Windows Remote Thread Creation via rundll32 Triggered by wab*, wabmig, or ImagingDevices
Alerts on remote thread creation targeting rundll32.exe from wab* or ImagingDevices.exe process images on Windows.
- Product
- windows
- Category
- create_remote_thread
- Author
- Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
- Published
- 2022-09-27
- Updated
- 2026-07-31
ATT&CK techniques
Execution → Defense EvasionRecon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
Priv Esc
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact
What it detects
This rule identifies remote thread creation events where the target process ends with rundll32.exe and the initiating process ends with wabmig.exe, wab.exe, or ImagingDevices.exe. Remote thread injection is commonly used to run code in another process while hiding activity from straightforward process monitoring. The detection relies on process image path suffixes for the source and target in Windows remote thread creation telemetry.
Reporting behind it
Changelog
v5- v5Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
- v4Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
- v3Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
- v2Candidate ingested via manual entry.2026-07-31
- v1No 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.
title: Windows Remote Thread Creation via rundll32 Triggered by wab*, wabmig, or ImagingDevices
id: 12e17dcf-074b-42e0-8bb2-57ac17fdb2fa
status: test
description: This rule identifies remote thread creation events where the target process ends with rundll32.exe and the initiating process ends with wabmig.exe, wab.exe, or ImagingDevices.exe. Remote thread injection is commonly used to run code in another process while hiding activity from straightforward process monitoring. The detection relies on process image path suffixes for the source and target in Windows remote thread creation telemetry.
references:
- https://thedfirreport.com/2022/09/26/bumblebee-round-two/
- https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/master/rules-emerging-threats/2022/Malware/Bumblebee/create_remote_thread_win_malware_bumblebee.yml
author: Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems), Huntrule Team
date: 2022-09-27
tags:
- attack.execution
- attack.stealth
- attack.t1218.011
- attack.t1059.001
- detection.emerging-threats
logsource:
product: windows
category: create_remote_thread
detection:
selection:
SourceImage|endswith:
- \wabmig.exe
- \wab.exe
- \ImagingDevices.exe
TargetImage|endswith: \rundll32.exe
condition: selection
falsepositives:
- Unknown
level: high
license: DRL-1.1
related:
- id: 994cac2b-92c2-44bf-8853-14f6ca39fbda
type: derived