huntrule

Windows Process Creation: Suspicious Command-Line Path Traversal Evasion Strings

Flags Windows command-line strings that look like “..\” path traversal evasion attempts, excluding known Google Drive and Citrix launcher patterns.

FreeReviewedSigma · Medium · v1
Product
windows
Category
process_creation
Author
Christian Burkard (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published
2021-10-26
Updated
2026-07-30
AnalysisDetection

ATT&CK techniques

Defense Evasion

  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 identifies Windows process creation events where the command line contains suspicious traversal or obfuscation patterns resembling bogus “..\” sequences that reference Windows or System32 paths. Attackers may use these strings to evade naive path checks or influence how applications resolve file locations. It relies on process creation telemetry with both the process image path and the full command-line text.

Reporting behind it

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Suspicious Interlock Fake Updater Executable Execution
Malicious User Account Created by a Computer Account (via security)
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Windows Process Creation: Suspicious Command-Line Path Traversal Evasion Strings
Pivot detection · T1036 · 9 related

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