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T1424: Process Discovery

View on MITRE ATT&CK The MITRE Corporation · Published 25/10/2017 16:48 · Modified 27/03/2026 01:41

Essential information

MITRE technique ID
T1424
Confidence
100/100
Revoked
No
Published
25/10/2017 16:48
Modified
27/03/2026 01:41
Author / Source
The MITRE Corporation

Aliases

T1424

Platforms

android iOS

Description

Adversaries may attempt to get information about running processes on a device. Information obtained could be used to gain an understanding of common software/applications running on devices within a network. Adversaries may use the information from [Process Discovery](https://attack.mitre.org/techniques/T1424) during automated discovery to shape follow-on behaviors, including whether or not the adversary fully infects the target and/or attempts specific actions. Recent Android security enhancements have made it more difficult to obtain a list of running processes. On Android 7 and later, there is no way for an application to obtain the process list without abusing elevated privileges. This is due to the Android kernel utilizing the `hidepid` mount feature. Prior to Android 7, applications could utilize the `ps` command or examine the `/proc` directory on the device.(Citation: Android-SELinuxChanges) In iOS, applications have previously been able to use the `sysctl` command to obtain a list of running processes. This functionality has been removed in later iOS versions.

Kill chain phases

Kill chainPhase
mitre-mobile-attack discovery

Marking (TLP)

TLP:CLEAR Copyright 2015-2025, The MITRE Corporation. MITRE ATT&CK and ATT&CK are registered trademarks of The MITRE Corporation.

External references