What have you tried: I reinstalled Kali Linux and performed a full system update using:
sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade
After rebooting, I noticed that the Applications menu was no longer in the usual Kali categories like “Information Gathering”, “Vulnerability Analysis”, or “Web Application Analysis”. Instead, it was grouped by MITRE ATT&CK techniques like “Reconnaissance”, “Privilege Escalation”, etc.
I checked Kali’s official website, GitLab, YouTube, and Reddit — but couldn’t find any proper documentation explaining why this happened or how to revert it.
Eventually, I discovered this is due to a change in Kali’s default menu layout which can be managed using the kali-tweaks tool.
What is the error: There’s no technical error, but this layout change is unexpected and undocumented, especially for beginners. Many users might think tools are missing or the system is broken.
How to remove the MITRE ATT&CK menu and restore the classic Kali menu:
- Open Terminal:
kali-tweaks
- If
kali-tweaksisn’t installed, use:
sudo apt install kali-tweaks
- In the Kali Tweaks interface:
- Go to “Kali Menu” section
- Select “Classic” menu layout instead of MITRE ATT&CK layout
- Apply the change
- Reboot or log out to apply the new menu.
What device is this on: What device is this on:
Lenovo V15 Laptop
AMD Ryzen 3 7320U – 8GB RAM – 512GB SSD
Why I’m posting this:
Because there is no clear mention of this behaviour in Kali’s changelogs, blog posts or docs, and it can confuse a lot of users — especially those new to penetration testing. I hope this post helps others who face the same situation.