Telegram C2 with Process Masquerading or Known Malware Hash

Steven Lim@KQLWizard

•updated Mar 23, 2026•54•1•433

This rule detects suspicious network connections to api.telegram.org from processes masquerading as legitimate Windows executables (MicDriver.exe, Winappx.exe, MsCache.exe, RuntimeSSH.exe, smqdservice.exe). It also identifies files with MD5 hashes matching known Indicators of Compromise (IOCs) from an external list. This combination suggests potential malware activity, possibly involving Telegram for command and control or data exfiltration, combined with process masquerading for evasion.