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MITRE ATT&CK® Technique

T1116: Code Signing

Code signing provides a level of authenticity on a binary from the developer and a guarantee that the binary has not been tampered with. [1] However, adversaries are known to use code signing certificates to masquerade malware and tools as legitimate binaries [2]. The certificates used during an operation may be created, forged, or stolen by the adversary. [3] [4]

Code signing to verify software on first run can be used on modern Windows and macOS/OS X systems. It is not used on Linux due to the decentralized nature of the platform. [1]

Code signing certificates may be used to bypass security policies that require signed code to execute on a system.

EnterpriseT1116TechniqueObject v1.1 Modified
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Historical object

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Official MITRE ATT&CK definition

Code Signing

Code signing provides a level of authenticity on a binary from the developer and a guarantee that the binary has not been tampered with. [1] However, adversaries are known to use code signing certificates to masquerade malware and tools as legitimate binaries [2]. The certificates used during an operation may be created, forged, or stolen by the adversary. [3] [4]

Code signing to verify software on first run can be used on modern Windows and macOS/OS X systems. It is not used on Linux due to the decentralized nature of the platform. [1]

Code signing certificates may be used to bypass security policies that require signed code to execute on a system.

View the same entry on attack.mitre.org (MITRE-hosted reference; in-page links above use the Glexia ATT&CK library.)

Glexia analysis

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ATT&CK relationship table

Related techniques

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1 rows
Domain ID Name Relationship / procedure
Enterprise T1553.002 Code Signing Sub-technique This object revoked by Code Signing.
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All related ATT&CK context

revoked by · Technique T1553.002: Code Signing Enterprise
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Object version and sync metadata

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ATT&CK release
19.1
Object version
1.1
Created
Modified
Raw hash
8eff9fc9b5d76f2b...
Imported snapshots across ATT&CK releases (1)
Release Bundle imported Object version Modified Status Raw hash
19.1 1.1 Current bundle Revoked 8eff9fc9b5d7…
Raw source

Mirrored ATT&CK source object

The raw object is retained through the mirrored ATT&CK source bundle and object hash. The raw endpoint returns the exact object from the mirrored bundle when available.

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Source references

External references and citations

MITRE external references are preserved separately from Glexia analysis so citations remain traceable to their original source records.

  1. [1]
    Wikipedia Code Signing

    Wikipedia. (2015, November 10). Code Signing. Retrieved March 31, 2016.

    Open source URL
  2. [2]
    Janicab

    Thomas. (2013, July 15). New signed malware called Janicab. Retrieved July 17, 2017.

    Open source URL
  3. [3]
    Securelist Digital Certificates

    Ladikov, A. (2015, January 29). Why You Shouldn’t Completely Trust Files Signed with Digital Certificates. Retrieved March 31, 2016.

    Open source URL
  4. [4]
    Symantec Digital Certificates

    Shinotsuka, H. (2013, February 22). How Attackers Steal Private Keys from Digital Certificates. Retrieved March 31, 2016.

    Open source URL
  5. [5]
    mitre-attack T1116
    Open source URL
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