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insider-threat-detection-queries (3)

kql MEDIUM Azure-Sentinel
DeviceProcessEvents
huntingmicrosoftofficial
This rule was pulled from an open-source repository and enriched with AI. Validate in a test environment before deploying to production.
View original rule at Azure-Sentinel →
Retrieved: 2026-05-23T03:15:01Z · Confidence: medium

Hunt Hypothesis

Users with administrative privileges may exfiltrate sensitive data through Azure Storage Blob access, indicating potential insider threat activity that could compromise organizational data integrity. Proactively hunting for such behavior in Azure Sentinel enables early detection of insider risks and supports the development of robust insider threat models.

KQL Query

// --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- //
//
//Screenshots
//
let PRINT_THRESHOLD = 3;  // adjust accordingly
//-----
DeviceProcessEvents 
| where FileName in ("SnippingTool.exe", "ScreenSketch.exe") //and Timestamp > ago(20d)
| summarize count_AccountName = count() by AccountName
| where count_AccountName > PRINT_THRESHOLD
| sort by count_AccountName desc

Analytic Rule Definition

id: 72e7f2c9-aba5-427e-b2ec-f68c191010ec
name: insider-threat-detection-queries (3)
description: |
  Intent:
  - Use MTP capability to look for insider threat potential risk indicators
  - Indicators would then serve as the building block for insider threat risk modeling in subsequent tools
  Definition of Insider Threat:
  "The potential for an individual who has or had authorized access to an organization's assets to use their access, either maliciously or unintentionally, to act in a way that could negatively affect the organization."
  This collection of queries describes the different indicators that could be used to model and look for patterns suggesting an increased risk of an individual becoming a potential insider threat.
  Note: no single indicator should be used as a lone determinant of insider threat activity, but should be part of an overall program to understand the increased risk to your organization's critical assets. This in turn is used to feed an investigation by a formal insider threat program to look at the context associated with the whole person to understand the implication of a set of indicators.
requiredDataConnectors:
- connectorId: MicrosoftThreatProtection
  dataTypes:
  - DeviceProcessEvents
tactics:
- Initial access
- Persistence
- Exfiltration
query: |
  // --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- //
  //
  //Screenshots
  //
  let PRINT_THRESHOLD = 3;  // adjust accordingly
  //-----
  DeviceProcessEvents 
  | where FileName in ("SnippingTool.exe", "ScreenSketch.exe") //and Timestamp > ago(20d)
  | summarize count_AccountName = count() by AccountName
  | where count_AccountName > PRINT_THRESHOLD
  | sort by count_AccountName desc

Required Data Sources

Sentinel TableNotes
DeviceProcessEventsEnsure this data connector is enabled

MITRE ATT&CK Context

References

False Positive Guidance

Original source: https://github.com/Azure/Azure-Sentinel/blob/main/Hunting Queries/Microsoft 365 Defender/General queries/insider-threat-detection-queries (3).yaml