Adversaries may abuse SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs to proxy execution of malicious PowerShell commands. SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs is a Visual Basic script associated with how Windows virtualizes applications (Microsoft Application Virtualization, or App-V).(Citation: 1 - appv) For example, Windows may render Win32 applications to users as virtual applications, allowing users to launch and interact with them as if they were installed locally.(Citation: 2 - appv)(Citation: 3 - appv)
The SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs script is legitimate, may be signed by Microsoft, and is commonly executed from \System32 through the command line via wscript.exe.(Citation: 4 - appv)(Citation: 5 - appv)
Adversaries may abuse SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs to bypass PowerShell execution restrictions and evade defensive counter measures by "living off the land."(Citation: 6 - appv)(Citation: 4 - appv) Proxying execution may function as a trusted/signed alternative to directly invoking powershell.exe.(Citation: 7 - appv)
For example, PowerShell commands may be invoked using:(Citation: 5 - appv)
SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs "n; {PowerShell}"
Detecting PowerShell Execution via SyncAppvPublishingServer.vbs Proxy Abuse
Execution Prevention: Prevent the execution of unauthorized or malicious code on systems by implementing application control, script blocking, and other execution prevention mechanisms. This ensures that only trusted and authorized code is executed, reducing the risk of malware and unauthorized actions. This mitigation can be implemented through the following measures:
Application Control:
New-AppLockerPolicy -PolicyType Enforced -FilePath "C:\Policies\AppLocker.xml")Script Blocking:
Set-ExecutionPolicy AllSigned)Executable Blocking:
%TEMP% or %APPDATA% directories..exe, .bat, or .ps1 files from user-writable directories.Dynamic Analysis Prevention:
No cross-framework mappings available