Detection rules › Sigma
Potential Mpclient.DLL Sideloading
Detects potential sideloading of "mpclient.dll" by Windows Defender processes ("MpCmdRun" and "NisSrv") from their non-default directory.
MITRE ATT&CK coverage
| Tactic | Techniques |
|---|---|
| Execution | T1574.001 Hijack Execution Flow: DLL |
| Stealth | T1574.001 Hijack Execution Flow: DLL |
Event coverage
| Provider | Event | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Sysmon | Event ID 7 | Image loaded |
Rule body yaml
title: Potential Mpclient.DLL Sideloading
id: 418dc89a-9808-4b87-b1d7-e5ae0cb6effc
related:
- id: 7002aa10-b8d4-47ae-b5ba-51ab07e228b9
type: similar
status: test
description: Detects potential sideloading of "mpclient.dll" by Windows Defender processes ("MpCmdRun" and "NisSrv") from their non-default directory.
references:
- https://www.sentinelone.com/blog/living-off-windows-defender-lockbit-ransomware-sideloads-cobalt-strike-through-microsoft-security-tool
author: Bhabesh Raj
date: 2022-08-02
modified: 2023-08-04
tags:
- attack.privilege-escalation
- attack.persistence
- attack.execution
- attack.stealth
- attack.t1574.001
logsource:
product: windows
category: image_load
detection:
selection:
ImageLoaded|endswith: '\mpclient.dll'
Image|endswith:
- '\MpCmdRun.exe'
- '\NisSrv.exe'
filter_main_known_locations:
Image|startswith:
- 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Defender\'
- 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Security Client\'
- 'C:\Program Files\Windows Defender\'
- 'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Platform\'
- 'C:\Windows\WinSxS\'
condition: selection and not 1 of filter_main_*
falsepositives:
- Unlikely
level: high
Stages and Predicates
Stage 0: condition
selection and not 1 of filter_main_*Stage 1: selection
selection:
ImageLoaded|endswith: '\mpclient.dll'
Image|endswith:
- '\MpCmdRun.exe'
- '\NisSrv.exe'
Stage 2: not filter_main_known_locations
filter_main_known_locations:
Image|startswith:
- 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Defender\'
- 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Security Client\'
- 'C:\Program Files\Windows Defender\'
- 'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Platform\'
- 'C:\Windows\WinSxS\'
Exclusions
Top-level NOT(...) conjuncts: predicates this rule actively suppresses.
| Field | Kind | Excluded values |
|---|---|---|
Image | starts_with | C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Defender\ |
Image | starts_with | C:\Program Files\Microsoft Security Client\ |
Image | starts_with | C:\Program Files\Windows Defender\ |
Image | starts_with | C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Platform\ |
Image | starts_with | C:\Windows\WinSxS\ |
Indicators
Each row is a field, operator, and value that the rule matches. The corpus column counts how many other rules in the catalog look for the same combination: high numbers point to widely-used, community-vetted indicators. Blank or 1 shows that the indicator is specific to this rule.
| Field | Kind | Values |
|---|---|---|
Image | ends_with |
|
ImageLoaded | ends_with |
|