Detection rules › Sigma
Potentially Suspicious Rundll32.EXE Execution of UDL File
Detects the execution of rundll32.exe with the oledb32.dll library to open a UDL file. Threat actors can abuse this technique as a phishing vector to capture authentication credentials or other sensitive data.
Known false positives
- UDL files serve as a convenient and flexible tool for managing and testing database connections in various development and administrative scenarios.
MITRE ATT&CK coverage
| Tactic | Techniques |
|---|---|
| Stealth | |
| Command & Control |
Telemetry coverage
| Provider | Record / event type |
|---|---|
| Sysmon | Event ID 1: Process creation |
Rule body
title: Potentially Suspicious Rundll32.EXE Execution of UDL File
id: 0ea52357-cd59-4340-9981-c46c7e900428
status: test
description: |
Detects the execution of rundll32.exe with the oledb32.dll library to open a UDL file.
Threat actors can abuse this technique as a phishing vector to capture authentication credentials or other sensitive data.
references:
- https://trustedsec.com/blog/oops-i-udld-it-again
author: '@kostastsale'
date: 2024-08-16
tags:
- attack.execution
- attack.command-and-control
- attack.stealth
- attack.t1218.011
- attack.t1071
logsource:
category: process_creation
product: windows
detection:
selection_parent:
ParentImage|endswith: '\explorer.exe'
selection_img:
- Image|endswith: '\rundll32.exe'
- OriginalFileName: 'RUNDLL32.EXE'
selection_cli:
CommandLine|contains|all:
- 'oledb32.dll'
- ',OpenDSLFile '
- '\\Users\\*\\Downloads\\' # Note: You can adjust the path to the download directory or other directories according to your environment.
CommandLine|endswith: '.udl'
condition: all of selection_*
falsepositives:
- UDL files serve as a convenient and flexible tool for managing and testing database connections in various development and administrative scenarios.
level: medium
Stages and Predicates
Stage 0: condition
all of selection_*Stage 1: selection_parent
selection_parent:
ParentImage|endswith: '\explorer.exe'
Stage 2: selection_img
selection_img:
- Image|endswith: '\rundll32.exe'
- OriginalFileName: 'RUNDLL32.EXE'
Stage 3: selection_cli
selection_cli:
CommandLine|contains|all:
- 'oledb32.dll'
- ',OpenDSLFile '
- '\\Users\\*\\Downloads\\'
CommandLine|endswith: '.udl'
Indicators
These rows show field, operator, and value matches.
| Field | Kind | Values | Search |
|---|---|---|---|
CommandLine | ends_with |
| field:"CommandLine" kind:ends_with value:".udl" |
CommandLine | match |
| field:"CommandLine" kind:match |
Image | ends_with |
| field:"Image" kind:ends_with value:"\rundll32.exe" |
OriginalFileName | eq |
| field:"OriginalFileName" kind:eq value:"RUNDLL32.EXE" |
ParentImage | ends_with |
| field:"ParentImage" kind:ends_with value:"\explorer.exe" |