Malicious DLL Registration via regsvr32 Loading prnfldr (via process_creation)

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Category
process_creation
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-10-26
Updated
2026-10-26

ATT&CK techniques

Defense Evasion
  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Execution

  5. Persistence

  6. Priv Esc

  7. Defense Evasion

  8. Cred Access

  9. Discovery

  10. Lateral Movement

  11. Collection

  12. C2

  13. Exfiltration

  14. Impact

What it detects

This rule detects regsvr32.exe registering the prnfldr.dll payload using the silent install flags. In Operation Phantom Net Voxel APT28 executes its loader DLL through regsvr32 with the /n /i options to run code while bypassing application controls. Regsvr32 loading this named DLL is characteristic of the campaign proxy execution.

Related detections9 linkedT1218.010 — drag to rearrange
Suspicious Regsvr32 Execution of SafePay Loader DLL
Suspicious Scheduled Task Running Regsvr32 with Extreme Duration by StaryDobry
Malicious DynamicWrapperX Registration via regsvr32 (via process_creation)
Suspicious Run Key Persistence Executing regsvr32
Suspicious regsvr32 Registering DLL from User AppData
Malicious Regsvr32 Loading Masqueraded VPN DLL via Process Creation
Malicious Regsvr32 ShellExec_RunDLL Proxy Execution (via process_creation)
Suspicious DLL Execution via Regsvr32 DllInstall of dat File
Malicious Xctdoor XcLoader Execution via Regsvr32 AppX Path Abuse (via process_creation)
Malicious DLL Registration via regsvr32 Loading prnfldr (via process_creation)
Pivot detection · T1218.010 · 9 related

Detection content is published as a reviewed draft. Tune thresholds and exclusions against your own telemetry before enabling this rule for alerting.