Detect Regsvcs with Network Connection

name: Detect Regsvcs with Network Connection
id: e3e7a1c0-f2b9-445c-8493-f30a63522d1a
version: 13
date: '2026-03-10'
author: Michael Haag, Splunk
status: production
type: TTP
description: The following analytic identifies instances of Regsvcs.exe establishing a network connection to a public IP address, excluding private IP ranges. This detection leverages Sysmon EventID 3 logs to monitor network connections initiated by Regsvcs.exe. This activity is significant as Regsvcs.exe, a legitimate Microsoft-signed binary, can be exploited to bypass application control mechanisms and establish remote Command and Control (C2) channels. If confirmed malicious, this behavior could allow an attacker to escalate privileges, persist in the environment, and exfiltrate sensitive data. Immediate investigation and remediation are recommended.
data_source:
    - Sysmon EventID 3
search: |
    `sysmon`
    EventID=3
    NOT dest_ip IN (
      "10.0.0.0/8", "172.16.0.0/12", "192.168.0.0/16", "100.64.0.0/10",
      "127.0.0.0/8", "169.254.0.0/16", "192.0.0.0/24", "192.0.0.0/29", "192.0.0.8/32",
      "192.0.0.9/32", "192.0.0.10/32", "192.0.0.170/32", "192.0.0.171/32", "192.0.2.0/24",
      "192.31.196.0/24", "192.52.193.0/24", "192.88.99.0/24", "224.0.0.0/4", "192.175.48.0/24",
      "198.18.0.0/15", "198.51.100.0/24", "203.0.113.0/24", "240.0.0.0/4"
    )
    process_name=regsvcs.exe
    | stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime
      by action app dest dest_ip dest_port direction dvc protocol protocol_version src
         src_ip src_port transport user vendor_product process_name process_exec process_guid
         process_id
    | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)`
    | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`
    | `detect_regsvcs_with_network_connection_filter`
how_to_implement: To successfully implement this search, you need to be ingesting logs with the process name, parent process, and command-line executions from your endpoints. If you are using Sysmon, you must have at least version 6.0.4 of the Sysmon TA.
known_false_positives: Although unlikely, limited instances of regsvcs.exe may cause a false positive. Filter based endpoint usage, command line arguments, or process lineage.
references:
    - https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1218/009/
    - https://github.com/redcanaryco/atomic-red-team/blob/master/atomics/T1218.009/T1218.009.md
    - https://lolbas-project.github.io/lolbas/Binaries/Regsvcs/
drilldown_searches:
    - name: View the detection results for - "$user$" and "$dest$"
      search: '%original_detection_search% | search  user = "$user$" dest = "$dest$"'
      earliest_offset: $info_min_time$
      latest_offset: $info_max_time$
    - name: View risk events for the last 7 days for - "$user$" and "$dest$"
      search: '| from datamodel Risk.All_Risk | search normalized_risk_object IN ("$user$", "$dest$") starthoursago=168  | stats count min(_time) as firstTime max(_time) as lastTime values(search_name) as "Search Name" values(risk_message) as "Risk Message" values(analyticstories) as "Analytic Stories" values(annotations._all) as "Annotations" values(annotations.mitre_attack.mitre_tactic) as "ATT&CK Tactics" by normalized_risk_object | `security_content_ctime(firstTime)` | `security_content_ctime(lastTime)`'
      earliest_offset: $info_min_time$
      latest_offset: $info_max_time$
rba:
    message: An instance of $process_name$ contacting a remote destination was identified on endpoint $dest$ by user $user$. This behavior is not normal for $process_name$.
    risk_objects:
        - field: user
          type: user
          score: 50
        - field: dest
          type: system
          score: 50
    threat_objects:
        - field: process_name
          type: process_name
tags:
    analytic_story:
        - Suspicious Regsvcs Regasm Activity
        - Living Off The Land
        - Hellcat Ransomware
    asset_type: Endpoint
    mitre_attack_id:
        - T1218.009
    product:
        - Splunk Enterprise
        - Splunk Enterprise Security
        - Splunk Cloud
    security_domain: endpoint
tests:
    - name: True Positive Test
      attack_data:
        - data: https://media.githubusercontent.com/media/splunk/attack_data/master/datasets/attack_techniques/T1218.009/atomic_red_team/windows-sysmon.log
          source: XmlWinEventLog:Microsoft-Windows-Sysmon/Operational
          sourcetype: XmlWinEventLog