TCP Port 488 – gss-http

About TCP Port 488

Port 488 carries the IANA assignment for gss-http. The IANA description reads: ‘gss-http’. This port is referenced in 8 IDS rules and exhibits high malware activity in monitored traffic.

IDS Rule References

8 IDS / security rules reference TCP port 488. Presence in IDS rules does not mean traffic on this port is malicious. These are patterns security tools monitor.

Rule categories (top 1): trojan-activity (8).

Sample rule descriptions for TCP port 488:

• MALWARE-BACKDOOR Win.Trojan.Wiper inbound communication attempt
• MALWARE-BACKDOOR Win.Trojan.Wiper outbound communication attempt
• MALWARE-BACKDOOR Win.Trojan.Wiper inbound communication attempt
• MALWARE-BACKDOOR Win.Trojan.Wiper outbound communication attempt
• ET MALWARE US-CERT TA14-353A Lightweight Backdoor 1

Malware Activity

Malware activity is frequently observed on this port.

8 of 8 IDS rules for TCP port 488 involve malware activity.

Families observed (top 2): US-CERT (4), Wiper (4).

Data Sources

This information is compiled from: IANA Service Name and Transport Protocol Port Number Registry, Emerging Threats Open Ruleset (BSD 2-Clause / GPLv2 per SID range), Snort Community Rules (GPLv2), and MITRE ATT&CK (Apache 2.0).