• 👉 Overview
• 👀 What ?
• 🧐 Why ?
• ⛏️ How ?
• ⏳ When ?
• ⚙️ Technical Explanations
• 🖇️ References

👉 Overview

👀 What ?

Windows SeDebug + SeImpersonate token duplication is a security mechanism that allows a process to duplicate the token of another process. This is often used in privilege escalation attacks where an attacker gains access to a system and then uses token duplication to elevate their privileges to that of an administrative user.

🧐 Why ?

Understanding the concept of Windows SeDebug + SeImpersonate token duplication is important because it is a common technique used in cyber-attacks. Cybersecurity professionals need to understand how it works in order to properly defend systems and networks against it. It is also crucial for IT administrators to understand this concept in order to implement appropriate security measures to prevent such attacks.

⛏️ How ?

In order to use Windows SeDebug + SeImpersonate token duplication, an attacker would first need to gain access to a system. They can then use a tool such as Mimikatz to dump the memory of the lsass.exe process, which is responsible for handling Windows security. This dump can then be analyzed to extract the token of an administrative user. Once the token is obtained, it can be used to launch new processes with administrative privileges.

⏳ When ?

The use of Windows SeDebug + SeImpersonate token duplication has been a common technique in cyber-attacks for many years. It is particularly common in targeted attacks where the attacker has a specific goal in mind, such as stealing sensitive data or disrupting operations.

⚙️ Technical Explanations

The SeDebug privilege allows a process to debug another process, which includes the ability to read and write that process's memory. The SeImpersonate privilege allows a process to impersonate another user, which means it can perform actions as if it were that user. When combined, these privileges allow an attacker to duplicate the token of another process, effectively granting them the same privileges as that process. This is often used in combination with other techniques, such as process injection or DLL hijacking, to gain persistent and unrestricted access to a system.

🖇️ References