{
  "family": "hideproc",
  "sample_count": 5,
  "category": "trojan",
  "description": "Rootkit:Win32/Hideproc (or generic process hiding tool) is a highly sophisticated, kernel-level rootkit component designed to completely conceal the presence of malicious processes, files, and network connections from the Windows operating system and its security tools. It acts as an invisibility cloak for other malware, allowing devastating payloads (like banking trojans or advanced RATs) to operate unseen by standard antivirus and EDR solutions.<br><br><b>Understanding Rootkits and Hideproc</b><br>To an end-user, a machine infected with Hideproc and its accompanying payload might run perfectly normally, or exhibit unexplained sluggishness. For a SOC analyst, a kernel rootkit is a worst-case scenario. It subverts the very foundation of trust on the endpoint. If the operating system's kernel is compromised, no information reported by the Task Manager, Registry Editor, or standard AV engine can be trusted.<br><br><b>Execution and Evasion Strategies</b><br>Hideproc typically requires the attacker to have already escalated privileges to SYSTEM (`T1548.002`), often using an exploit or a UAC bypass. Once elevated, the malware loads a malicious driver (`.sys` file) into the Windows kernel space (`T1014`). This driver uses techniques like Direct Kernel Object Manipulation (DKOM) or API Hooking (intercepting calls to `ZwQuerySystemInformation`) to filter the results returned to user-mode applications (`T1562.001`). When the Task Manager asks the kernel for a list of running processes, the Hideproc rootkit intercepts the request and removes the attacker's malicious process from the list before returning the data. The malicious process is running, but the OS cannot see it.<br><br><b>Indicators of Compromise & Impact</b><br>The impact is deep, persistent, and entirely hidden compromise. Host-based IoCs are extremely difficult to find from within the live OS. They often require specialized rootkit scanners (like GMER), memory forensics, or offline analysis of the hard drive. EDR systems may detect the initial loading of the unsigned or maliciously signed kernel driver (`T1553.006`), but once loaded, the rootkit can blind the EDR. Network IoCs remain critical, as the rootkit cannot hide the actual packets leaving the machine on the wire.",
  "cta": "Published by the SystemHelpdesk team.",
  "aliases": [],
  "enrichment_level": "expert-seo",
  "faq": [
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What is Hideproc and what threat category does it belong to?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hideproc is classified as a Trojan. Documented across security telemetry, it is engineered to execute unauthorized operations, establish persistent footholds on target endpoints, and facilitate malicious campaigns targeting enterprise and individual environments."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How does Hideproc establish persistence and evade defensive controls?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hideproc typically establishes persistence through registry run keys, scheduled tasks, or service installations, while evading signature-based antivirus solutions through code obfuscation, memory injection, or anti-analysis sandbox checks."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What are the essential incident response steps for mitigating a Hideproc compromise?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Security teams responding to Hideproc should immediately isolate affected endpoints from the network, perform memory triage to capture volatile forensic artifacts, audit registry and startup persistence mechanisms, revoke exposed user credentials, and restore systems from verified, clean backups."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "What secondary payloads and staging behaviors are commonly associated with Hideproc?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Hideproc frequently operates as a loader or dropper designed to establish a foothold before downloading and executing secondary high-impact malware payloads. Depending on the threat actor's objectives, these dropped modules can range from ransomware and banking injects to modular infostealers and remote management backdoors."
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Question",
      "name": "How can security operations teams effectively detect and hunt for Hideproc across enterprise endpoints?",
      "acceptedAnswer": {
        "@type": "Answer",
        "text": "Defenders should hunt for Hideproc by deploying behavioral endpoint detection and response (EDR) rules that monitor suspicious process spawning (such as cmd.exe or powershell.exe spawned from office documents or temporary directories), anomalous outbound network connections from non-browser binaries, and unauthorized modifications to Windows Run keys and scheduled task registries."
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq_count": 5,
  "mitre_attack": [
    "T1553.006",
    "T1014",
    "T1562.001",
    "T1548.002"
  ],
  "cisa_advisory": null,
  "last_updated": "2026-06-09",
  "mitre_attack_detail": [
    {
      "id": "T1014",
      "name": "Rootkit (Kernel-level evasion)",
      "tactic": "Defense Evasion"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1562.001",
      "name": "Impair Defenses: Disable or Modify Tools",
      "tactic": "Defense Evasion"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1548.002",
      "name": "Abuse Elevation Control Mechanism: Bypass User Account Control (Required to install driver)",
      "tactic": "Privilege Escalation"
    },
    {
      "id": "T1553.006",
      "name": "Subvert Trust Controls: Code Signing Policy Modification (Loading untrusted drivers)",
      "tactic": "Defense Evasion"
    }
  ],
  "containment_steps": [
    "Immediately physically isolate the infected endpoint from the network to halt the unseen malicious activity.",
    "Do NOT attempt to remove a kernel rootkit from a live, running Windows environment, as the rootkit controls the OS; the system must be completely wiped and reimaged.",
    "Capture a full physical memory image (RAM dump) *before* powering off the machine, as this is the only reliable way to analyze the rootkit's hooks and the hidden payload.",
    "Investigate how the attacker gained the administrative privileges necessary to load a kernel driver in the first place."
  ],
  "what_to_avoid": [
    "Do not trust output from standard command-line tools (like `tasklist` or `netstat`) on a machine suspected of a rootkit infection.",
    "Avoid relying on standard antivirus remediation to 'clean' a rootkit; a full OS reinstall is the only mathematically sound way to restore trust to the endpoint."
  ],
  "target_industries": [
    "Global / Opportunistic"
  ],
  "motivation": "Opportunistic",
  "threat_actors": [
    "Unknown / Cybercriminal"
  ],
  "target_geographies": [
    "Global"
  ],
  "attack_stage": [
    "execution",
    "persistence"
  ],
  "ecosystem": [
    "windows_pe"
  ],
  "is_emerging": false,
  "target_platforms": [
    "Windows 11",
    "Windows 10",
    "Windows 7"
  ]
}