SafeGuardV10Xsimonzh2000

Hunt Hypothesis

This detection identifies specific file artifacts matching the SafeGuardV10Xsimonzh2000 signature to uncover potential benign or suspicious software deployments within the environment. Proactively hunting for this pattern in Azure Sentinel allows the SOC team to validate known good configurations and establish a baseline before similar signatures evolve into more critical threats.

YARA Rule

rule SafeGuardV10Xsimonzh2000
{
      meta:
		author="malware-lu"
strings:
		$a0 = { E8 00 00 00 00 EB 29 [26] 59 9C 81 C1 E2 FF FF FF EB 01 ?? 9D FF E1 }

condition:
		$a0 at pe.entry_point
}

Deployment Notes

This YARA rule can be deployed in the following contexts:

• Microsoft Defender for Endpoint — Custom indicators / advanced hunting
• Email Gateway — Attachment scanning
• File Share Monitoring — Periodic scanning of shared drives
• YARA CLI — Manual threat hunting on endpoints

This rule contains 1 string patterns in its detection logic.

• Source Rule

False Positive Guidance

Here are 4 specific false positive scenarios for the SafeGuardV10Xsimonzh2000 detection rule, including suggested filters and exclusions tailored for a legitimate enterprise environment:

• Scenario: Antivirus Engine Self-Scanning

  • Context: The YARA rule detects the signature of SafeGuardV10X within memory or file artifacts. However, in an environment using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint or Symantec Endpoint Protection, the antivirus engine frequently scans its own configuration files and update logs (e.g., mpclient.dll, engine.log) which contain embedded signatures matching the rule’s logic. This causes a cascade of alerts every time the AV service performs a scheduled scan.
  • Filter/Exclusion: Configure an exclusion in the EDR console to ignore file paths containing \Program Files\Microsoft Defender\ or \Symantec Endpoint Protection\. Additionally, add a filter to exclude processes where ProcessName matches MsMpEng.exe (Defender) or Rtvscan64.exe (Symantec) when the matched artifact is located within their own installation directories.

• Scenario: Scheduled Software Deployment via SCCM/Intune

  • Context: During a nightly maintenance window, Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM) or Microsoft Intune pushes updates to the SafeGuardV10X client agent itself. The deployment agent extracts installation packages that contain the exact binary structure identified by the YARA rule, triggering alerts on workstations even though this is an authorized administrative action.
  • Filter/Exclusion: Create a time-based exclusion window (e.g., 02:00 – 04:00 UTC) for alerts generated by the process ccmsetup.exe or IntuneManagementExtension.exe. Alternatively, filter out events where the