Configuring Mimecast Connectors

This connector allows Stellar Cyber to ingest Mimecast logs and add the records to the data lake.

Mimecast integration with Stellar Cyber provides advanced threat detection and response capabilities, combining Mimecast's email security solutions with real-time threat intelligence and automated response workflows to improve incident response and threat mitigation.

There can be any number of Mimecast connectors active.

This connector uses Mimecast API 1.0.

Stellar Cyber connectors with the Collect function (collectors) may skip collecting some data when the ingestion volume is large, which potentially can lead to data loss. This can happen when the processing capacity of the collector is exceeded.

Connector Overview: Mimecast

Capabilities

  • Collect: Yes

  • Respond: No

  • Native Alerts Mapped: Yes

  • Runs on: DP

  • Interval: 5 minutes

Collected Data

Content Type

Index

Locating Records

MTA Log

Syslog

 

msg_class:

mimecast_email

mimecast_email_attachment_protect_log

mimecast_email_av_log

mimecast_email_impersonation_protect_log

mimecast_email_internal_email_protect_log

mimecast_email_url_protect_log

msg_origin.source:

mimecast_email

msg_origin.vendor

mimecast

msg_origin.category:

email

Domain

https://api.mimecast.com

Response Actions

N/A

Third Party Native Alert Integration Details

This connector ingests logs from Mimecast to get the raw alerts that are stored in the Syslog index. Select the MTA Log content type.

Stellar Cyber maps Mimecast alerts. The alerts are read from the Syslog index, enriched with Stellar Cyber fields, and mapped (with deduplication) to the Alerts index.

Deduplication is by the following fields:

  • Attachment Protect and AV/AntiVirus—tenantid, srcip, file.hash.md5, email.sender.address, and email.recipient.addresses

  • Impersonation Protect, Internal Email , and Malicious Receipt—tenantid and mimecast.aCode

  • URL Protect—tenantid, srcip, url, email.sender.address, and email.recipient.addresses

For details, see Integration of Third Party Native Alerts.

Required Credentials

  • App ID, App Key, Access Key, Secret Key

Locating Records

To search the alerts in the Alerts index, use the query msg_class: mimecast_*

To search the Original Records in the Syslog index, use the msg_class and alert key fields (refer to Key Fields for Third Party Native Alert Types):

  • Attachment Protect logs: msg_class.keyword: mimecast_email_attachment_protect_log

  • AV logs: msg_class.keyword: mimecast_email_av_log

  • Impersonation Protect logs: msg_class.keyword: mimecast_impersonation_protect_log

  • Internal Email Protect logs: msg_class.keyword: mimecast_email_internal_email_protect_log

  • Receipt logs: _exists_: mimecast.Virus AND _exists_: mimecast.aCode AND msg_class.keyword: mimecast_email

  • URL Protect logs: msg_class.keyword: mimecast_email_url_protect_log

Adding a Mimecast Connector

To add a Mimecast connector:

  1. Configure Mimecast logs
  2. Add the connector in Stellar Cyber
  3. Test the connector
  4. Verify ingestion

Configuring Mimecast Logs

You must configure Mimecast logs before you add the connector in Stellar Cyber.

To configure Mimecast logs:

  1. Log in to Mimecast.
  2. Follow the Mimecast online instructions to Enable logging for your account.
  3. Refer to the following site (https://community.mimecast.com/s/article/Managing-API-Applications-505230018) for guidance preparing for use of the Mimecast API and gathering the info below:
    • App ID
    • App Key
    • Access Key
    • Secret Key

Refer to the following recommendations:

  • Generate the Access Key and Secret Key before adding the user to any Basic Administrator role.

  • If the Access Key and Secret Key need to be generated, first remove the user from any Basic Administrator role and add the user back after obtaining the new keys.

Adding the Connector in Stellar Cyber

To add a Mimecast connector in Stellar Cyber:

  1. Log in to Stellar Cyber.

  2. Click System | Connectors (under Integrations). The Connector Overview appears.

  3. Click Create. The General tab of the Add Connector screen appears. The information on this tab cannot be changed after you add the connector.

    The asterisk (*) indicates a required field.

  4. Choose Email from the Category drop-down.

  5. Choose Mimecast from the Type drop-down.

  6. For this connector, the supported Function is Collect, which is enabled already.

  7. Enter a Name.

    Notes:
    • This field does not accept multibyte characters.
    • It is recommended that you follow a naming convention such as tenantname-connectortype.

