🛡️ Mitigations
Comprehensive strategies and tools to protect against ClickFix and social engineering attacks
Primary Mitigations
Disable Win+R Run Dialog
The strongest mitigation against ClickFix lures is disabling the Win+R Run dialog box and limiting applications from being run from the File Explorer address bar.
Enterprise Application Control
For comprehensive protection against Living-Off-the-Land attacks, check out MagicSword for enterprise-ready application control solutions.
User Education & Awareness
Social Engineering Awareness
- Verify caller identity through official channels before following any instructions
- Never run commands from unsolicited technical support calls or messages
- Use official support channels only - legitimate companies will never ask you to run system commands
- Be suspicious of requests to run system tools, especially from unknown sources
- Question urgency - legitimate issues rarely require immediate action
Red Flags to Watch For
- Requests to press Win+R or open command prompt
- Instructions to copy and paste commands
- Claims that your system is "infected" or "compromised"
- Pressure to act immediately
- Requests for remote access to your computer
Detection & Analysis Tools
PasteEater
A Windows application designed to inspect suspicious clipboard content from browser processes. PasteEater helps identify malicious content that may have been copied to your clipboard through social engineering attacks or malicious websites.
ClickGrab Analyzer
This very tool! ClickGrab Analyzer helps identify and analyze websites that may be using FakeCAPTCHA or ClickFix techniques to distribute malware or steal information. It analyzes HTML content for potential threats like PowerShell commands, suspicious URLs, and clipboard manipulation code.
Technical Mitigations
Application Control
Implement application whitelisting to prevent unauthorized executables from running:
- Use Windows AppLocker or Software Restriction Policies
- Configure Microsoft Defender Application Control (WDAC)
- Implement Code Integrity policies
Network-Level Protections
- Deploy DNS filtering to block malicious domains
- Use web proxies with content filtering
- Implement network segmentation to limit lateral movement
- Monitor for suspicious network traffic patterns
Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)
- Deploy EDR solutions to monitor for suspicious behavior
- Enable behavioral analysis to detect social engineering patterns
- Configure real-time alerts for suspicious command execution
- Implement automated response capabilities
Additional Resources
Official Documentation
- Windows Defender Application Control
- Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
- MITRE ATT&CK - Application Isolation and Sandboxing
Security Research
- MITRE ATT&CK - Command and Scripting Interpreter
- MITRE ATT&CK - System Information Discovery
- CISA - Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks