Sigma rule: Malicious PowerShell Commandlets - ProcessCreation

Rule

Title

Malicious PowerShell Commandlets - ProcessCreation

Status

test

Level

high

Author

Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems)

Date

2023-01-02

Modified

2025-12-10

File

rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_powershell_malicious_cmdlets.yml

Commit

ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84

Detects Commandlet names from well-known PowerShell exploitation frameworks

Log source

product

windows

category

process_creation

Detection

selection:
    # Note: Please ensure alphabetical order when adding new entries
    CommandLine|contains:
        - 'Add-Exfiltration'
        - 'Add-Persistence'
        - 'Add-RegBackdoor'
        - 'Add-RemoteRegBackdoor'
        - 'Add-ScrnSaveBackdoor'
        - 'Check-VM'
        - 'ConvertTo-Rc4ByteStream'
        - 'Decrypt-Hash'
        - 'Disable-ADIDNSNode'
        - 'Disable-MachineAccount'
        - 'Do-Exfiltration'
        - 'Enable-ADIDNSNode'
        - 'Enable-MachineAccount'
        - 'Enabled-DuplicateToken'
        - 'Exploit-Jboss'
        - 'Export-ADR'
        - 'Export-ADRCSV'
        - 'Export-ADRExcel'
        - 'Export-ADRHTML'
        - 'Export-ADRJSON'
        - 'Export-ADRXML'
        - 'Find-Fruit'
        - 'Find-GPOLocation'
        - 'Find-TrustedDocuments'
        - 'Get-ADIDNS' # Covers: Get-ADIDNSNodeAttribute, Get-ADIDNSNodeOwner, Get-ADIDNSNodeTombstoned, Get-ADIDNSPermission, Get-ADIDNSZone
        - 'Get-ApplicationHost'
        - 'Get-ChromeDump'
        - 'Get-ClipboardContents'
        - 'Get-FoxDump'
        - 'Get-GPPPassword'
        - 'Get-IndexedItem'
        - 'Get-KerberosAESKey'
        - 'Get-Keystrokes'
        - 'Get-LSASecret'
        - 'Get-MachineAccountAttribute'
        - 'Get-MachineAccountCreator'
        - 'Get-PassHashes'
        - 'Get-RegAlwaysInstallElevated'
        - 'Get-RegAutoLogon'
        - 'Get-RemoteBootKey'
        - 'Get-RemoteCachedCredential'
        - 'Get-RemoteLocalAccountHash'
        - 'Get-RemoteLSAKey'
        - 'Get-RemoteMachineAccountHash'
        - 'Get-RemoteNLKMKey'
        - 'Get-RickAstley'
        - 'Get-Screenshot'
        - 'Get-SecurityPackages'
        - 'Get-ServiceFilePermission'
        - 'Get-ServicePermission'
        - 'Get-ServiceUnquoted'
        - 'Get-SiteListPassword'
        - 'Get-System'
        - 'Get-TimedScreenshot'
        - 'Get-UnattendedInstallFile'
        - 'Get-Unconstrained'
        - 'Get-USBKeystrokes'
        - 'Get-VaultCredential'
        - 'Get-VulnAutoRun'
        - 'Get-VulnSchTask'
        - 'Grant-ADIDNSPermission'
        - 'Gupt-Backdoor'
        - 'HTTP-Login'
        - 'Install-ServiceBinary'
        - 'Install-SSP'
        - 'Invoke-ACLScanner'
        - 'Invoke-ADRecon'
        - 'Invoke-ADSBackdoor'
        - 'Invoke-AgentSmith'
        - 'Invoke-AllChecks'
        - 'Invoke-ARPScan'
        - 'Invoke-AzureHound'
        - 'Invoke-BackdoorLNK'
        - 'Invoke-BadPotato'
        - 'Invoke-BetterSafetyKatz'
        - 'Invoke-BypassUAC'
        - 'Invoke-Carbuncle'
        - 'Invoke-Certify'
        - 'Invoke-ConPtyShell'
        - 'Invoke-CredentialInjection'
        - 'Invoke-DAFT'
        - 'Invoke-DCSync'
        - 'Invoke-DinvokeKatz'
        - 'Invoke-DllInjection'
        - 'Invoke-DNSUpdate'
        - 'Invoke-DNSExfiltrator'
