A scheduled task was created
A scheduled task was created on the system. Contains the full XML task definition including actions, triggers, and execution account.
Event ID 4698 is logged whenever a new Windows Scheduled Task is created (`schtasks.exe` or Task Scheduler UI). The event data embeds the complete Task XML definition, detailing exactly what binary or script will execute (`<Command>` and `<Arguments>`), the scheduled frequency (`<Triggers>`), and the security identity (`<Principal>`) under which the task runs. Scheduled tasks are one of the most widespread persistence mechanisms used by malware and APT groups.
Failure Reason / Root Cause:
System software updates, automated backup tasks, or attacker persistence mechanism establishing scheduled code execution.
Raw Event XML snippet
<Event xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events/event">
<System>
<Provider Name="Microsoft-Windows-Security-Auditing" Guid="{54849625-5478-4994-A5BA-3E3B0328C30D}" />
<EventID>4698</EventID>
<Version>0</Version>
<Level>0</Level>
<Task>12544</Task>
<Opcode>0</Opcode>
<Keywords>0x8020000000000000</Keywords>
<TimeCreated SystemTime="2026-07-17T09:54:44.879Z" />
<EventRecordID>1048576</EventRecordID>
<Correlation />
<Execution ProcessID="612" ThreadID="1024" />
<Channel>Security</Channel>
<Computer>DC01.enterprise.internal</Computer>
<Security />
</System>
<EventData>
<Data Name="SubjectUserSid">S-1-5-18</Data>
<Data Name="SubjectUserName">SYSTEM</Data>
<Data Name="SubjectDomainName">NT AUTHORITY</Data>
<Data Name="SubjectLogonId">0x3e7</Data>
<!-- Event telemetry fields specific to A scheduled task was created -->
</EventData>
</Event>MITRE ATT&CK mapping
| ID | Technique | Tactic |
|---|---|---|
T1053.005 | Scheduled Task/Job: Scheduled Task | Persistence |
T1053.005 | Scheduled Task/Job: Scheduled Task | Privilege Escalation |
Recommended actions
- Extract and inspect the `<Command>` and `<Arguments>` nodes inside the Event 4698 XML payload for suspicious paths or encoded commands (`powershell -enc`).
- Verify whether the scheduled task is configured to run as `SYSTEM` (`S-1-5-18`) or with highest privileges (`RunLevel: HighestAvailable`).
- Correlate scheduled task creation (`schtasks /create`) with surrounding process execution events (Event ID 4688).