Suspicious Service Persistence via InstallUtil with Masqueraded Service Name

ATT&CK techniques

Persistence → Defense Evasion

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
- T1543.003Windows Service
Priv Esc
- T1543.003Windows Service
Defense Evasion
- T1218.004InstallUtil
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects InstallUtil.exe referencing the nhdService or WinDefUpd service names used by the ShellClient RAT in Operation GhostShell for persistence. Attackers install these masqueraded services so the RAT survives reboots and blends in with legitimate update services. The pairing of the InstallUtil proxy binary with these specific service names is a strong GhostShell indicator.

Reporting behind it

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Suspicious Service Persistence via InstallUtil with Masqueraded Service Name

Pivot detection · T1543.003 · 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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