Suspicious osascript Spawning Shell Executing Hidden macOS Payload via Axios Compromise

ATT&CK techniques

Execution → Defense Evasion

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
- T1059.002AppleScript
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
- T1036.005Match Legitimate Resource Name or Location
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects osascript dispatching a shell that executes a hidden payload located under Library Caches as observed in the macOS variant of the Axios supply chain RAT. Attackers use AppleScript to launch a persistent implant while evading command line inspection, marking early stage execution on developer endpoints.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1036.005 — drag to rearrange

Malicious Renamed PowerShell as wt.exe in ProgramData via Axios Compromise

Malicious Masquerading TiWorker Spawning PowerShell Downloader via process_creation

Suspicious Print Filter Pipeline Host Running Outside System32 via Process Creation

Malicious TELEPUZ DLL Persistence via Masqueraded Loader in User Path

Malicious Fseventsd Masquerade in Users Shared Directory via File Event

Malicious TALONITE GUP.exe Proxy Masquerading as Notepad++ Updater (via process_creation)

Scheduled Task Masquerading as Microsoft Wininet Config

Suspicious ALPHA SPIDER Rclone Exfiltration Tool Masquerading as System Binary (via process_creation)

Suspicious Axios NPM macOS Persistence Masquerading as Apple Service

Suspicious osascript Spawning Shell Executing Hidden macOS Payload via Axios Compromise

Pivot detection · T1036.005 · 9 related

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

Full detection rule

Unlock this rule to view and copy it

The detection logic is included with a plan. Everything else — context, mappings and implementation details — stays free on this page.

Sign in for 3 free unlocks

Signing in gives you 3 unlocks to spend on any rule in the library. No card, and they do not expire.

Also included

Unlocked rules convert on this page — to Splunk SPL or Splunk — Raw Index SPL or Microsoft Sentinel KQL or Microsoft Sentinel ASIM ASIM KQL or Microsoft Defender XDR KQL or Elastic Security KQL or Elastic Security Lucene or Elastic Security ES|QL or CrowdStrike Falcon CQL or SentinelOne PowerQuery or Palo Alto Cortex XDR XQL or Carbon Black Cloud Platform Search or Carbon Black EDR Process Search or Google Security Operations UDM Search or IBM QRadar AQL or Sumo Logic Cloud SIEM Rules expression or Rapid7 InsightIDR LEQL or Graylog Search or OpenSearch Lucene or OpenSearch PPL PPL or Grafana Loki LogQL or SQLite SQL or Zircolite SQLite — with the log-source profile the engine picked, the field map it used, and everything it could not express. Converting a rule you have unlocked costs no further credit.

See it run on a free rule →Convert your own rule →