Windows cmd.exe Reads Input from STDIN Using '<' Redirection

Flags cmd.exe invocations with '<' in the command line, indicating stdin/input redirection.

FreeReviewedSigma · Medium · v2

Product: windows
Category: process_creation
Author: frack113, Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published: 2023-03-07
Updated: 2026-07-31

ATT&CK techniques

Execution

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
- T1059.003Windows Command Shell
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule flags Windows process creations where cmd.exe is launched with a command line containing the '<' redirection operator. Such usage can indicate reading data or redirecting input from a file, which may be leveraged to run or influence commands indirectly. It relies on process creation telemetry, specifically the image name/path and the full command line containing '<'.

Reporting behind it

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Windows cmd.exe Reads Input from STDIN Using '<' Redirection

Pivot detection · T1059.003 · 9 related

Changelog

v2
Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
v1
No changelog recorded for this version.2026-07-30

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

windows-cmd-exe-reads-redirected-input-from-stdin-using-operator-241e802a

title: Windows cmd.exe Reads Input from STDIN Using '<' Redirection
id: 21fe1239-2ebb-4576-9b0b-b96ab7ce40f8
related:
  - id: 00a4bacd-6db4-46d5-9258-a7d5ebff4003
    type: obsolete
  - id: 241e802a-b65e-484f-88cd-c2dc10f9206d
    type: derived
status: test
description: This rule flags Windows process creations where cmd.exe is launched with a command line containing the '<' redirection operator. Such usage can indicate reading data or redirecting input from a file, which may be leveraged to run or influence commands indirectly. It relies on process creation telemetry, specifically the image name/path and the full command line containing '<'.
references:
  - https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/blob/40b77d63808dd4f4eafb83949805636735a1fd15/atomics/T1059.003/T1059.003.md
  - https://web.archive.org/web/20220306121156/https://www.x86matthew.com/view_post?id=ntdll_pipe
  - https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/master/rules/windows/process_creation/proc_creation_win_cmd_stdin_redirect.yml
author: frack113, Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems), Huntrule Team
date: 2023-03-07
tags:
  - attack.execution
  - attack.t1059.003
logsource:
  category: process_creation
  product: windows
detection:
  selection_cmd:
    - OriginalFileName: Cmd.Exe
    - Image|endswith: \cmd.exe
  selection_cli:
    CommandLine|contains: <
  condition: all of selection_*
falsepositives:
  - Unknown
level: medium
license: DRL-1.1

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