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DeleteLogGroup

AWS

DeleteLogGroup

service: AWS - CloudWatchLogs
techniques:

Event

Permanently deletes a CloudWatch Logs log group and all its log streams and stored data.

Security Context

  • Deleting or modifying audit logs destroys forensic evidence and prevents security teams from reconstructing the attack timeline.

Log Source

CloudTrail

Sample Event

Adversarial. Draco deletes the CloudTrail → CloudWatch Logs log group (fantasticlogs-cloudtrail-management) before deleting the trail itself. With the log group gone, CloudWatch metric-filter alarms and any Logs Insights queries also stop firing. T1685.002.

{
"eventVersion": "1.09",
"userIdentity": {
"type": "IAMUser",
"principalId": "AIDADRAC0MALF0YBADGY",
"arn": "arn:aws:iam::555123456789:user/draco",
"accountId": "555123456789",
"accessKeyId": "AKIADRAC0MALF0YEXAMP5",
"userName": "draco",
"sessionContext": {
"attributes": {
"creationDate": "2026-04-15T19:02:11Z",
"mfaAuthenticated": "false"
}
}
},
"eventTime": "2026-04-15T20:21:33Z",
"eventSource": "logs.amazonaws.com",
"eventName": "DeleteLogGroup",
"awsRegion": "us-east-1",
"sourceIPAddress": "203.0.113.66",
"userAgent": "aws-cli/1.18.147 Python/3.7.10 Linux/5.4.0-1045-aws botocore/1.18.6",
"requestParameters": {
"logGroupName": "fantasticlogs-cloudtrail-management"
},
"responseElements": null,
"requestID": "90000000-0000-4000-8000-000011100110",
"eventID": "90000000-0000-4000-8000-000011100111",
"readOnly": false,
"eventType": "AwsApiCall",
"managementEvent": true,
"recipientAccountId": "555123456789",
"eventCategory": "Management",
"tlsDetails": {
"tlsVersion": "TLSv1.3",
"cipherSuite": "TLS_AES_128_GCM_SHA256",
"clientProvidedHostHeader": "logs.us-east-1.amazonaws.com"
}
}

MITRE ATT&CK Mapping

Tactics: Defense Impairment

Techniques:
  • T1685.002 — Disable or Modify Cloud Log — An adversary may disable or modify cloud logging capabilities and integrations to limit what data is collected on their activities and avoid detection. Cloud environments allow for collection and analysis of audit and application logs that provide insight into what activities a user does within t...