Suspicious Run Key Persistence Referencing Public or Default User Path

ATT&CK techniques

Persistence → Priv Esc

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
- T1547.001Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder
Priv Esc
- T1547.001Registry Run Keys / Startup Folder
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects creation of a CurrentVersion Run registry value whose data points to an executable staged under C:\Users\Public or the Default User profile. Ryuk ransomware drops its payload into these world-accessible directories and registers autorun persistence pointing there. Legitimate software rarely autoruns binaries from these locations, making this combination a high-confidence indicator.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1547.001 — drag to rearrange

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Suspicious Run Key Persistence Referencing Public or Default User Path

Pivot detection · T1547.001 · 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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