4769 Security log · Kerberos Authentication Service medium severity very-high volume

Windows Event ID 4769 — A Kerberos service ticket was requested

Kerberos TGS requested. Key fields: AccountName, ServiceName, ClientAddress, TicketEncryptionType, FailureCode.

Why event 4769 matters

Kerberoasting signature: TGS requests for SPNs on user accounts (ServiceName NOT ending '$') with RC4 encryption (0x17). Tools: Rubeus kerberoast, Invoke-Kerberoast, Impacket GetUserSPNs.py. Pattern: many 4769 from single ClientAddress requesting different user-account SPNs rapidly.

How to detect it

Alert: TicketEncryptionType=0x17 AND ServiceName does NOT end '$' AND multiple ServiceNames from same ClientAddress. Alert: FailureCode 0x20 (expired), 0x37 (bad password). Baseline normal TGS patterns — Kerberoasting creates anomalous spike.

Log source
Security
Advanced Audit Policy — enable the 'Kerberos Authentication Service' subcategory (Success and/or Failure).
Fields to pivot on
TargetUserNameServiceNameIpAddressTicketEncryptionTypeTicketOptions

MITRE ATT&CK mapping

Tactic Technique
Credential Access Kerberoasting (T1558.003)

Detection queries

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

Sigma rule
title: Kerberoasting — RC4 TGS for User SPN
status: stable
description: RC4 service ticket request for user-account SPN indicates Kerberoasting
author: theadminstack.com
date: 2026/05/16
logsource:
    product: windows
    service: security
detection:
    selection:
        EventID: 4769
        TicketEncryptionType: '0x17'
        FailureCode: '0x0'
    filter_computers:
        ServiceName|endswith: '$'
    condition: selection and not filter_computers
falsepositives:
    - Legacy applications using RC4
    - Specific service accounts requiring RC4
level: high
tags:
    - attack.credential_access
    - attack.t1558.003
Sentinel / Defender KQL
SecurityEvent
| where EventID == 4769   // A Kerberos service ticket was requested
| project TimeGenerated, Computer, TargetUserName, ServiceName, IpAddress, TicketEncryptionType, TicketOptions
| sort by TimeGenerated desc
Splunk SPL
index=* sourcetype="WinEventLog:Security" EventCode=4769
| stats count earliest(_time) as first_seen latest(_time) as last_seen by ComputerName
| sort - count   `# A Kerberos service ticket was requested — add EventData fields: TargetUserName, ServiceName, IpAddress, TicketEncryptionType`
Hunt event 4769 in Sentinel/Defender →
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Related Kerberos Authentication Service events

4768 A Kerberos authentication ticket (TGT) was requested 4770 A Kerberos service ticket was renewed 4771 Kerberos pre-authentication failed 4772 A Kerberos authentication ticket request failed 4773 A Kerberos service ticket request failed 4774 An account was mapped for logon 4775 An account could not be mapped for logon 4776 The domain controller attempted to validate the credentials for an account (NTLM) 4777 The domain controller failed to validate the credentials for an account 4820 A Kerberos Ticket-Granting-Ticket (TGT) was denied because the device does not meet the access control restrictions 4821 A Kerberos service ticket was denied because the user, device, or both do not meet the access control restrictions 4822 NTLM authentication failed because the account was a member of the Protected Users group

Frequently asked questions

What is Windows Event ID 4769?

A Kerberos service ticket was requested. Kerberos TGS requested. Key fields: AccountName, ServiceName, ClientAddress, TicketEncryptionType, FailureCode.

Which log records event 4769?

Event 4769 is written to the Security channel by Microsoft-Windows-Security-Auditing. Advanced Audit Policy — enable the 'Kerberos Authentication Service' subcategory (Success and/or Failure).

What MITRE ATT&CK techniques map to event 4769?

Event 4769 is associated with: Kerberoasting (T1558.003).

How do you detect activity around event 4769?

Alert: TicketEncryptionType=0x17 AND ServiceName does NOT end '$' AND multiple ServiceNames from same ClientAddress. Alert: FailureCode 0x20 (expired), 0x37 (bad password). Baseline normal TGS patterns — Kerberoasting creates anomalous spike.