Windows Service Installation: PDQDeployRunner Remote Service Creation (Service Control Manager)

Flags new Windows services installed with PDQDeployRunner-* naming via Service Control Manager event 7045.

FreeReviewedSigma · Medium · v2

Product: windows
Service: system
Author: Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published: 2022-07-22
Updated: 2026-07-31

ATT&CK techniques

Persistence → Priv Esc

Recon
Resource Dev
Initial Access
Execution
Persistence
- T1543.003Windows Service
Priv Esc
- T1543.003Windows Service
Defense Evasion
Cred Access
Discovery
Lateral Movement
Collection
C2
Exfiltration
Impact

What it detects

This rule identifies Windows service creation events where a new service is installed with a name starting with "PDQDeployRunner-" and the corresponding image path contains "PDQDeployRunner-". Attackers can use PDQDeploy to deploy packages that install a remote runner service on the target host for persistence or elevated execution. It relies on System service control manager telemetry (EventID 7045) containing the created service name and image path.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1543.003 — drag to rearrange

Malicious Abyss Locker wmihelper SSH Backdoor Deployment (via file_event)

Malicious AuKill EDR Killer Kernel Driver Load via Process Explorer Driver (via image_load)

Suspicious TermService ServiceDll Hijack via Registry (via registry_set)

Suspicious Service Creation Named RDP-Controller via sc.exe (via process_creation)

Suspicious Service or Task Named windowsinspectionupdate (via process_creation)

Malicious Service Persistence via sc.exe Creating msdnetsvc

Suspicious Stately Taurus Masqueraded Service and Task Persistence via process_creation

Malicious Vulnerable Driver Load for EDR Evasion (via image_load)

Malicious Gelsemium OwlProxy wmipd DLL Load via image_load

Windows Service Installation: PDQDeployRunner Remote Service Creation (Service Control Manager)

Pivot detection · T1543.003 · 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-service-control-manager-pdqdeployrunner-service-installation-pdqdeploy-b98a10af

title: "Windows Service Installation: PDQDeployRunner Remote Service Creation (Service Control Manager)"
id: 638b26d5-5d04-4362-8248-824da307f210
status: test
description: This rule identifies Windows service creation events where a new service is installed with a name starting with "PDQDeployRunner-" and the corresponding image path contains "PDQDeployRunner-". Attackers can use PDQDeploy to deploy packages that install a remote runner service on the target host for persistence or elevated execution. It relies on System service control manager telemetry (EventID 7045) containing the created service name and image path.
references:
  - https://documentation.pdq.com/PDQDeploy/13.0.3.0/index.html?windows-services.htm
  - https://github.com/SigmaHQ/sigma/blob/master/rules/windows/builtin/system/service_control_manager/win_system_service_install_pdqdeploy_runner.yml
author: Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems), Huntrule Team
date: 2022-07-22
tags:
  - attack.persistence
  - attack.privilege-escalation
  - attack.t1543.003
logsource:
  product: windows
  service: system
detection:
  selection_root:
    Provider_Name: Service Control Manager
    EventID: 7045
  selection_service:
    - ImagePath|contains: PDQDeployRunner-
    - ServiceName|startswith: PDQDeployRunner-
  condition: all of selection_*
falsepositives:
  - Legitimate use of the tool
level: medium
license: DRL-1.1
related:
  - id: b98a10af-1e1e-44a7-bab2-4cc026917648
    type: derived

Convert

This rule as a query you can run. Uses no unlock credit.

SplunkSPL