Sigma rule: Use of Pcalua For Execution

A detection rule from the SigmaHQ repository, shown as its author published it. Dataset version ref-ceead88e5c73, updated 2023-01-04T00:00:00.000Z.

Rule

Title
Use of Pcalua For Execution
Status
test
Level
medium
Author
Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems), E.M. Anhaus (originally from Atomic Blue Detections, Endgame), oscd.community
Date
2022-06-14
Modified
2023-01-04
File
rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_lolbin_pcalua.yml
Commit
ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84

Detects execition of commands and binaries from the context of The program compatibility assistant (Pcalua.exe). This can be used as a LOLBIN in order to bypass application whitelisting.

Log source

product
windows
category
process_creation

Detection

selection:
    Image|endswith: '\pcalua.exe'
    CommandLine|contains: ' -a' # No space after the flag because it accepts anything as long as there a "-a"
condition: selection

False positives (as the rule lists them)

  • Legitimate use by a via a batch script or by an administrator.

Tags

  • attack.execution
  • attack.t1059

MITRE ATT&CK ids this rule names

Related rules

References

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_lolbin_pcalua.yml

Sources and licences

  • SigmaHQ

    "Use of Pcalua For Execution" by Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems), E.M. Anhaus (originally from Atomic Blue Detections, Endgame), oscd.community (SigmaHQ). Rule: https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84/rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_lolbin_pcalua.yml.
    Licensed under the Detection Rule License (DRL) 1.1: https://github.com/SigmaHQ/Detection-Rule-License

    Detection Rule License (DRL) 1.1

Cite this page

Dragons Eye Ransomware Tracker, "Sigma rule: Use of Pcalua For Execution",
entity page, dataset version ref-ceead88e5c73, updated 2023-01-04T00:00:00.000Z,
https://ransomware-tracker.com/detections/sigma/0955e4e1-c281-4fb9-9ee1-5ee7b4b754d2 (accessed 2026-11-03).
Underlying source: SigmaHQ rule 0955e4e1-c281-4fb9-9ee1-5ee7b4b754d2, commit ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84.

Pages change. The dataset version identifies the data, but no archive of old versions is kept, so this citation cannot be replayed later.