Sigma rule: Sysinternals PsSuspend Suspicious Execution

A detection rule from the SigmaHQ repository, shown as its author published it. Dataset version ref-5d6a972773f0, updated 2026-06-29T00:00:00.000Z.

Rule

Title
Sysinternals PsSuspend Suspicious Execution
Status
test
Level
high
Author
Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems)
Date
2023-03-23
Modified
2026-06-29
File
rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_sysinternals_pssuspend_susp_execution.yml
Commit
ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84

Detects suspicious execution of Sysinternals PsSuspend, where the utility is used to suspend critical processes such as AV or EDR to bypass defenses

Log source

product
windows
category
process_creation

Detection

selection_img:
    - OriginalFileName: 'pssuspend.exe'
    - Image|endswith:
          - '\pssuspend.exe'
          - '\pssuspend64.exe'
          - '\pssuspend64a.exe'
selection_cli:
    # Add more interesting/critical processes
    CommandLine|contains: 'msmpeng.exe'
condition: all of selection_*

False positives (as the rule lists them)

  • Unlikely

Tags

  • attack.defense-impairment
  • attack.t1685

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_sysinternals_pssuspend_susp_execution.yml

Sources and licences

  • SigmaHQ

    "Sysinternals PsSuspend Suspicious Execution" by Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ). Rule: https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/ccbb0369507f796db0b0ae6854c8a2be471b9d84/rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_sysinternals_pssuspend_susp_execution.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: Sysinternals PsSuspend Suspicious Execution",
entity page, dataset version ref-5d6a972773f0, updated 2026-06-29T00:00:00.000Z,
https://ransomware-tracker.com/detections/sigma/4beb6ae0-f85b-41e2-8f18-8668abc8af78 (accessed 2026-11-03).
Underlying source: SigmaHQ rule 4beb6ae0-f85b-41e2-8f18-8668abc8af78, 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.