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ATT&CK techniqueExecution

T1204.001 Malicious Link

ExecutionEnterpriseSub-technique

As of 2026-10-05, T1204.001 (Malicious Link) appears in 218 tracked threats, first reported 2026-01-27 and most recently 2026-10-04, with linked actors including ShinyHunters, APT28, APT38; it most often appears alongside T1566.002 (Spearphishing Link).

Tracked threats
21834 critical, 141 high, 41 medium, 2 low
First seen
2026-01-27
Last seen
2026-10-04
Threat actors
53In the threats using it
Detection rules
517Blue tier and above

Data as of:

Activity timeline

T1204.001 first appeared in tracked threats on and was most recently reported on . The busiest month was 2026-07 with 67 reports, and 218 of the 218 threats were reported in the twelve months to 2026-10.

How adversaries use it

T1204.001 Malicious Link is catalogued by MITRE ATT&CK under the Execution tactic in the Enterprise matrix, as a sub-technique of T1204 User Execution. Threadlinqs maps 218 of 2623 tracked threats (8.3%) to it; by severity that is 34 critical, 141 high, 41 medium, 2 low.

Threats that use T1204.001 most often also use T1566.002 Spearphishing Link (156 threats), T1071.001 Web Protocols (108 threats), T1583.001 Domains (103 threats), T1027 Obfuscated Files or Information (86 threats), T1036.005 Match Legitimate Resource Name or Location (76 threats). These are the techniques an intrusion set tends to chain with it, so they are the natural next places to look when it is observed.

53 tracked threat actors appear in the threats that use T1204.001; the most frequent are ShinyHunters (3), APT28 (2), APT38 (2), EvilTokens (2), Greatness PhaaS Operators (2).

Mitigations

MITRE ATT&CK lists 3 mitigations for T1204.001.

Data sources

Telemetry that can reveal T1204.001, per MITRE ATT&CK.

  • File — File Creation
  • Network Traffic — Network Connection Creation, Network Traffic Content

Threat actors using it

Tracked threats

The 30 most recent of 218 tracked threats that use T1204.001.

Detection coverage

Threadlinqs maintains 517 detection rules mapped to T1204.001 (SPL 201, KQL 160, Sigma 156). Rule content is available to Blue tier accounts and above; this page shows counts only.

517 detection rules (SPL/KQL/Sigma) · Blue and above. Compare plans

Parent technique

T1204 User Execution — 571 tracked threats at the technique level.