fltMC.exe
Sources: 300M+ executions observed in the wild.
Summary
Filter Manager Control Program. Manages Windows minifilter drivers — the kernel-level file system filters used by antivirus, EDR, and backup software. Attackers use it to unload security product minifilters, blinding endpoint detection.
fltMC.exe is the 1936th most commonly executed Windows program in EchoTrail's dataset, observed 339 times across enterprise environments. It typically runs from C:\Windows\System32 and it is most often launched by installer.exe.
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Behavior
Top Paths
- C:\Windows\System3289.38%
- C:\Windows\SysWOW6410.62%
Top Hashes (SHA256)
- d127cc48c864a84df91c3132314ec9698855dfbb6e9aff97ab13023e9eaff8b441.85%
- 44d21763d35630c2ce68a2a64d4eb047b83847bcefe4ae3911545b8faa22ef8b23%
- 074a471560cdc15ad2d982cadce9d3a081f70e11ac69e6b73111af2c02c6375e10.22%
- fa85855b3cc7e02b4874304bdcebe7ece715dd03802970eedd1c4a88e5b814d47.99%
- 7c0b13d17fab5ea169b9c637c604b71503f86728c03d27c1ab81a18f8caae3914.47%
- aecb882985f84a7531a27cf401bf86dbec9191fdf6993c1317f35beb1e32ea943.51%
- c8ab4df2f65394d4661172e884dc169416a5322ca8a4b1969d4135e8f34835f42.56%
- bdde3b8e6d80c5adc3242cddca65e9ab7d958eb017365f4f8c1bd8d1dbb0ade52.24%
- 8be09914400b0052499a2ff1520b1815a9044ec8c231f4b0c806dc1a2d8d2b611.6%
- 390dd5e0f4a797d4b6805bfd4b9e6fe3ded325f9ae45bd62fdfe6da9f5cca33a1.28%
Process Ancestry
Top Grandparents
- msiexec.exe54.55%
- EPUpdateService.exe34.85%
Top Parents
- installer.exe86.73%
- msiexec.exe9.73%
- cmd.exe1.77%
Top Children
- conhost.exe100%
Security Analysis
What does fltMC.exe normally do?
Runs from C:\Windows\System32. Used by administrators to list, load, or unload minifilter drivers. "fltmc filters" lists loaded filters. Rarely used in normal operation.
When is fltMC.exe suspicious?
Any "fltmc unload" command — this detaches a minifilter driver. Unloading security-related filters (WdFilter, csagent, klif, etc.). Execution by non-administrator accounts. Execution from unusual parent processes.
How do attackers abuse fltMC.exe?
DEFENSE EVASION: Attackers with admin/SYSTEM access run "fltmc unload <filtername>" to detach EDR/AV minifilter drivers. This blinds the security product to file system activity without killing its userspace process (which might trigger tamper protection alerts). Common targets: WdFilter (Windows Defender), csagent (CrowdStrike), klif (Kaspersky), SentinelMonitor (SentinelOne). Some ransomware families automate this as a pre-encryption step. Requires admin privileges. The minifilter may be protected by tamper protection, but fltmc attempts are still a high-confidence indicator of malicious intent.
Detection guidance
HIGH-CONFIDENCE DETECTIONS: - "fltmc unload" command targeting any security-related minifilter - Any fltmc unload command (very rare in legitimate use) MEDIUM-CONFIDENCE: - fltmc execution outside of troubleshooting context DATA SOURCES: Process creation with command line (Sysmon 1, Windows 4688)
False positive notes
Legitimate troubleshooting of file system filter drivers. Storage/backup administrators may use fltmc to diagnose filter conflicts. "fltmc filters" (list only, no unload) is benign.
Related Processes
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