Suspicious EACoreServer Masquerading as WindowsUpdate Executable (via process_creation)

PremiumReviewedSigma · High · v1
Product
windows
Category
process_creation
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-10-19
Updated
2026-10-19

ATT&CK techniques

Defense Evasion
  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Execution

  5. Persistence

  6. Priv Esc

  7. Cred Access

  8. Discovery

  9. Lateral Movement

  10. Collection

  11. C2

  12. Exfiltration

  13. Impact

What it detects

This rule detects a process launched as WindowsUpdate.exe whose original file name is EACoreServer.exe, the renaming trick a Chinese APT used to disguise a legitimate signed binary as a Windows update component for sideloading. The mismatch between the on disk name and the embedded original name exposes the masquerade, distinguishing it from genuine update processes.

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Pivot detection · T1036.004 · 9 related

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