Malicious Linux Cryptominer Masquerading as systemd-logind via var tmp Execution

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Product
linux
Category
process_creation
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-07-21
Updated
2026-08-28

ATT&CK techniques

Impact
  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

What it detects

This rule detects a process executing from /var/tmp/systemd-logind, a Linux cryptominer masquerading as the legitimate systemd-logind daemon which normally runs from /usr/lib/systemd. It was observed in a Huntress-investigated intrusion where a Monero miner beaconed to a mining pool over port 443. Execution of a trusted daemon name from a world-writable temporary directory indicates resource-hijacking malware attempting to evade casual process review.

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Malicious Linux Cryptominer Masquerading as systemd-logind via var tmp Execution
Pivot detection · T1496 · 9 related

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