        - 'Invoke-DomainPasswordSpray'
        - 'Invoke-DowngradeAccount'
        - 'Invoke-EgressCheck'
        - 'Invoke-Eyewitness'
        - 'Invoke-FakeLogonScreen'
        - 'Invoke-Farmer'
        - 'Invoke-Get-RBCD-Threaded'
        - 'Invoke-Gopher'
        - 'Invoke-Grouper' # Also Covers Invoke-GrouperX
        - 'Invoke-HandleKatz'
        - 'Invoke-ImpersonatedProcess'
        - 'Invoke-ImpersonateSystem'
        - 'Invoke-InteractiveSystemPowerShell'
        - 'Invoke-Internalmonologue'
        - 'Invoke-Inveigh'
        - 'Invoke-InveighRelay'
        - 'Invoke-KrbRelay'
        - 'Invoke-LdapSignCheck'
        - 'Invoke-Lockless'
        - 'Invoke-MalSCCM'
        - 'Invoke-Mimikatz'
        - 'Invoke-Mimikittenz'
        - 'Invoke-MITM6'
        - 'Invoke-NanoDump'
        - 'Invoke-NetRipper'
        - 'Invoke-Nightmare'
        - 'Invoke-NinjaCopy'
        - 'Invoke-OfficeScrape'
        - 'Invoke-OxidResolver'
        - 'Invoke-P0wnedshell'
        - 'Invoke-Paranoia'
        - 'Invoke-PortScan'
        - 'Invoke-PoshRatHttp' # Also Covers Invoke-PoshRatHttps
        - 'Invoke-PostExfil'
        - 'Invoke-PowerDump'
        - 'Invoke-PowerDPAPI'
        - 'Invoke-PowerShellTCP'
        - 'Invoke-PowerShellWMI'
        - 'Invoke-PPLDump'
        - 'Invoke-PsExec'
        - 'Invoke-PSInject'
        - 'Invoke-PsUaCme'
        - 'Invoke-ReflectivePEInjection'
        - 'Invoke-ReverseDNSLookup'
        - 'Invoke-Rubeus'
        - 'Invoke-RunAs'
        - 'Invoke-SafetyKatz'
        - 'Invoke-SauronEye'
        - 'Invoke-SCShell'
        - 'Invoke-Seatbelt'
        - 'Invoke-ServiceAbuse'
        - 'Invoke-ShadowSpray'
        - 'Invoke-Sharp' # Covers all "Invoke-Sharp" variants
        - 'Invoke-Shellcode'
        - 'Invoke-SMBScanner'
        - 'Invoke-Snaffler'
        - 'Invoke-Spoolsample'
        - 'Invoke-SpraySinglePassword'
        - 'Invoke-SSHCommand'
        - 'Invoke-StandIn'
        - 'Invoke-StickyNotesExtract'
        - 'Invoke-SystemCommand'
        - 'Invoke-Tasksbackdoor'
        - 'Invoke-Tater'
        - 'Invoke-Thunderfox'
        - 'Invoke-ThunderStruck'
        - 'Invoke-TokenManipulation'
        - 'Invoke-Tokenvator'
        - 'Invoke-TotalExec'
        - 'Invoke-UrbanBishop'
        - 'Invoke-UserHunter'
        - 'Invoke-VoiceTroll'
        - 'Invoke-Whisker'
        - 'Invoke-WinEnum'
        - 'Invoke-winPEAS'
        - 'Invoke-WireTap'
        - 'Invoke-WmiCommand'
        - 'Invoke-WMIExec'
        - 'Invoke-WScriptBypassUAC'
        - 'Invoke-Zerologon'
        - 'MailRaider'
        - 'New-ADIDNSNode'
        - 'New-DNSRecordArray'
        - 'New-HoneyHash'
        - 'New-InMemoryModule'
        - 'New-MachineAccount'
        - 'New-SOASerialNumberArray'
        - 'Out-Minidump'
        - 'Port-Scan'
        - 'PowerBreach'
        - 'powercat '
        - 'PowerUp'
        - 'PowerView'
        - 'Remove-ADIDNSNode'
        - 'Remove-MachineAccount'
        - 'Remove-Update'
        - 'Rename-ADIDNSNode'
        - 'Revoke-ADIDNSPermission'
        - 'Set-ADIDNSNode' # Covers: Set-ADIDNSNodeAttribute, Set-ADIDNSNodeOwner
        - 'Set-MacAttribute'
        - 'Set-MachineAccountAttribute'
        - 'Set-Wallpaper'
        - 'Show-TargetScreen'
        - 'Start-CaptureServer'
        - 'Start-Dnscat2'
        - 'Start-WebcamRecorder'
        - 'Veeam-Get-Creds'
        - 'VolumeShadowCopyTools'
condition: selection

