Malicious Run Key Persistence Masquerading as VCRuntime or Edge Update

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Product
windows
Category
registry_set
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-10-11
Updated
2026-10-11

ATT&CK techniques

Persistence → Priv Esc
  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Execution

  5. Defense Evasion

  6. Cred Access

  7. Discovery

  8. Lateral Movement

  9. Collection

  10. C2

  11. Exfiltration

  12. Impact

What it detects

This rule detects Run key persistence values named VCRuntineSync or EdgeCriticalUpdateService. The Horns and Hooves campaign used these fake autorun entries, including the misspelled VCRuntineSync, to relaunch the NetSupport client at logon while imitating legitimate software.

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Malicious Run Key Persistence Masquerading as VCRuntime or Edge Update
Pivot detection · T1547.001 · 9 related

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