Sub-technique of T1218 System Binary Proxy Execution.View on attack.mitre.org
Adversaries may abuse mmc.exe to proxy execution of malicious .msc files. Microsoft Management Console (MMC) is a binary that may be signed by Microsoft and is used in several ways in either its GUI or in a command prompt. MMC can be used to create, open, and save custom consoles that contain administrative tools created by Microsoft, called snap-ins. These snap-ins may be used to manage Windows systems locally or remotely. MMC can also be used to open Microsoft created .msc files to manage system configuration.
For example, mmc C:\Users\foo\admintools.msc /a will open a custom, saved console msc file in author mode. Another common example is mmc gpedit.msc, which will open the Group Policy Editor application window.
Adversaries may use MMC commands to perform malicious tasks. For example, mmc wbadmin.msc delete catalog -quiet deletes the backup catalog on the system (i.e. Inhibit System Recovery) without prompts to the user (Note: wbadmin.msc may only be present by default on Windows Server operating systems).
Adversaries may also abuse MMC to execute malicious .msc files. For example, adversaries may first create a malicious registry Class Identifier (CLSID) subkey, which uniquely identifies a Component Object Model class object. Then, adversaries may create custom consoles with the “Link to Web Address” snap-in that is linked to the malicious CLSID subkey. Once the .msc file is saved, adversaries may invoke the malicious CLSID payload with the following command: mmc.exe -Embedding C:\path\to\test.msc.
Rules on DetectionCode tagged with T1218.014.
| Rule | Level | Log source |
|---|---|---|
| MMC Executing Files with Reversed Extensions Using RTLO Abuse | high | windows / process_creation |
| MMC Loading Script Engines DLLs | medium | windows / image_load |
| Rule | Type | Risk | Data source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mmc LOLBAS Execution Process Spawn | TTP | NULL | Sysmon EventID 1, Windows Event Log Security 4688, CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2 |
| Possible Lateral Movement PowerShell Spawn | Anomaly | NULL | Sysmon EventID 1, CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2 |
| UAC Bypass MMC Load Unsigned Dll | TTP | NULL | Sysmon EventID 7 |
| Windows Execution of Microsoft MSC File In Suspicious Path | Anomaly | NULL | Sysmon EventID 1, Windows Event Log Security 4688, CrowdStrike ProcessRollup2 |
| Windows GrimResource - MMC Process Accessing APDS DLL | TTP | NULL | Windows Event Log Security 4663 |
| Windows Mock Trusted Directory MSC File Creation | TTP | NULL | Sysmon EventID 11 |
None recorded.
| Used by | Procedure example |
|---|---|
| GroupMedusa Group | Medusa Group has leveraged Microsoft Management Console (MMC) to facilitate lateral movement and to interact locally or remotely with victim devices using the command `mmc.exe compmgmt.msc /computer:{hostname/ip}`. |
| Used by | Procedure example |
|---|---|
| CampaignRedDelta Modified PlugX Infection Chain Operations | Mustang Panda used Microsoft Management Console Snap-In Control files, or MSC files, executed via MMC to run follow-on PowerShell commands during RedDelta Modified PlugX Infection Chain Operations. |
Data from MITRE ATT&CK® (Enterprise). ATT&CK® is a registered trademark of The MITRE Corporation.