False positives (as the rule lists them)

• Unknown

Tags

• attack.execution
• attack.discovery
• attack.t1482
• attack.t1087
• attack.t1087.001
• attack.t1087.002
• attack.t1069.001
• attack.t1069.002
• attack.t1069
• attack.t1059.001

MITRE ATT&CK ids this rule names

• T1059.001
• T1069
• T1069.001
• T1069.002
• T1087
• T1087.001
• T1087.002
• T1482

Related rules

• 89819aa4-bbd6-46bc-88ec-c7f7fe30efa6 (derived)
• 7d0d0329-0ef1-4e84-a9f5-49500f9d7c6c (similar)

References

• https://adsecurity.org/?p=2921
• https://github.com/S3cur3Th1sSh1t/PowerSharpPack/tree/master/PowerSharpBinaries
• https://github.com/BC-SECURITY/Invoke-ZeroLogon/blob/111d17c7fec486d9bb23387e2e828b09a26075e4/Invoke-ZeroLogon.ps1
• https://github.com/xorrior/RandomPS-Scripts/blob/848c919bfce4e2d67b626cbcf4404341cfe3d3b6/Get-DXWebcamVideo.ps1
• https://github.com/rvrsh3ll/Misc-Powershell-Scripts/blob/6f23bb41f9675d7e2d32bacccff75e931ae00554/OfficeMemScraper.ps1
• https://github.com/dafthack/DomainPasswordSpray/blob/b13d64a5834694aa73fd2aea9911a83027c465a7/DomainPasswordSpray.ps1
• https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/threat-assessment-black-basta-ransomware/
• https://research.nccgroup.com/2022/06/06/shining-the-light-on-black-basta/
• https://github.com/calebstewart/CVE-2021-1675
• https://github.com/BloodHoundAD/BloodHound/blob/0927441f67161cc6dc08a53c63ceb8e333f55874/Collectors/AzureHound.ps1
• https://bloodhound.readthedocs.io/en/latest/data-collection/azurehound.html
• https://github.com/HarmJ0y/DAMP
• https://github.com/samratashok/nishang
• https://github.com/DarkCoderSc/PowerRunAsSystem/
• https://github.com/besimorhino/powercat
• https://github.com/Kevin-Robertson/Powermad
• https://github.com/adrecon/ADRecon
• https://github.com/adrecon/AzureADRecon
• https://github.com/sadshade/veeam-creds/blob/6010eaf31ba41011b58d6af3950cffbf6f5cea32/Veeam-Get-Creds.ps1
• https://github.com/The-Viper-One/Invoke-PowerDPAPI/
• https://github.com/Arno0x/DNSExfiltrator/

Read on 2026-11-03T00:58:21.399Z under licence sigma-drl-1.1@d5f4c36a from https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84/rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_powershell_malicious_cmdlets.yml