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Suspicious Windows Defender Folder Exclusion Added Via Reg.EXE

Detects the usage of "reg.exe" to add Defender folder exclusions. Qbot has been seen using this technique to add exclusions for folders within AppData and ProgramData.

MITRE ATT&CK

T1685

Detection Query

selection:
  Image|endswith: \reg.exe
  CommandLine|contains:
    - SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Exclusions\Paths
    - SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft Antimalware\Exclusions\Paths
  CommandLine|contains|all:
    - "ADD "
    - "/t "
    - "REG_DWORD "
    - "/v "
    - "/d "
    - "0"
condition: selection

Author

frack113

Created

2022-02-13

Data Sources

windowsProcess Creation Events

Platforms

windows

References

Tags

attack.defense-impairmentattack.t1685

Raw Content

title: Suspicious Windows Defender Folder Exclusion Added Via Reg.EXE
id: 48917adc-a28e-4f5d-b729-11e75da8941f
status: test
description: Detects the usage of "reg.exe" to add Defender folder exclusions. Qbot has been seen using this technique to add exclusions for folders within AppData and ProgramData.
references:
    - https://thedfirreport.com/2022/02/07/qbot-likes-to-move-it-move-it/
    - https://redcanary.com/threat-detection-report/threats/qbot/
author: frack113
date: 2022-02-13
modified: 2023-02-04
tags:
    - attack.defense-impairment
    - attack.t1685
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection:
        Image|endswith: '\reg.exe'
        CommandLine|contains:
            - 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Exclusions\Paths'
            - 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft Antimalware\Exclusions\Paths'
        CommandLine|contains|all:
            - 'ADD '
            - '/t '
            - 'REG_DWORD '
            - '/v '
            - '/d '
            - '0'
    condition: selection
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use
level: medium