Malicious UAC Bypass via ICMLuaUtil COM Elevation via process_creation

ATT&CK techniques

Priv Esc → Defense Evasion

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
Priv Esc
- T1548.002Bypass User Account Control
Defense Evasion
- T1548.002Bypass User Account Control
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects the auto-elevating COM object ICMLuaUtil being invoked through dllhost.exe to bypass User Account Control, a technique used by the REMCOS RAT for silent privilege escalation. The malware leverages the CMSTPLUA elevation moniker to execute commands with administrative rights without prompting the user. This behavior is a reliable indicator of UAC bypass activity.

Reporting behind it

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Malicious UAC Bypass via ICMLuaUtil COM Elevation via process_creation

Pivot detection · T1548.002 · 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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