Possible PurpleFox MSHTA to Msiexec Remote MSI Chain

ATT&CK techniques

Defense Evasion → C2

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
- T1218.007Msiexec
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
- T1105Ingress Tool Transfer
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects msiexec.exe spawned by mshta.exe to install a remotely hosted MSI package often disguised as an image file. This execution chain matches the PurpleFox loader delivery observed in MSHTA abuse campaigns.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1105 — drag to rearrange

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Malicious Remote MSI Execution with Image Extension via msiexec (via process_creation)

Suspicious Msiexec Remote Package Installation from URL via Process Creation

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Windows msiexec Process Creation With Web URL Parameters

Suspicious node.exe Execution Spawned by PowerShell

Suspicious Executable Download to Temp Directory via curl on Linux

Possible PurpleFox MSHTA to Msiexec Remote MSI Chain

Pivot detection · T1105 · 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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