4717 Security log · Policy Change medium severity low volume

Windows Event ID 4717 — System security access was granted to an account

A logon right or system access right was granted to an account.

Why event 4717 matters

Granting SeNetworkLogonRight to backdoor accounts enables network access. Granting SeInteractiveLogonRight to service accounts enables interactive logon for privilege escalation.

How to detect it

Alert: logon rights granted to unexpected accounts. Monitor for addition of high-privilege rights.

Log source
Security
Advanced Audit Policy — enable the 'Policy Change' subcategory (Success and/or Failure).
Fields to pivot on
SubjectUserNameTargetUserNameLogonTypeIpAddressWorkstationName

MITRE ATT&CK mapping

Tactic Technique
Privilege Escalation Access Token Manipulation (T1134)

Detection queries

Starting points — adapt the log source, projected fields and thresholds for your environment.

Sentinel / Defender KQL
SecurityEvent
| where EventID == 4717   // System security access was granted to an account
| project TimeGenerated, Computer, SubjectUserName, TargetUserName, LogonType, IpAddress, WorkstationName
| sort by TimeGenerated desc
Splunk SPL
index=* sourcetype="WinEventLog:Security" EventCode=4717
| stats count earliest(_time) as first_seen latest(_time) as last_seen by ComputerName
| sort - count   `# System security access was granted to an account — add EventData fields: SubjectUserName, TargetUserName, LogonType, IpAddress`
Hunt event 4717 in Sentinel/Defender →
Build a KQL query for this event in the KQL Query Builder.
Search all event IDs →
Open the interactive Windows Event ID lookup.

Related Policy Change events

4698 A scheduled task was created 4699 A scheduled task was deleted 4700 A scheduled task was enabled 4701 A scheduled task was disabled 4702 A scheduled task was updated 4703 A token right was adjusted 4704 A user right was assigned 4705 A user right was removed 4706 A new trust was created to a domain 4707 A trust to a domain was removed 4713 Kerberos policy was changed 4714 Encrypted data recovery policy was changed

Frequently asked questions

What is Windows Event ID 4717?

System security access was granted to an account. A logon right or system access right was granted to an account.

Which log records event 4717?

Event 4717 is written to the Security channel by Microsoft-Windows-Security-Auditing. Advanced Audit Policy — enable the 'Policy Change' subcategory (Success and/or Failure).

What MITRE ATT&CK techniques map to event 4717?

Event 4717 is associated with: Access Token Manipulation (T1134).

How do you detect activity around event 4717?

Alert: logon rights granted to unexpected accounts. Monitor for addition of high-privilege rights.