huntrule

Windows Registry: EnablePeriodicBackup value set for periodic system hive backups

Alerts on enabling the Windows registry setting that triggers periodic system hive backups to RegBack on restarts.

FreeReviewedSigma · Medium · v1
Product
windows
Category
registry_set
Author
Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published
2024-07-01
Updated
2026-07-30
AnalysisDetection

ATT&CK techniques

Collection

  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 detects when the registry value EnablePeriodicBackup is enabled under Control\Session Manager\Configuration Manager, setting it to DWORD 0x00000001. When enabled, Windows can back up system registry hives on restarts into C:\Windows\System32\config\RegBack and manages follow-on backups via the RegIdleBackup scheduled task. Attackers may leverage this to capture registry state over time, so registry write telemetry is critical for monitoring changes to this setting.

Reporting behind it

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Windows Registry: EnablePeriodicBackup value set for periodic system hive backups
Pivot detection · T1113 · 9 related

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