Suspicious Scheduled Task Launching svczHost Masquerading Binary via schtasks

ATT&CK techniques

Execution → Priv Esc

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
- T1053.005Scheduled Task
Persistence
- T1053.005Scheduled Task
Priv Esc
- T1053.005Scheduled Task
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects schtasks creating a task that runs svczHost.exe, a masquerading binary imitating the legitimate svchost service name used for persistence in the Ducktail campaign. Attackers pick a lookalike host name so the scheduled task and running process blend into normal system activity.

Reporting behind it

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Suspicious Scheduled Task Launching svczHost Masquerading Binary via schtasks

Pivot detection · T1053.005 · 9 related

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

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