huntrule

Windows WerFault Access to lsass.exe Indicative of Credential Dumping Attempts

Alert on WerFault.exe gaining broad access to lsass.exe, consistent with credential dumping attempts.

FreeReviewedSigma · High · v2
Product
windows
Category
process_access
Author
Florian Roth (Nextron Systems) (SigmaHQ), DRL 1.1
Published
2012-06-27
Updated
2026-07-31
AnalysisDetection

ATT&CK techniques

Cred Access

  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 when WerFault.exe requests broad access (GrantedAccess 0x1FFFFF) to lsass.exe, which can indicate an attempt to obtain sensitive credentials from LSASS. Attackers may leverage crash-dump workflows to capture process memory without direct user-mode dump tooling. The detection relies on process access telemetry, specifically the SourceImage path ending in WerFault.exe, the TargetImage path ending in lsass.exe, and the granted access rights value.

Reporting behind it

Related detections9 linkedT1003.001 — drag to rearrange
Malicious WDigest Credential Caching Enabled via Registry (via registry_set)
Malicious Credential Dumping via Mimikatz Sekurlsa Command
Malicious Mimikatz Sekurlsa Logonpasswords Credential Dump
Malicious LSASS Credential Dump via ProcDump (via process_creation)
Malicious LSASS Memory Dump via comsvcs.dll by Salt Typhoon
Malicious LSASS Dump via Process Access (via process_access)
Malicious LSASS Credential Dump with LSASSY - Process (via process_creation)
Malicious LSASS Credential Dump with LSASSY - Admin Share (via security)
Malicious Task Manager Used for LSASS Dump - Kernel (via security)
Windows WerFault Access to lsass.exe Indicative of Credential Dumping Attempts
Pivot detection · T1003.001 · 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.