Malicious Node.js Process Spawning Unix Shell or Network Client

ATT&CK techniques

Initial Access → Execution

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
- T1190Exploit Public-Facing Application
Execution
- T1059.004Unix Shell
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects a Node.js server process spawning a Unix shell, curl, or wget, a strong indicator of remote code execution against a web application. This behavior was central to CVE-2025-55182 React2Shell exploitation of React Server Components where the crafted Next-Action request drove child_process execution. Web application runtimes should not normally launch interactive shells or downloaders, so this lineage signals hands-on-keyboard post-exploitation.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1059.004 — drag to rearrange

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Malicious Node.js Process Spawning Unix Shell or Network Client

Pivot detection · T1059.004 · 9 related

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