Please note that this project is a proof-of-concept.

Process hollowing (also known as RunPE) is a technique where the memory of a target process is replaced with another (malicious) executable. It is often used by malware to evade detection.

This project implements this technique in Python 3.

• pefile

I used a (64-bit) Windows 10 vm for testing.

For the payload I used the following simple program:

#include <windows.h>

int WINAPI WinMain(HINSTANCE hInstance, HINSTANCE hPrevInstance, LPSTR lpCmdLine, int nCmdShow)
{
	MessageBox(NULL, L"World!", L"Hello", MB_OK);
	return 0;
}

32.exe and 64.exe are the 32-bit and 64-bit compiled versions of this program, respectively.

For the target executable I used the Windows Calculator. Specifically:

• 32-bit: C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64\calc.exe
• 64-bit: C:\WINDOWS\System32\calc.exe

I also tested some cases with other Windows executables (such asnotepad.exe, svchost.exe, explorer.exe).

Using Python 3.9.5 32-bit I was able to get the following working:

• A 32-bit payload with a 32-bit target.
• A 32-bit payload with a 64-bit target.

Using Python 3.9.5 64-bit I was able to get the following working:

• A 64-bit payload with a 64-bit target.

These are some useful sources that helped me better understand this tecnique:

• Dynamic forking (Process hollowing)
• Process Hollowing
• runpe
• ProcessHollowing32-64
• Practical Malware Analysis: The Hands-on Guide to Dissecting Malicious Software by Andrew Honig and Michael Sikorski