Security Analytics · Engineering Guide

Search Queries

Common search queries for Broadcom Security Analytics 8.2.7.

Introduction

This guide provides a collection of commonly used search queries for Broadcom Security Analytics 8.2.7. The examples are intended to help analysts quickly locate network sessions, files, and other artifacts during investigations.

Important

The search syntax documented in this guide applies specifically to Security Analytics version 8.2.7. Newer releases may introduce additional fields, modify existing syntax, or change search behavior. Always verify compatibility when using these searches on later versions.

Unless otherwise noted, all searches are performed from:

Analyze → Summary

Broadcom’s official documentation contains additional examples and search operators beyond those included here. This guide focuses on searches that are commonly useful during investigations and day-to-day operations.

Search Tips

Before diving into the examples, it helps to understand a few common operators.

Operator Description Example
= Exact match filename=invoice.pdf
~ Partial or wildcard-style match filename~invoice
!= Does not equal ipv4_address!=192.168.1.0/24
, Logical AND application_id=http, filename=test.exe

Field Note

Whenever possible, combine multiple search fields to reduce the number of returned sessions and improve search performance.


Searching for File Hashes

Search for files transferred across supported protocols using known cryptographic hashes.

Exact MD5

application_id=http md5_hash=<hash>

Partial MD5

application_id=http md5_hash~<partial_hash>

Exact SHA-1

sha1_hash=<hash>

Partial SHA-1

sha1_hash~<partial_hash>

Exact SHA-256

sha256_hash=<hash>

Partial SHA-256

sha256_hash~<partial_hash>

Field Note

Exact hash searches are useful when investigating indicators of compromise (IOCs) obtained from threat intelligence feeds, malware analysis, or incident response.


Searching for File Names

Search for files observed during network transfers.

Exact Filename

filename=<filename>

HTTP File Transfer

Search for a file downloaded over HTTP while excluding traffic from a known subnet.

tcp_port=80,
application_id=http,
ipv4_address!=<subnet_of_non_interest>,
filename=<filename>

Field Note

Excluding known internal subnets can significantly reduce noise when investigating downloads from external hosts.


Additional Resources

Broadcom maintains an extensive list of supported search operators and examples in the official documentation.

https://techdocs.broadcom.com/us/en/symantec-security-software/web-and-network-security/security-analytics/8-2-7/_analysis_home/bestP_searching.html