  8. Choose a Tenant Name. The Interflow records created by this connector include this tenant name.

  9. Choose the device on which to run the connector.

    • Certain connectors can be run on either a Sensor or a Data Processor. The available devices are displayed in the Run On menu. If you want to associate your collector with a sensor, you must have configured that sensor prior to configuring the connector or you will not be able to select it during initial configuration. If you select Data Processor, you will need to associate the connector with a Data Analyzer profile as a separate step. That step is not required for a sensor, which is configured with only one possible profile.

    • If the device you're connecting to is on premises, we recommend you run on the local sensor. If you're connecting to a cloud service, we recommend you run on the DP.

  10. (Optional) When the Function is Collect, you can apply Log Filters. For information, see Managing Log Filters.

  11. Click Next. The Configuration tab appears.

    The asterisk (*) indicates a required field.

  12. Enter the App ID you copied earlier.

  13. Enter the App Key you copied earlier.

  14. Enter the Access Key you copied earlier.

  15. Enter the Secret Key you copied earlier.

  16. Enter the Administrator Email.

  17. Choose the Content Type you would like to collect. The logs for MTA Log are supported.

  18. Click Next. The final confirmation tab appears.

  19. Click Submit.

    To pull data, a connector must be added to a Data Analyzer profile if it is running on the Data Processor.

  20. If you are adding rather than editing a connector with the Collect function enabled and you specified for it to run on a Data Processor, a dialog box now prompts you to add the connector to the default Data Analyzer profile. Click Cancel to leave it out of the default profile or click OK to add it to the default profile.

    • This prompt only occurs during the initial create connector process when Collect is enabled.

    • Certain connectors can be run on either a Sensor or a Data Processor, and some are best run on one versus the other. In any case, when the connector is run on a Data Processor, that connector must be included in a Data Analyzer profile. If you leave it out of the default profile, you must add it to another profile. You need the Administrator Root scope to add the connector to the Data Analyzer profile. If you do not have privileges to configure Data Analyzer profiles, a dialog displays recommending you ask your administrator to add it for you.

    • The first time you add a Collect connector to a profile, it pulls data immediately and then not again until the scheduled interval has elapsed. If the connector configuration dialog did not offer an option to set a specific interval, it is run every five minutes. Exceptions to this default interval are the Proofpoint on Demand (pulls data every 1 hour) and Azure Event Hub (continuously pulls data) connectors. The intervals for each connector are listed in the Connector Types & Functions topic.

    The Connector Overview appears.

The new connector is immediately active.

A new Mimecast connector automatically collects logs for the last 7 days. It can take a few days for the logs to be current.

Testing the Connector

When you add (or edit) a connector, we recommend that you run a test to validate the connectivity parameters you entered. (The test validates authentication and connectivity).

  1. Click System | Connectors (under Integrations). The Connector Overview appears.

  2. Locate the connector by name that you added, or modified, or that you want to test.

  3. Click Test at the right side of that row. The test runs immediately.

    Note that you may run only one test at a time.

Stellar Cyber conducts a basic connectivity test for the connector and reports a success or failure result. A successful test indicates that you entered all of the connector information correctly.

To aid troubleshooting your connector, the dialog remains open until you explicitly close it by using the X button. If the test fails, you can select the  button from the same row to review and correct issues.

The connector status is updated every five (5) minutes. A successful test clears the connector status, but if issues persist, the status reverts to failed after a minute.

Repeat the test as needed.

ClosedDisplay sample messages...

Success !

Failure with summary of issue:

Show More example detail:

If the test fails, the common HTTP status error codes are as follows:

HTTP Error Code HTTP Standard Error Name Explanation Recommendation
400 Bad Request This error occurs when there is an error in the connector configuration.

Did you configure the connector correctly?
401 Unauthorized

This error occurs when an authentication credential is invalid or when a user does not have sufficient privileges to access a specific API.

Did you enter your credentials correctly?

Are your credentials expired?

Are your credentials entitled or licensed for that specific resource?
403 Forbidden This error occurs when the permission or scope is not correct in a valid credential.

Did you enter your credentials correctly?

Do you have the required role or permissions for that credential?

404 Not Found This error occurs when a URL path does not resolve to an entity. Did you enter your API URL correctly?
429 Too Many Requests

This error occurs when the API server receives too much traffic or if a user’s license or entitlement quota is exceeded.

The server or user license/quota will eventually recover. The connector will periodically retry the query.

If this occurs unexpectedly or too often, work with your API provider to investigate the server limits, user licensing, or quotas.

For a full list of codes, refer to HTTP response status codes.

Verifying Ingestion

To verify ingestion:

  1. Click Investigate | Threat Hunting. The Interflow Search tab appears.
  2. Change the Indices to Syslog. The table immediately updates to show ingested Interflow records.