Analyzing Cyber Kill Chain
When to Use
Use this skill when:
- Conducting post-incident analysis to determine how far an adversary progressed through an attack sequence
- Designing layered defensive controls with the goal of interrupting attacks at the earliest possible phase
- Producing threat intelligence reports that communicate attack progression to non-technical stakeholders
Do not use this skill as a standalone framework — combine with MITRE ATT&CK for technique-level granularity beyond what the 7-phase kill chain provides.
Prerequisites
- Complete incident timeline with forensic artifacts mapped to specific adversary actions
- MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise matrix for technique-level mapping within each kill chain phase
- Access to threat intelligence on the suspected adversary group's typical kill chain progression
- Post-incident report or IR timeline from responding team
Workflow
Step 1: Map Observed Actions to Kill Chain Phases
The Lockheed Martin Cyber Kill Chain consists of seven phases. Map all observed adversary actions:
Phase 1 - Reconnaissance: Adversary gathers target information before attack.
- Indicators: DNS queries from adversary IP, LinkedIn scraping, job posting analysis, Shodan scans of organization infrastructure
Phase 2 - Weaponization: Adversary creates attack tool (malware + exploit).
- Indicators: Malware compilation timestamps, exploit document metadata, builder artifacts in malware samples
Phase 3 - Delivery: Adversary transmits weapon to target.
- Indicators: Phishing emails, malicious attachments, drive-by downloads, USB drops, supply chain compromise
Phase 4 - Exploitation: Adversary exploits vulnerability to execute code.
- Indicators: CVE exploitation events in application/OS logs, memory corruption artifacts, shellcode execution
Phase 5 - Installation: Adversary establishes persistence on target.
- Indicators: New scheduled tasks, registry run keys, service installation, web shells, bootkits
Phase 6 - Command & Control (C2): Adversary communicates with compromised system.
- Indicators: Beaconing traffic (regular intervals), DNS tunneling, HTTPS to uncommon domains, C2 framework signatures (Cobalt Strike, Sliver)
Phase 7 - Actions on Objectives: Adversary achieves goals.
- Indicators: Data staging/exfiltration, lateral movement, ransomware execution, destructive activity
Step 2: Identify Phase Completion and Detection Points
Create a phase matrix for the incident:
Phase 1: Recon → Completed (undetected)
Phase 2: Weaponize → Completed (undetected — pre-attack)
Phase 3: Delivery → Completed; phishing email bypassed SEG
Phase 4: Exploit → Completed; CVE-2023-23397 exploited
Phase 5: Install → DETECTED: EDR flagged scheduled task creation (attack stalled here)
Phase 6: C2 → Not achieved (installation blocked)
Phase 7: Objectives → Not achieved
For each phase completed without detection, document the defensive control gap.
Step 3: Map to MITRE ATT&CK for Technique Detail
Each kill chain phase maps to multiple ATT&CK tactics:
- Delivery → Initial Access (TA0001)
- Exploitation → Execution (TA0002)
- Installation → Persistence (TA0003), Privilege Escalation (TA0004)
- C2 → Command and Control (TA0011)
- Actions on Objectives → Exfiltration (TA0010), Impact (TA0040)
Within each phase, enumerate specific ATT&CK techniques observed and map to existing detections.
Step 4: Identify Courses of Action per Phase
For each phase, document applicable defensive courses of action (COAs):
- Detect COA: What detection would alert on adversary activity in this phase?
- Deny COA: What control would prevent the adversary from completing this phase?
- Disrupt COA: What control would interrupt the adversary mid-phase?
- Degrade COA: What control would reduce the adversary's effectiveness in this phase?
- Deceive COA: What deception (honeypots, canary tokens) would expose activity in this phase?
- Destroy COA: What active defense capability would neutralize adversary infrastructure?
Step 5: Produce Kill Chain Analysis Report
Structure findings as:
- Attack narrative (timeline of phases)
- Phase-by-phase analysis with evidence
- Detection point analysis (what worked, what failed)
- Defensive recommendation per phase prioritized by cost/effectiveness
- Control improvement roadmap
Key Concepts
| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Kill Chain | Sequential model of adversary intrusion phases; breaking any link theoretically stops the attack |
| Courses of Action (COA) | Defensive responses mapped to each kill chain phase: detect, deny, disrupt, degrade, deceive, destroy |
| Beaconing | Regular, periodic C2 check-in pattern from compromised host to adversary server; detectable by frequency analysis |
| Phase Completion | Adversary successfully finishes a kill chain phase and progresses to the next; defense-in-depth aims to prevent this |
| Intelligence Gain/Loss | Analysis of whether detecting at Phase 5 (vs. Phase 3) reduced intelligence about adversary capabilities or intent |
Tools & Systems
- MITRE ATT&CK Navigator: Overlay kill chain phases with ATT&CK technique coverage for integrated analysis
- Elastic Security EQL: Event Query Language for querying multi-phase attack sequences in Elastic SIEM
- Splunk ES: Timeline visualization and correlation searches for kill chain phase sequencing
- MISP: Kill chain tagging via galaxy clusters for structured incident event documentation
Common Pitfalls
- Linear assumption: Adversaries don't always progress linearly — they may skip phases (weaponization already complete from previous campaign) or loop back (re-establish C2 after detection).
- Ignoring Phases 1 and 2: Reconnaissance and weaponization occur before the defender has visibility. Intelligence about these phases requires external sources (OSINT, threat intelligence).
- Missing insider threats: The kill chain was designed for external adversaries. Insider threats may skip directly to Phase 7 without traversing earlier phases.
- Confusing with ATT&CK tactics: The 7-phase kill chain and 14 ATT&CK tactics are complementary but not directly equivalent. Maintain distinction to prevent analytic confusion.