huntrule

Windows conhost.exe Path Traversal in Process Command Line

Detects Windows conhost.exe command lines containing '/../../' path traversal indicators.

FreeReviewedSigma · High · v2
Product
windows
Category
process_creation
Author
Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published
2022-06-14
Updated
2026-07-31
AnalysisDetection

ATT&CK techniques

Execution

  1. Recon

  2. Resource Dev

  3. Initial Access

  4. Execution

  5. Persistence

  6. Priv Esc

  7. Defense Evasion

  8. Cred Access

  9. Discovery

  10. Lateral Movement

  11. Collection

  12. C2

  13. Exfiltration

  14. Impact

What it detects

This rule flags process creation events where conhost.exe appears in the parent command line and the child command line contains a path traversal sequence ('/../../'). Path traversal can indicate command/argument confusion that attackers may leverage to redirect execution or hijack arguments. Detection relies on process creation telemetry with parent and child command line fields.

Reporting behind it

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Windows conhost.exe Path Traversal in Process Command Line
Pivot detection · T1059.003 · 9 related

Changelog

v2
  1. v2
    Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
  2. 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.