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NewActiveScriptEventConsumer Creation Attempt via Wmic.EXE

Detects the attempt to create an ActiveScriptEventConsumer via WMIC.EXE. An ActiveScriptEventConsumer is a built-in Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) class that automatically executes a predefined script (in VBScript or JScript) whenever a specific system event occurs. Adversaries often abuse ActiveScriptEventConsumer to maintain persistence on a compromised host by executing a malicious script whenever a specific event occurs.

MITRE ATT&CK

T1546.003

privilege-escalationpersistence

Detection Query

selection_img:
  - OriginalFileName: wmic.exe
  - Image|endswith: \WMIC.exe
selection_cli:
  CommandLine|contains|all:
    - ActiveScriptEventConsumer
    - " CREATE "
condition: all of selection_*

Author

Florian Roth (Nextron Systems)

Created

2021-06-25

Data Sources

windowsProcess Creation Events

Platforms

windows

References

Tags

attack.privilege-escalationattack.persistenceattack.t1546.003

Raw Content

title: NewActiveScriptEventConsumer Creation Attempt via Wmic.EXE
id: ebef4391-1a81-4761-a40a-1db446c0e625
status: test
description: |
    Detects the attempt to create an ActiveScriptEventConsumer via WMIC.EXE.
    An ActiveScriptEventConsumer is a built-in Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) class that
    automatically executes a predefined script (in VBScript or JScript) whenever a specific system event occurs.
    Adversaries often abuse ActiveScriptEventConsumer to maintain persistence on a compromised host by executing a malicious script whenever a specific event occurs.
references:
    - https://twitter.com/johnlatwc/status/1408062131321270282?s=12
    - https://www.fireeye.com/content/dam/fireeye-www/global/en/current-threats/pdfs/wp-windows-management-instrumentation.pdf
author: Florian Roth (Nextron Systems)
date: 2021-06-25
modified: 2026-06-19
tags:
    - attack.privilege-escalation
    - attack.persistence
    - attack.t1546.003
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection_img:
        - OriginalFileName: 'wmic.exe'
        - Image|endswith: '\WMIC.exe'
    selection_cli:
        CommandLine|contains|all:
            - 'ActiveScriptEventConsumer'
            - ' CREATE '
    condition: all of selection_*
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate software creating script event consumers
level: high