Posture check · Account security
Account without Kerberos pre-authentication (T1558.004)
The domain controller returns an AS-REP for this account to anyone who asks, without checking who they are (AS-REP roasting). Checks enabled accounts only.
Why it matters
Anyone can crack the AS-REP offline to get the password. They need no account of their own, and no failed authentication is logged.
How GraphnAI finds it
It runs after every sync, on each connected domain or tenant on its own. It applies to Active Directory.
It reads:
- The directory attributes
userAccountControlandaccountEnabled
Tiered Fidelity™ level: Theoretical
Every finding from this check carries the Theoretical level.
- TheoreticalThis checkConfigured in the directory. Nothing else checked.
- ConstrainedA constraint on it has been checked.
- ValidatedTelemetry has seen it in use.
How Select Fire™ fixes it
How to fix it
Enable Kerberos pre-authentication on the account. Leave it disabled only for a specific, documented legacy system, and give that account a long random password.
What Select Fire changes
Select Fire opens from the finding and simulates each change on your live graph before anything changes in your directory.
- Require Kerberos pre-authenticationSemi-Auto, or Full-Auto when an Admin allows this action and every Full-Auto check passes. Never on a Tier 0 or Tier 1 account.
Turning pre-authentication back on stops the account authenticating from a client that can't do it. Modern Windows clients can. A custom or very old Kerberos client may not.
If someone uses it
This detection rule raises an alert when the attack this exposure invites shows up in your domain controllers' events.
MITRE ATT&CK® technique names and MITRE D3FEND™ technique labels: © The MITRE Corporation. This work is reproduced and distributed with the permission of The MITRE Corporation. ATT&CK® is a registered trademark and D3FEND™ a trademark of The MITRE Corporation.
See it on your own directory.
The Public Preview is free for 30 days from your first sync, on your own server.