MITRE ATT&CKsub-technique
T1036.011 Overwrite Process Arguments
- Domain
- enterprise
- Tactics
- Stealth
- Platforms
- Linux
- Version
- 2.0
- Created
- 2025-03-27
Description
Adversaries may modify a process's in-memory arguments to change its name in order to appear as a legitimate or benign process. On Linux, the operating system stores command-line arguments in the process’s stack and passes them to the `main()` function as the `argv` array. The first element, `argv[0]`, typically contains the process name or path - by default, the command used to actually start the process (e.g., `cat /etc/passwd`). By default, the Linux `/proc` filesystem uses this value to represent the process name. The `/proc//cmdline` file reflects the contents of this memory, and tools like `ps` use it to display process information. Since arguments are stored in user-space memory at launch, this modification can be performed without elevated privileges.
During runtime, adversaries can erase the memory used by all command-line arguments for a process, overwriting each argument string with null bytes. This removes evidence of how the process was originally launched. They can then write a spoofed string into the memory region previously occupied by `argv[0]` to mimic a benign command, such as `cat resolv.conf`. The new command-line string is reflected in `/proc//cmdline` and displayed by tools like `ps`.
Related
Subtechnique of · MITRE ATT&CK (1)
- T1036 Masquerading technique
Tactic · MITRE ATT&CK (1)
- TA0005 Stealth tactic
Referenced by MITRE ATT&CK · uses (1)
- S1161 BPFDoor software (malware)
References
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2022/05/19/rise-in-xorddos-a-deeper-look-at-the-stealthy-ddos-malware-targeting-linux-devices/ Microsoft XorDdos Linux Stealth 2022
- https://sandflysecurity.com/blog/bpfdoor-an-evasive-linux-backdoor-technical-analysis/ Sandfly BPFDoor 2022