Adversaries may be using DNS lookups to communicate with cryptocurrency mining pools, which is a common behavior in malware that leverages mining resources. SOC teams should proactively hunt for these DNS events in Azure Sentinel to identify potential compromise and mitigate resource exploitation.
let minersDomains=dynamic(["monerohash.com", "do-dear.com", "xmrminerpro.com", "secumine.net", "xmrpool.com", "minexmr.org", "hashanywhere.com",
"xmrget.com", "mininglottery.eu", "minergate.com", "moriaxmr.com", "multipooler.com", "moneropools.com", "xmrpool.eu", "coolmining.club",
"supportxmr.com", "minexmr.com", "hashvault.pro", "xmrpool.net", "crypto-pool.fr", "xmr.pt", "miner.rocks", "walpool.com", "herominers.com",
"gntl.co.uk", "semipool.com", "coinfoundry.org", "cryptoknight.cc", "fairhash.org", "baikalmine.com", "tubepool.xyz", "fairpool.xyz", "asiapool.io",
"coinpoolit.webhop.me", "nanopool.org", "moneropool.com", "miner.center", "prohash.net", "poolto.be", "cryptoescrow.eu", "monerominers.net", "cryptonotepool.org",
"extrmepool.org", "webcoin.me", "kippo.eu", "hashinvest.ws", "monero.farm", "supportxmr.com", "xmrpool.eu", "linux-repository-updates.com", "1gh.com",
"dwarfpool.com", "hash-to-coins.com", "hashvault.pro", "pool-proxy.com", "hashfor.cash", "fairpool.cloud", "litecoinpool.org", "mineshaft.ml", "abcxyz.stream",
"moneropool.ru", "cryptonotepool.org.uk", "extremepool.org", "extremehash.com", "hashinvest.net", "unipool.pro", "crypto-pools.org", "monero.net",
"backup-pool.com", "mooo.com", "freeyy.me", "cryptonight.net", "shscrypto.net"]);
_Im_Dns(domain_has_any=minersDomains)
| extend HostName = tostring(split(Dvc, ".")[0]), DomainIndex = toint(indexof(Dvc, '.'))
| extend HostNameDomain = iff(DomainIndex != -1, substring(Dvc, DomainIndex + 1), Dvc)
| project-away DomainIndex
id: c094384d-7ea7-4091-83be-18706ecca981
name: DNS events related to mining pools (ASIM DNS Schema)
description: |
'Identifies IP addresses that may be performing DNS lookups associated with common currency mining pools.
This analytic rule uses [ASIM](https://aka.ms/AboutASIM) and supports any built-in or custom source that supports the ASIM DNS schema'
severity: Low
requiredDataConnectors:
- connectorId: WindowsForwardedEvents
dataTypes:
- WindowsEvent
- connectorId: DNS
dataTypes:
- DnsEvents
- connectorId: AzureFirewall
dataTypes:
- AzureDiagnostics
- connectorId: Zscaler
dataTypes:
- CommonSecurityLog
- connectorId: InfobloxNIOS
dataTypes:
- Syslog
- connectorId: GCPDNSDataConnector
dataTypes:
- GCP_DNS_CL
- connectorId: NXLogDnsLogs
dataTypes:
- NXLog_DNS_Server_CL
- connectorId: CiscoUmbrellaDataConnector
dataTypes:
- Cisco_Umbrella_dns_CL
- connectorId: Corelight
dataTypes:
- Corelight_CL
queryFrequency: 1d
queryPeriod: 1d
triggerOperator: gt
triggerThreshold: 0
tactics:
- Impact
relevantTechniques:
- T1496
tags:
- ParentAlert: https://github.com/Azure/Azure-Sentinel/blob/master/Detections/DnsEvents/DNS_Miners.yaml
version: 1.0.0
- Schema: ASIMDns
SchemaVersion: 0.1.1
query: |
let minersDomains=dynamic(["monerohash.com", "do-dear.com", "xmrminerpro.com", "secumine.net", "xmrpool.com", "minexmr.org", "hashanywhere.com",
"xmrget.com", "mininglottery.eu", "minergate.com", "moriaxmr.com", "multipooler.com", "moneropools.com", "xmrpool.eu", "coolmining.club",
"supportxmr.com", "minexmr.com", "hashvault.pro", "xmrpool.net", "crypto-pool.fr", "xmr.pt", "miner.rocks", "walpool.com", "herominers.com",
"gntl.co.uk", "semipool.com", "coinfoundry.org", "cryptoknight.cc", "fairhash.org", "baikalmine.com", "tubepool.xyz", "fairpool.xyz", "asiapool.io",
"coinpoolit.webhop.me", "nanopool.org", "moneropool.com", "miner.center", "prohash.net", "poolto.be", "cryptoescrow.eu", "monerominers.net", "cryptonotepool.org",
"extrmepool.org", "webcoin.me", "kippo.eu", "hashinvest.ws", "monero.farm", "supportxmr.com", "xmrpool.eu", "linux-repository-updates.com", "1gh.com",
"dwarfpool.com", "hash-to-coins.com", "hashvault.pro", "pool-proxy.com", "hashfor.cash", "fairpool.cloud", "litecoinpool.org", "mineshaft.ml", "abcxyz.stream",
"moneropool.ru", "cryptonotepool.org.uk", "extremepool.org", "extremehash.com", "hashinvest.net", "unipool.pro", "crypto-pools.org", "monero.net",
"backup-pool.com", "mooo.com", "freeyy.me", "cryptonight.net", "shscrypto.net"]);
_Im_Dns(domain_has_any=minersDomains)
| extend HostName = tostring(split(Dvc, ".")[0]), DomainIndex = toint(indexof(Dvc, '.'))
| extend HostNameDomain = iff(DomainIndex != -1, substring(Dvc, DomainIndex + 1), Dvc)
| project-away DomainIndex
entityMappings:
- entityType: Host
fieldMappings:
- identifier: FullName
columnName: Dvc
Adversaries may leverage the resources of co-opted systems to complete resource-intensive tasks, which may impact system and/or hosted service availability.
Resource hijacking may take a number of d
Scenario: Legitimate DNS lookups for cryptocurrency wallet services
Description: A system administrator or developer may perform DNS lookups to configure or test a cryptocurrency wallet service (e.g., using nslookup or dig to verify domain resolution).
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude DNS queries originating from known administrative tools or user accounts with elevated privileges (e.g., nslookup, dig, or systemd-resolve), or filter by source IP addresses associated with internal development teams.
Scenario: Scheduled job for blockchain node synchronization
Description: A scheduled job (e.g., using cron or Task Scheduler) may perform DNS lookups to synchronize with a blockchain network, which could involve querying mining pool domains.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude DNS events associated with scheduled tasks or services (e.g., cron jobs, Task Scheduler tasks, or services like bitcoind or ethereum-geth). Use process name or command-line arguments to identify legitimate synchronization activities.
Scenario: DNS resolution for internal monitoring tools
Description: An internal monitoring tool (e.g., Prometheus, Zabbix, or Nagios) may resolve DNS names for metrics or alerts related to blockchain nodes or mining hardware.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude DNS queries from known monitoring tools by process name or by filtering DNS requests that originate from internal monitoring systems or services.
Scenario: DNS lookup for legitimate mining pool testing
Description: A security team or developer may test a mining pool’s DNS configuration as part of a security assessment or incident response exercise.
Filter/Exclusion: Exclude DNS queries that are part of a known testing or simulation activity (e.g., using tools like dnsenum, dnstracer, or nslookup in a controlled environment). Filter by user account or session context