A user connected to a VPN from a new country

Synopsis

Field	Value
Activation Period	14 Days
Training Period	30 Days
Test Period	N/A (single event)
Deduplication Period	30 Days
Required Data	Requires one of the following data sources: Palo Alto Networks Global Protect OR Third-Party VPNs
Detection Modules	Identity Analytics
ATT&CK Tactic	Credential Access (TA0006), Resource Development (TA0042)
ATT&CK Technique	Compromise Accounts (T1586), Brute Force: Password Guessing (T1110.001)
Severity	Informational

Description

A user connected to a VPN from an unusual country that the user has not connected from before. This may indicate the account was compromised.

Attacker's Goals

Use an account that was possibly compromised to gain access to the network.

Investigative actions

• See whether the service authentication was successful.
• Confirm that the activity is benign (e.g. the user has switched locations and providers).
• Verify if the country is an approved country to connect from.
• Follow further actions done by the user.

Variations

A user connected to a VPN from a suspicious country

Synopsis

Field	Value
ATT&CK Tactic	Credential Access (TA0006), Resource Development (TA0042)
ATT&CK Technique	Compromise Accounts (T1586), Brute Force: Password Guessing (T1110.001)
Severity	Low

Description

A user connected to a VPN service from an unusual country. This may indicate the account was compromised.

Attacker's Goals

Use an account that was possibly compromised to gain access to the network.

Investigative actions

• See whether the service authentication was successful.
• Confirm that the activity is benign (e.g. the user has switched locations and providers).
• Verify if the country is an approved country to connect from.
• Follow further actions done by the user.