Query Details
//This query detects suspicious sign-ins to on-premises directory sync account //Directory sync account has special permissions and cannot perform MFA //Activity outside baseline warrants investigation let starttime = 14d; let endtime = 1d; let threshold = 400; let historicalActivity = union SigninLogs, AADNonInteractiveUserSignInLogs | where TimeGenerated between(ago(starttime)..ago(endtime)) | where UserDisplayName == "On-Premises Directory Synchronization Service Account" or UserPrincipalName startswith "sync_" | summarize historicalCount = count() by IPAddress; union SigninLogs, AADNonInteractiveUserSignInLogs | where UserDisplayName == "On-Premises Directory Synchronization Service Account" or UserPrincipalName startswith "sync_" | where TimeGenerated >= ago(endtime) | join kind= leftouter (historicalActivity) on IPAddress |where historicalCount < threshold or isempty(historicalCount)
This query is designed to identify potentially suspicious sign-in activities related to an on-premises directory synchronization account, which has special permissions and cannot use multi-factor authentication (MFA). Here's a simplified breakdown of what the query does:
Time Frame Definition: It looks at sign-in activities over the past 14 days, excluding the last day (from 14 days ago to 1 day ago).
Historical Activity Collection: It gathers historical sign-in data for the directory sync account from two log sources (SigninLogs and AADNonInteractiveUserSignInLogs). It focuses on entries where the user is identified as the "On-Premises Directory Synchronization Service Account" or has a username starting with "sync_". It counts the number of sign-ins from each IP address during this period.
Threshold Setting: An IP address is considered suspicious if it has fewer than 400 sign-ins in the historical data.
Current Activity Analysis: It then examines sign-ins from the last day (the most recent day) for the same account and IP addresses.
Suspicious Activity Detection: The query identifies current sign-ins from IP addresses that either have a historical count below the threshold of 400 or have no historical sign-ins at all. These activities are flagged for further investigation as they deviate from the established baseline.
In essence, the query helps detect unusual sign-in patterns for a sensitive account by comparing current activities against historical norms.

Jay Kerai
Released: November 10, 2024
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