Malicious Rundll32 notepad2 DLL Proxy Execution

ATT&CK techniques

Defense Evasion

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
- T1218.011Rundll32
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects rundll32 loading notepad2.dll and invoking its notepad export, the proxy-execution technique used by the spyware in the Pakistan dating-app campaign. Naming the malicious DLL and export after Notepad disguises code execution as a benign editor, so this specific invocation reveals the loader.

Reporting behind it

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Malicious Rundll32 notepad2 DLL Proxy Execution

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.

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