ATT&CK · T1686.003 · sub-technique
Windows Host Firewall
Tactics: defense-impairment
About
Adversaries may disable or modify the Windows host firewall to bypass controls limiting network usage. This can include disabling the Windows host firewall entirely, suppressing specific profiles (domain, private, public), or adding, deleting, and modifying firewall rules to allow or restrict traffic. Adversaries may perform these modifications through multiple mechanisms depending on the Windows operating system and access level. For example, adversaries may use command-line utilities (e.g., `netsh advfirewall` or PowerShell cmdlets like `Set-NetFirewallProfile`, `New-NetFirewallRule`), Windows Registry modifications (e.g., altering firewall states and rule configurations via registry keys), or the Windows Control Panel to modify firewall settings through the Windows Security interface. By disabling or modifying Windows firewall services, adversaries may enable access to remote services, open ports for command and control traffic, or configure rules for further actions.
Used by actors
6 known groups
Software
9 malware/tools implement this
Corpus indicators tagged with this technique
0 indicators in the corpus carry T1686.003.
No corpus indicators are tagged with this technique yet.