ThreatFox: SmartApeSG IOCs

Hunt Hypothesis

This hunt targets adversary activity involving specific indicators of compromise linked to the SmartApeSG threat actor, which may signal early-stage reconnaissance or lateral movement within the network. Proactively hunting for these IOCs in Azure Sentinel is critical to identify potential breaches before they escalate, ensuring rapid containment and validation against this high-severity threat profile.

IOC Summary

Malware Family: SmartApeSG Total IOCs: 3 IOC Types: domain, url

KQL: Domain Hunt

// Hunt for DNS queries to known malicious domains
// Source: ThreatFox - SmartApeSG
let malicious_domains = dynamic(["bronzehorizon.top"]);
DnsEvents
| where Name has_any (malicious_domains)
| project TimeGenerated, Computer, Name, IPAddresses, QueryType
| order by TimeGenerated desc

KQL: Url Hunt

// Hunt for access to known malicious URLs
// Source: ThreatFox - SmartApeSG
let malicious_urls = dynamic(["https://bronzehorizon.top/role/route-state", "https://bronzehorizon.top/role/settings-worker.js"]);
UrlClickEvents
| where Url has_any (malicious_urls)
| project Timestamp, AccountUpn, Url, ActionType, IsClickedThrough
| order by Timestamp desc

Required Data Sources

References

• ThreatFox — SmartApeSG

False Positive Guidance

Here are specific false positive scenarios for the ThreatFox: SmartApeSG IOCs detection rule within an enterprise environment, along with suggested filters and exclusions:

• Security Team Manual IOC Testing via EDR Console

  • Scenario: Security analysts manually upload or simulate known SmartApeSG indicators (hashes, URLs, or IPs) into the Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) console to validate detection coverage. This often involves running a specific test script on a designated “Lab” workstation that mimics the malicious behavior without actual user interaction.
  • Filter/Exclusion: Create an exclusion for hosts belonging to the Security-Lab-Workstations Active Directory OU or those tagged with Environment: Test. Additionally, filter out events where the initiating process is a known security tool (e.g., CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor, Carbon Black Agent) running under the SYSTEM account rather than a standard user context.

• Automated Patch Management and Software Deployment

  • Scenario: The IT Operations team uses Microsoft SCCM (Configuration Manager) or Ivanti Endpoint Manager to deploy a new software update or patch package that includes a library or component previously flagged by SmartApeSG IOCs. During the scheduled maintenance window, thousands of endpoints simultaneously download and execute these files, triggering the rule across the fleet.
  • Filter/Exclusion: Exclude events where the parent process is ccmexec.exe (SCCM) or IvAgent.exe, specifically when the execution occurs during the defined “Maintenance Window” (e.g., 02:00–04:00 local time). You can also whitelist specific file hashes associated with the known deployment package version.

• Third-Party Cloud Backup and Synchronization Services

  • Scenario: Enterprise-wide data synchronization jobs run via tools like **