sigmamediumHunting

Portable Gpg.EXE Execution

Detects the execution of "gpg.exe" from uncommon location. Often used by ransomware and loaders to decrypt/encrypt data.

MITRE ATT&CK

T1486

impact

Detection Query

selection:
  - Image|endswith:
      - \gpg.exe
      - \gpg2.exe
  - OriginalFileName: gpg.exe
  - Description: GnuPG’s OpenPGP tool
filter_main_legit_location:
  Image|contains:
    - :\Program Files (x86)\GNU\GnuPG\bin\
    - :\Program Files (x86)\GnuPG VS-Desktop\
    - :\Program Files (x86)\GnuPG\bin\
    - :\Program Files (x86)\Gpg4win\bin\
condition: selection and not 1 of filter_main_*

Author

frack113, Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems)

Created

2023-08-06

Data Sources

windowsProcess Creation Events

Platforms

windows

References

Tags

attack.impactattack.t1486

Raw Content

title: Portable Gpg.EXE Execution
id: 77df53a5-1d78-4f32-bc5a-0e7465bd8f41
status: test
description: Detects the execution of "gpg.exe" from uncommon location. Often used by ransomware and loaders to decrypt/encrypt data.
references:
    - https://www.trendmicro.com/vinfo/vn/threat-encyclopedia/malware/ransom.bat.zarlock.a
    - https://securelist.com/locked-out/68960/
    - https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/blob/c4097dc7ed14d7f7d08c89d148c4307097e8c294/atomics/T1486/T1486.md
author: frack113, Nasreddine Bencherchali (Nextron Systems)
date: 2023-08-06
modified: 2023-11-10
tags:
    - attack.impact
    - attack.t1486
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection:
        - Image|endswith:
              - '\gpg.exe'
              - '\gpg2.exe'
        - OriginalFileName: 'gpg.exe'
        - Description: 'GnuPG’s OpenPGP tool'
    filter_main_legit_location:
        Image|contains:
            - ':\Program Files (x86)\GNU\GnuPG\bin\'
            - ':\Program Files (x86)\GnuPG VS-Desktop\'
            - ':\Program Files (x86)\GnuPG\bin\'
            - ':\Program Files (x86)\Gpg4win\bin\'
    condition: selection and not 1 of filter_main_*
level: medium