Commonly abused AutoIT script drops an executable file to disk

Synopsis

Field	Value
Activation Period	14 Days
Training Period	30 Days
Test Period	N/A (single event)
Deduplication Period	1 Day
Required Data	XDR Agent with eXtended Threat Hunting (XTH)
ATT&CK Tactic	Execution (TA0002)
ATT&CK Technique	Command and Scripting Interpreter: AutoHotKey & AutoIT (T1059.010), Command and Scripting Interpreter: Windows Command Shell (T1059.003)
Severity	Informational

Description

AutoIT scripts have legitimate uses but are often abused by malware to execute in a signed process context.

Attacker's Goals

Gain code execution on the host and evade security controls.

Investigative actions

• Check whether the command line executed is benign or normal for the host and/or user performing it.
• Check whether the user from the command line is an administrator or other sensitive account.