Malicious Rundll32 Executing Image File as DLL

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Category
process_creation
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-10-29
Updated
2026-10-29

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 rundll32.exe being pointed at a file with an image extension such as jpg and invoking an export which the OneNote to ransomware actor used to run an IcedID payload disguised as a picture and this matters because a picture file being loaded as a DLL by rundll32 is a reliable masquerading indicator with no legitimate equivalent.

Related detections9 linkedT1218.011 — drag to rearrange
Suspicious Scheduled Task Executing Rundll32 DLL Export by Ordinal
Malicious Renamed Rundll32 Copied to Temp via Xcopy
Suspicious rundll32 Executing DLL from ProgramData (via process_creation)
Suspicious Rundll32 Loading DLL From Public or ProgramData Path via Process Creation (via process_creation)
Malicious LSASS Credential Dump via Rundll32 Comsvcs MiniDump via Process Creation (via process_creation)
Suspicious Rundll32 Execution Without a DLL Reference via Process Creation (via process_creation)
Suspicious WebDAV Retrieval via rundll32 and davclnt.dll (via process_creation)
Suspicious Rundll32 Execution with Latrodectus Loader Exports (via process_creation)
Suspicious Rundll32 Execution with IcedID Loader Export (via process_creation)
Malicious Rundll32 Executing Image File as DLL
Pivot detection · T1218.011 · 9 related

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