: various port scanning methods could be described using this language, which would give rule authors the ability to tell if a sample is running a specific port scanning method.

cons:

  • might slow down performance

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Start by reviewing the proposed Wireshark/tshark-like filtering syntax and the sandbox's extracted pcap files or reported network activity. Define the supported rule syntax and how filters apply to both activity sources, then verify that the example and packet fields such as destination IP, protocol, port, and bytes work as intended without unacceptable performance loss.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
python
Domain
networking, security
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Needs clarification
Newbie friendliness
25/100

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