heroui logo

AWS RDS Instance Modified to be Publicly Accessible

Panther Rules

View Source
Summary
Detects when an AWS RDS instance or cluster is modified to become publicly accessible via CloudTrail events (ModifyDBInstance/ModifyDBCluster with publiclyAccessible set to true). An internet-exposed database surface can enable persistence or data exfiltration by actors. The rule detects real-time modification events and correlates them with prior access patterns and subsequent external connection attempts. It supports automatic guidance for containment: revert publiclyAccessible to false if unauthorized, review VPC security groups for overly permissive rules (0.0.0.0/0), and inspect DB logs for external access attempts. The rule also cross-references related API activity within defined windows to identify suspicious behavior, and maps to relevant MITRE ATT&CK techniques for defense coverage.
Categories
  • Cloud
  • AWS
  • Database
Data Sources
  • Cloud Service
ATT&CK Techniques
  • T1098
  • T1562.007
  • T1133
Created: 2026-04-21