An independent investigation team based in Europe asks for the Event Search data to be...

In global incident response, timestamps are typically stored in the Falcon platform as Unix epoch time (UTC). To make this data readable and relevant to local investigators, the formatTime() function is used within Event Search to convert these raw numbers into human-readable strings. The timezone parameter is the specific argument required to adjust the output from the default UTC to a specific regional clock, such as Central European Summer Time.

While the format parameter defines how the date appears (e.g., YYYY-MM-DD), and locale might influence language-specific formatting (like month names), only the timezone parameter correctly offsets the hours based on geographic location and Daylight Saving Time rules. For a hunter, providing logs in the correct timezone is not just a matter of convenience; it is essential for correlating Falcon data with other local logs, such as physical badge access records or firewall logs that may be set to local time. Accurate time synchronization across different data sources is vital during the "reconstruction" phase of a hunt to ensure that the sequence of adversary events is perfectly aligned with the real-world timeline of the breach. Utilizing the timezone parameter ensures that the investigation team can accurately determine exactly when a malicious action occurred relative to their own working hours.

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