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ATT&CK Technique

Code Signing Certificates

T1588.003 · resource-development

Adversaries may buy and/or steal code signing certificates that can be used during targeting. Code signing is the process of digitally signing executables and scripts to confirm the software author and guarantee that the code has not been altered or corrupted. Code signing provides a level of authenticity for a program from the developer and a guarantee that the program has not been tampered with.

Users and/or security tools may trust a signed piece of code more than an unsigned piece of code even if they don't know who issued the certificate or who the author is. Prior to Code Signing, adversaries may purchase or steal code signing certificates for use in operations. The purchase of code signing certificates may be done using a front organization or using information stolen from a previously compromised entity that allows the adversary to validate to a certificate provider as that entity.

Adversaries may also steal code signing materials directly from a compromised third-party.

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Actors Using This

10
chinaAPT41
south_koreaDarkhotel
chinaEarth Lusca
chinaAPT27
chinaGALLIUM
russia_apt_sandworm_adjacentHermeticWiper
north_koreaLazarus Group
turkeySea Turtle
russia_speaking_organized_cybercrimeTA505
china_state_sponsored_mandiant_unc4841_barracuda_esg_zero_day_specialistUNC4841
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Likely Attack Path

Techniques the same actors pair with this one distinctively - those showing up among actors who use this technique noticeably more than across all actors (lift > 1.15), grouped by kill-chain phase. The × is that lift multiplier; the shared-actor count is in the tooltip. A near-universal technique pairs with everything at baseline, so its list is short by design.
resource-development same
T1588.004 · Digital Certificates ×17.85T1587.003 · Digital Certificates ×7.14
initial-access later
T1195.002 · Compromise Software Supply Chain ×3.40
execution later
T1574.006 · Dynamic Linker Hijacking ×7.93T1059.004 · Unix Shell ×3.57
persistence later
T1136.001 · Local Account ×5.95
credential-access later
T1557.001 · Name Resolution Poisoning and SMB Relay ×10.20T1557 · Adversary-in-the-Middle ×3.40
lateral-movement later
T1021.004 · SSH ×3.40
command-and-control later
T1571 · Non-Standard Port ×3.97
impact later
T1491.001 · Internal Defacement ×5.49
other same
T1218.010 · Regsvr32 ×6.35T1070.006 · Timestomp ×4.10T1553.002 · Code Signing ×3.48T1564.003 · Hidden Window ×3.40
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Mitigations

1
MITRE ATT&CK mitigations - vendor-agnostic guidance for reducing exposure to this technique.
M1056Pre-compromise

Pre-compromise mitigations involve proactive measures and defenses implemented to prevent adversaries from successfully identifying and exploiting weaknesses during the Reconnaissance and Resource Development phases of an attack. These activities focus on reducing an organization's attack surface, identify adversarial preparation efforts, and increase the difficulty for attackers to conduct successful operations.

Limit Information Exposure
  • Regularly audit and sanitize publicly available data, including job posts, websites, and social media.
  • Use tools like OSINT monitoring platforms (e.g., SpiderFoot, Recon-ng) to identify leaked information.
Protect Domain and DNS Infrastructure
  • Enable DNSSEC and use WHOIS privacy protection.
  • Monitor for domain hijacking or lookalike domains using services like RiskIQ or DomainTools.
External Monitoring
  • Use tools like Shodan, Censys to monitor your external attack surface.
  • Deploy external vulnerability scanners to proactively address weaknesses.
Threat Intelligence
  • Leverage platforms like MISP, Recorded Future, or Anomali to track adversarial infrastructure, tools, and activity.
Content and Email Protections
  • Use email security solutions like Proofpoint, Microsoft Defender for Office 365, or Mimecast.
  • Enforce SPF/DKIM/DMARC policies to protect against email spoofing.
Training and Awareness
  • Educate employees on identifying phishing attempts, securing their social media, and avoiding information leaks.
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Detection Coverage

0/6 layers
Coverage across standard detection surfaces. Rows marked none have no rule of that type mapped. Some are real blind spots worth closing; others are simply not applicable to this technique (e.g. YARA matches malware files, not network behaviour).
Behavioral / log (Sigma) none
Analytics (MITRE CAR) none
Runtime / container (Falco) none
File / malware (YARA) none
Network (Suricata/Snort) none
Vuln scan (Nuclei) none
Intelligence Graph · click any node to traverse
CVETechnique ActorTool Family
drag to reposition · click any node to traverse · button top-right enlarges
External lookups - second-class, for what we don’t hold ourselves
MITRE ATT&CKAtomic Red Teamcar (MITRE)
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