Memory Exploitation for Credential Extraction

Memory exploitation for credential extraction involves targeting application memory spaces to extract sensitive authentication information during the "Expanding Control" phase of an attack. After gaining initial access to a system, attackers leverage memory-related vulnerabilities such as buffer overflows, heap spraying, or use-after-free conditions to access regions of memory where credentials are temporarily stored in cleartext. This technique circumvents disk-based credential protection mechanisms by targeting the application's runtime memory state, where encryption may be temporarily removed for authentication processing. Sophisticated attackers may inject code that hooks memory management functions, intercepts cryptographic operations, or dumps process memory selectively when authentication data is present. Common targets include web browsers storing session cookies, password managers during unlock operations, and enterprise applications that cache credentials for transparent authentication. Unlike traditional credential harvesting that relies on filesystem artifacts, memory exploitation allows attackers to obtain credentials that might never be written to disk in unencrypted form, making detection significantly more challenging and expanding their control within the compromised environment.

Data Sources

Process Monitoring: Memory access patterns and process injection activities
Memory Analysis: Memory dumps and credential storage analysis
System Call Monitoring: System calls related to memory management and access
Application Logs: Memory access violations and security events

Detection

ID	Data Source	Detection
DS0009	Process: OS API Execution	Detect suspicious use of `ptrace`, `process_vm_readv`, `VirtualQueryEx` followed by bulk memory reads on authentication processes.
DS0009	Process: Process Access	Alert when a low-privilege process opens a handle to high-privilege processes with `PROCESS_VM_READ` rights.
DS0015	Application Log	Correlate segmentation faults or access-violation events within security-critical processes with subsequent network egress.

Mitigations

ID	Mitigation	Description
M1040	Behavior Prevention on Endpoint	Implement memory protection and exploit prevention capabilities
M1041	Encrypt Sensitive Information	Implement credential encryption in memory and secure memory management
M1050	Exploit Protection	Implement address space layout randomization and memory protection mechanisms