Detection rules › Sigma
Suspicious GUP Usage
Detects execution of the Notepad++ updater in a suspicious directory, which is often used in DLL side-loading attacks
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 1 | Process creation |
| Security-Auditing | Event ID 4688 | A new process has been created. |
Rule body yaml
title: Suspicious GUP Usage
id: 0a4f6091-223b-41f6-8743-f322ec84930b
status: test
description: Detects execution of the Notepad++ updater in a suspicious directory, which is often used in DLL side-loading attacks
references:
- https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2018/09/apt10-targeting-japanese-corporations-using-updated-ttps.html
author: Florian Roth (Nextron Systems)
date: 2019-02-06
modified: 2022-08-13
tags:
- attack.privilege-escalation
- attack.persistence
- attack.execution
- attack.stealth
- attack.t1574.001
logsource:
category: process_creation
product: windows
detection:
selection:
Image|endswith: '\GUP.exe'
filter_programfiles:
Image|endswith:
- '\Program Files\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
- '\Program Files (x86)\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
filter_user:
Image|contains: '\Users\'
Image|endswith:
- '\AppData\Local\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
- '\AppData\Roaming\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
condition: selection and not 1 of filter_*
falsepositives:
- Execution of tools named GUP.exe and located in folders different than Notepad++\updater
level: high
Stages and Predicates
Stage 0: condition
selection and not 1 of filter_*Stage 1: selection
selection:
Image|endswith: '\GUP.exe'
Stage 2: not filter_*
filter_programfiles:
Image|endswith:
- '\Program Files\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
- '\Program Files (x86)\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
filter_user:
Image|contains: '\Users\'
Image|endswith:
- '\AppData\Local\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
- '\AppData\Roaming\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe'
Exclusions
Top-level NOT(...) conjuncts: predicates this rule actively suppresses.
| Field | Kind | Excluded values |
|---|---|---|
Image | ends_with | \AppData\Local\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe |
Image | ends_with | \AppData\Roaming\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe |
Image | match | \Users\ |
Image | ends_with | \Program Files (x86)\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe |
Image | ends_with | \Program Files\Notepad++\updater\GUP.exe |
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 |
|