RuntimeBroker.exe
Sources: 300M+ executions observed in the wild.
Summary
Runtime Broker manages permissions and security for Windows Store (UWP) applications. It mediates between UWP apps and system resources, ensuring apps only access capabilities they have declared. It checks whether a UWP app is accessing hardware like the camera, microphone, or location.
RuntimeBroker.exe is the 22nd most commonly executed Windows program in EchoTrail's dataset, observed 2,757,791 times across enterprise environments. It typically runs from C:\Windows\System32 and it is most often launched by svchost.exe.
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Behavior
Top Paths
- C:\Windows\System32100%
Top Hashes (SHA256)
- 87976f3430cc99bc939e0694247c0759961a49832b87218f4313d6fc0bc3a77630.66%
- 5e979c34a5feb14ed18f36e956b0614ff305c8596dd01571a2ebabdc8131ce7723.38%
- e86870769ee6c797e09457bd99c58d9bf2303cf0193a24ef9b1222c2c3daf62820.46%
- 5c5ac5c17b10c47effeff95687b6298773f74dcdb5bfa01ca185311343fdadcc8.72%
- 3f82d416fbee431b0ae798078f9c354711577f48b38901788c784a5ec0dd13b36.94%
- 579dfced8f02a7e1e6e8df10c400117d3127ead7231776a1e467eb507261e9202.86%
- 70d968b4f65c5ce471474096f8623aecd7d496e4f10c8b94c3577c8362e0ada12.63%
- 973cc7e05ca0881490d99fff2213445583117aa563459fb7049b5a447cb5a65c1.17%
- 154316c8e1fe282655a3df44f5af3b0c5f0ecc37449eff4b3ead44fb7414d4681.14%
- 4d81cb82c4c5ea303570d7d4abb2562993600a478464a18264bf29f79dd535b80.48%
Code Signing
Signers by share of executions
- 100%Microsoft WindowsValidCatalog signed · 1 hash
- Chain
- Microsoft Windows
- Microsoft Windows Production PCA 2011
- Microsoft Root Certificate Authority 2010
- Valid
- Apr 16, 2026 to Oct 17, 2026
- Hashes
- 8de24f8e51cc05db2581b6240b834acecbb0e012b8722cc3365f884d7ba4b409100% of executions, first seen Sep 10, 2026
Full certificate detail on Team.
Process Ancestry
Top Grandparents
- services.exe100%
- svchost.exe<0.01%
Top Parents
- svchost.exe100%
- RuntimeBroker.exe<0.01%
Top Children
- LocalBridge.exe84.27%
- MicrosoftEdgeSH.exe5.45%
- SkypeBridge.exe1.68%
- GameBarFT.exe1.17%
- MicrosoftEdgeCP.exe0.97%
- chrome.exe0.53%
- mstsc.exe0.46%
- EXCEL.EXE0.4%
Security Analysis
What does RuntimeBroker.exe normally do?
Located in C:\Windows\System32. Launched by svchost.exe. Multiple instances are normal — one per active UWP app context. Moderate memory usage is expected.
When is RuntimeBroker.exe suspicious?
Parent process other than svchost.exe. Running from a non-standard path. Spawning shells or making unusual network connections. Excessive memory or CPU usage (though some legitimate UWP activity can be resource-intensive).
How do attackers abuse RuntimeBroker.exe?
Not commonly targeted for direct abuse. Could be a target for process injection. Name masquerading is possible.
Detection guidance
Low priority. Validate parent is svchost.exe and path is System32.
False positive notes
Multiple instances are normal. Occasionally high memory usage is normal for some UWP app scenarios.
Related Processes
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