Scheduled Task/Job
Description
Adversaries may abuse task scheduling functionality to facilitate initial or recurring execution of malicious code. Utilities exist within all major operating systems to schedule programs or scripts to be executed at a specified date and time. A task can also be scheduled on a remote system, provided the proper authentication is met (ex: RPC and file and printer sharing in Windows environments). Scheduling a task on a remote system typically may require being a member of an admin or otherwise privileged group on the remote system.(Citation: TechNet Task Scheduler Security) Adversaries may use task scheduling to execute programs at system startup or on a scheduled basis for persistence. These mechanisms can also be abused to run a process under the context of a specified account (such as one with elevated permissions/privileges). Similar to [System Binary Proxy Execution](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1218), adversaries have also abused task scheduling to potentially mask one-time execution under a trusted system process.(Citation: ProofPoint Serpent)
Mapped SPARTA techniques
3 techniques
Mapped by SPARTA, not curated by SafeMode Space.
Mapped by SPARTA, not curated by SafeMode Space.
Mapped by SPARTA, not curated by SafeMode Space.
Cross-framework references
Relationships published by the source frameworks themselves, reproduced here with attribution. They are not SafeMode Space mappings and carry no confidence rating of ours.
Countered by 16 in MITRE D3FEND (Defensive Techniques)
- D3-ABPIApplication-based Process Isolation
- D3-EALExecutable Allowlisting
- D3-EDLExecutable Denylisting
- D3-HBPIHardware-based Process Isolation
- D3-HRHost Reboot
- D3-HSHost Shutdown
- D3-KBPIKernel-based Process Isolation
- D3-PLAProcess Lineage Analysis
- D3-PSProcess Suspension
- D3-PSAProcess Spawn Analysis
- D3-PSMDProcess Self-Modification Detection
- D3-PTProcess Termination
- D3-SCASystem Call Analysis
- D3-SCFSystem Call Filtering
- D3-SDMSystem Daemon Monitoring
- D3-SJAScheduled Job Analysis
Cite as SafeMode Space, mitre-attack-enterprise T1053.