Suspicious Python Payload Execution from ProgramData via Pythonw (via process_creation)

PremiumReviewedSigma · Medium · v1
Product
windows
Category
process_creation
Author
HuntRule
Published
2026-06-17
Updated
2026-08-28

ATT&CK techniques

Execution
  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Persistence

  5. Priv Esc

  6. Defense Evasion

  7. Cred Access

  8. Discovery

  9. Lateral Movement

  10. Collection

  11. C2

  12. Exfiltration

  13. Impact

What it detects

This rule detects pythonw.exe executing a .pyw script staged under ProgramData, the loader behavior of the malicious PyPI packages that drop server.pyw to C ProgramData after installation. Running a windowless Python payload from ProgramData indicates supply-chain malware execution.

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