T1564.001: Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders)

Framework: MITRE ATT&CK · Tactic: Defense Evasion · Total Cataloged Families: 14 · Observed Samples: 801 · Primary Threat Categories: Trojan · Advanced Threat · Ransomware

Operational Executive Summary

T1564.001 (Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders)) is classified under the Defense Evasion tactic within the MITRE ATT&CK framework. Tradecraft designed to avoid detection, analysis, and eradication throughout their operational lifecycle, including process injection, file obfuscation, and disabling defensive telemetry. In telemetry gathered across enterprise endpoints and the EMBER 2018 benchmark, this technique was weaponized across 14 distinct malware families, totaling over 801 validated samples.

Technical Anatomy & Adversary Tradecraft

Adversaries leverage Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders) to accomplish operational objectives while minimizing anomalous forensic footprints. When executing Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders), malicious binaries commonly interact directly with low-level Windows APIs, kernel mode drivers, or native scripting interfaces to bypass traditional file-integrity monitors and static antivirus signatures.

In modern multi-stage campaigns, T1564.001 is frequently observed functioning as an intermediate bridge: initial access payloads (such as spearphishing loaders or exploit macros) execute Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders) to establish in-memory execution or persistence before staging secondary ransomware or data-exfiltration implants.

Authoritative MITRE ATT&CK Reference: View official technique documentation, sub-techniques, and adversary groups at https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1564/001/.

Detection Engineering & Threat Hunting

Detecting Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders) requires telemetry correlation across endpoint detection and response (EDR) agents, Sysmon event streams, and security information event management (SIEM) pipelines:

Process Creation & Lineage: Monitor parent-child process anomalies where unexpected parent binaries (e.g., Office executables, web browsers, or script hosts) spawn command shells or native Windows utilities.
API Hooking & Behavioral Telemetry: EDR platforms should flag rapid calls to memory allocation, process injection, or registry manipulation APIs originating from unbacked executable memory regions.
Network Anomaly Correlation: Cross-reference endpoint execution timestamps with external network socket establishment to identify anomalous beaconing or covert data staging.

SOC Containment & Hardening Guidance

To mitigate risks associated with T1564.001 (Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders)) across production infrastructure, security teams should implement the following defensive controls:

Attack Surface Reduction (ASR): Enforce strict application control policies (WDAC or AppLocker) to restrict execution to signed and verified corporate binaries.
Least Privilege & Credential Hygiene: Restrict local administrative privileges to prevent adversaries from tampering with defensive agents or escalating privileges.
Network Microsegmentation: Restrict lateral communication across endpoint VLANs to prevent wormable payloads from utilizing Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders) across adjacent network segments.

→ Incident Response Guidance: Read our Backdoor & RAT Protection for Businesses

Cataloged Malware Families Utilizing T1564.001 (14 Families)

The following malware families in the SystemHelpDesk catalog have been verified utilizing T1564.001 (Hide Artifacts: Hidden Files and Directories (Hiding the real folders)):

14 families

Family	Category	Sample Count	Technical Summary
vbclone	Trojan	`601`	VBClone (identified across security telemetry as Trojan:Win32/VBClone!rfn, Trojan.VBClone, and Win32/VBClone) represents a widely distributed family of Visual B...
rebhip	Rat	`120`	Worm:Win32/Rebhip is a stealthy dual-threat worm and keylogging trojan discovered in 2011 that proliferates via removable USB drives and unsecured local network...
shiotob	Banking Trojan	`47`	Shiotob (extensively documented in threat intelligence literature under the names URLZone and Bebloh, with AV detections including Trojan:Win32/Shiotob and Troj...
sohanad	Trojan	`11`	Worm:Win32/Sohanad is a widespread, classic computer worm that gained notoriety for spreading aggressively via removable drives (USB flash drives) and popular I...
fakefolder	Ransomware	`7`	Trojan:Win32/Fakefolder (or generic Folder Icon Spoofing heuristics) represents a classic, yet highly effective social engineering tactic utilized primarily...
jenxcus	Trojan	`4`	Worm:VBS/Jenxcus (often referred to as Houdini or Dinihu) is a prolific, script-based worm and Remote Access Trojan (RAT) written entirely in Visual Basic Scrip...
liuliangbao	Advanced Threat	`2`	Adware:Win32/Liuliangbao (often translated roughly to 'Traffic Treasure') is a Chinese-origin adware family explicitly designed for aggressive Click Fraud and a...
sillyfdc	Advanced Threat	`2`	Worm:Win32/Sillyfdc is a prolific and persistent worm designed to propagate rapidly across networks by infecting removable drives (USB flash drives). First emer...
vjworm	Backdoor	`2`	Worm:VBS/Vjworm (and its variants like JS/Vjworm) is a highly aggressive, self-propagating worm written in scripting languages (Visual Basic Script or JavaScrip...
exxroute	Trojan	`1`	<h3>Executive Summary</h3> Exxroute is a malicious Trojan specifically engineered to tamper with endpoint network routing and DNS configurations. It is designed...
idlecrawler	Advanced Threat	`1`	Adware/Bot:Win32/Idlecrawler is a sneaky class of malware designed to exploit system resources or display advertisements exclusively when the user is not active...
imaut	Ransomware	`1`	<h3>Executive Summary</h3> Imaut (often referred to as Worm.Imaut or AutoRun.Imaut) is a prolific family of legacy worms that primarily spread via removable med...
silly	Ransomware	`1`	<h3>Executive Summary</h3> Silly (often referred to as SillyFDC or Worm.Silly) is a prolific family of legacy worms that primarily spread via removable media, m...
vtub	Advanced Threat	`1`	<h3>Executive Summary</h3> Vtub is a malicious network worm designed to propagate rapidly across local area networks (LANs) and removable media. While it freque...