A service was installed in the system (System Log)
A service was installed in the system (logged in the System Event Log by Service Control Manager).
While Event ID 4697 is recorded in the **Security Event Log** when audit policy is enabled, Event ID 7045 is recorded directly in the **System Event Log** (`System.evtx`) by the Service Control Manager by default without needing audit policy adjustments. It captures `ServiceName`, `ImagePath` (binary command line), `ServiceType`, and `StartType`.
Failure Reason / Root Cause:
Software installation, `sc create` execution, or lateral movement (`PsExec` service creation).
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>7045</EventID>
<Version>0</Version>
<Level>0</Level>
<Task>12544</Task>
<Opcode>0</Opcode>
<Keywords>0x8020000000000000</Keywords>
<TimeCreated SystemTime="2026-07-17T09:54:44.941Z" />
<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 service was installed in the system (System Log) -->
</EventData>
</Event>MITRE ATT&CK mapping
| ID | Technique | Tactic |
|---|---|---|
T1543.003 | Create or Modify System Process: Windows Service | Persistence |
Recommended actions
- Always monitor both Event ID 4697 (Security log) and Event ID 7045 (System log) to ensure complete service creation visibility across all endpoints.
- Alert on `ImagePath` values executing `cmd.exe /c`, `powershell.exe -enc`, or pointing to user profile temp directories.