tfMITRE ATT&CK sub-technique

DNS/Passive DNS T1596.001

sub-technique of T1596 Search Open Technical Databases

Tactic: Reconnaissance
Platform: PRE
Version: 1.0
Created: 02 October 2020
Last modified: 24 October 2025

Adversaries may search DNS data for information about victims that can be used during targeting. DNS information may include a variety of details, including registered name servers as well as records that outline addressing for a target’s subdomains, mail servers, and other hosts.

ReconResource DevInitial AccessExecutionPersistencePriv EscStealthDef ImpairmentCred AccessDiscoveryLateral MoveCollectionC2ExfiltrationImpact

Threat groupsNone recorded

Threat groupsNone recorded · 29% of ATT&CK techniques have none either.

CampaignsNone recorded

CampaignsNone recorded · 54% of ATT&CK techniques have none either.

Tools & malwareNone recorded

Tools & malwareNone recorded · 29% of ATT&CK techniques have none either.

Detection rulesNone recorded

Detection rulesNone recorded · 33% of ATT&CK techniques have none either.

Offense vs defense T1596.001

Is defensive coverage keeping up with adversary use? Eight counts, each ranked against all 697 ATT&CK techniques. Attack sits left, defense right, so a shape leaning left means adversaries are better documented here than defenders are equipped. Hover any spoke for its percentile and the share of techniques that have more. The timeline below shows when each side arrived.

DNS/Passive DNS detection strategy DET0877

MITRE names one behaviour worth catching for this technique and breaks it into 1 analytic, one per platform. Each carries the log sources it needs and the fields you tune per environment.

Detection of DNS/Passive DNS

Enterprise

1 platform

AN2009 · PRE

Much of this activity may have a very high occurrence and associated false positive rate, as well as potentially taking place outside the visibility of the target organization, making detection difficult for defenders. Detection efforts may be focused on related stages of the adversary lifecycle, such as during Initial Access.

DNS/Passive DNS detections T1596.001

No detection rules are mapped to this technique yet.

None recorded— 33% of ATT&CK techniques have none either

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