Suspicious WarzoneRAT Script Execution from Excel via Windows Script Host

ATT&CK techniques

Execution

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule detects Microsoft Excel spawning the Windows Script Host to execute a JScript or VBScript file. This behavior is associated with WarzoneRAT delivery where a malicious Excel document launches Update.js through wscript. Attackers abuse this office-to-script chain to gain initial code execution and stage further payloads.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1204.002 — drag to rearrange

Windows AppLocker Audit-Only Events Indicating What Would Be Blocked in Enforce Mode

Windows AppLocker Blocked Application, Script, MSI, or Packaged-App Execution

Suspicious Windows Script Host Execution of JavaScript from Temporary Archive Extraction Folder (via process_creation)

Suspicious WScript VBS Execution from Temp Directory in CVE-2023-36884 Exploit Chain

Malicious Script Execution via Cisco AnyConnect OnConnect Handler Abuse

Suspicious Office Application Spawning Script Interpreter

Suspicious Script Host Spawned by cmd for DarkGate Execution

Suspicious Script Interpreter Executing JavaScript from Temp Folder

Suspicious Double-Extension PDF JavaScript Lure via WScript (via process_creation)

Suspicious WarzoneRAT Script Execution from Excel via Windows Script Host

Pivot detection · T1204.002 · 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 →