takeown.exe
Sources: 300M+ executions observed in the wild.
Summary
Windows Take Ownership utility - allows administrators to take ownership of files and directories, overriding existing NTFS permissions.
takeown.exe is the 808th most commonly executed Windows program in EchoTrail's dataset, observed 3,809 times across enterprise environments. It typically runs from C:\Windows\System32 and it is most often launched by powershell.exe.
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Behavior
Top Paths
- C:\Windows\System3298.35%
- C:\Windows\SysWOW641.65%
Top Hashes (SHA256)
- 876cba540d52698112e0e8ae4601f9812fffe8522c951795ad0386b894dbedf274.3%
- 1f8f36461a914c6cc2527d5ef98a7e1753278c48139b777741049f92dd266e2014.49%
- ad147dd93f97283de08ddb13d69fbb39460275cf21bb5c9f3d8c7b108285c9aa3.96%
- 34fac0ea2551ea1878ab4d1c1d538a004d6aa19b9450d604a36f4a9309fc2ff92.48%
- 5bea010e3b1e6ecb86811e71d7a783a4df557562b4bab26a4fb1d1b941c4788d1.42%
- 26b3dd8e0fd18190144ef1ddb2ed08affeab2bcd1a218e091db5671010af4af70.92%
- dfabefdba0976dac4552238da3e0ee15eae604a813b78b2105f9c5ef1662cbd10.9%
- 09796e59bf1fada5ea7a96c9d8d865da8128dc676b4445e6d8fdbe2ad246884c0.61%
- 820bf585a941580590caaa0b4ad767ca7ec91549006dd949ccde9e550398b9c10.42%
- 90d519a81f59590742362461a730a67fa032806fcc53ee387b840ff04d0567910.21%
Process Ancestry
Top Grandparents
- gpscript.exe83.11%
- services.exe10.32%
- cmd.exe1.18%
- msiexec.exe0.86%
- svchost.exe0.54%
- explorer.exe0.4%
- drvinst.exe0.13%
Top Parents
- powershell.exe82.33%
- cmd.exe0.84%
- drvinst.exe0.55%
- aesm_service.exe0.21%
Top Children
- conhost.exe100%
Security Analysis
What does takeown.exe normally do?
Used by administrators to regain access to files with broken permissions. Common during system recovery and migration.
When is takeown.exe suspicious?
Taking ownership of system files or security tool directories. Used in combination with icacls to grant full control. Targeting files owned by SYSTEM or TrustedInstaller.
How do attackers abuse takeown.exe?
Attackers chain takeown + icacls to modify protected system files or disable security tools by taking ownership and then changing permissions. Pattern: takeown /f <file> && icacls <file> /grant Everyone:F
Detection guidance
Monitor for takeown targeting system directories or security product paths. Alert on takeown + icacls sequences.
False positive notes
System recovery and migration scenarios. TrustedInstaller permission issues sometimes require takeown.
MITRE ATT&CK techniques
Related Processes
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