Is Start.exe safe?
Only APEX raised a generic detection among 72 engines, while the verified Siemens AG signature, silent tier-1 engines, and sandbox evidence support benign software.
APEX was the only engine to flag this file, while all 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection. The verified Siemens AG signature, lack of brand conflict, and completed sandbox run without a malicious verdict make that isolated generic alert highly likely to be a false positive.
9c003d0606dd51a3ce…e1891ea267440dRecommended next actions
Before running
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
If you already ran it
Keep normal device protection enabled and stop if the file behaves unexpectedly.
Intelligence
The saved assessment, checked against the scan evidence and recorded coverage.
The reasoning behind this verdict
This section explains the evidence supporting the verdict and keeps conflicting or missing signals visible.
APEX was the only engine to flag this file, while all 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection. The verified Siemens AG signature, lack of brand conflict, and completed sandbox run without a malicious verdict make that isolated generic alert highly likely to be a false positive.
The antivirus result is dominated by agreement against the sole alert: APEX was the only detector among 72 engines, and it supplied no malware family. All 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection, which substantially reduces the weight of that low-trust generic label. The executable carries a verified Siemens AG signature and has no detected mismatch between its claimed identity and signer. One completed sandbox run produced no malicious verdict or offensive-only MITRE technique, although its file-writing and audit-policy activity should be understood in the context of Siemens setup operations. No curated malware intelligence or packing indicators corroborate the APEX alert, while limited prevalence and absent signer history remain modest uncertainties.
What We Detected
APEX produced the only alert among 72 antivirus engines and labeled the sample generically as “Malicious.” No tier-1 engine detected it: all 17 participating tier-1 products, including Avast, BitDefender, ESET-NOD32, Kaspersky, and Fortinet, reported no detection. The file is signed with a verified certificate naming Siemens AG, and no brand mismatch was detected.
Threat Behavior
One completed sandbox run showed Siemens setup-log creation and audit-policy commands, but no offensive-only MITRE techniques, persistence indicators, malicious sandbox verdict, or recorded network contacts. No dropped file hashes were supplied for separate child-file assessment. The executable was not identified as packed, and YARAify, CIRCL, and MalwareBazaar supplied no corroborating malware intelligence. A complete host-reputation result is unavailable because the host cross-check was not saved, although the run recorded no contacted domains, IP addresses, or URLs.
What To Do Now
If this executable came from an official Siemens installation package or trusted enterprise deployment source, the isolated APEX alert can reasonably be treated as a false positive. Keep endpoint protection enabled, verify the file's certificate and SHA-256 hash against the expected deployment package, and investigate further if the source is unknown or the signature fails local validation.
Where this verdict could be wrong4 caveats
- APEX labeled the file 'Malicious', although it is the sole low-trust detection among 72 engines and provides no named family.
- prevalence.classification=rare_old records only 1 source and 1 submission, so broad distribution could not be established.
- signing.signerStats.found=false means no internal historical sample record was available for the Siemens AG certificate.
- contactedHosts=null, so no completed host-reputation cross-check is available; the sandbox recorded no network contacts to inspect.
These are the assessment's weak points. If you believe one applies to your file, report the verdict and we'll re-review it.
- All 17 tier-1 engines reported no detection.
- The code signature is verified for Siemens AG.
- No brand mismatch was detected.
- The completed sandbox run produced no malicious verdict or offensive-only MITRE techniques.
- YARAify, CIRCL, and MalwareBazaar supplied no corroborating malware hit.
- APEX supplied one generic low-trust malicious detection.
- The file has only 1 recorded source and 1 submission despite being several years old.
- No internal signer-history record is available for the Siemens AG certificate.
- No complete contacted-host reputation cross-check is available.
Use the file when it comes from an official Siemens package or a trusted organizational source and its certificate validates locally. Keep endpoint protection enabled and quarantine it for further review if its origin is uncertain.
Coverage & freshness
Complete means the check returned a usable result. It does not mean the file is safe.
Antivirus
Complete1 of 72 engines flagged the file.
Sandbox
Complete1 isolated runtime environment contributed observations.
Network
Not runNo contacted-host reputation check is recorded.
No timestamp recordedYARA
CompleteRule evaluation completed with no recorded matches.
External intel
Complete3 of 3 independent reference sources completed.
Behavior
Plain-English impact first, then the observed runtime evidence.
Runtime flight recorder
Capture complete- 1isolated sandbox run
- 0MITRE ATT&CK techniques
- 15spawned processes
- 0network contacts
- 6filesystem & mutex artifacts
Attack story
Runtime observations grouped by analysis stage. Arrows organize the stages; they do not claim chronology or causality.
Input file
The submitted object
- FileObserved
Start.exe
9c003d0606dd51a3ce9eea19e78997a697d021480d0600311fe1891ea267440d
01Uploaded file
Processes
Runtime execution
- ProcessObserved
Observed process
%SAMPLEPATH%\Start.exe
02Isolated runtime analysis - ProcessObserved
Observed process
auditpol /set /subcategory:Security State Change /success:enable /failure:enable
03Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
Files
Created or changed
- Written fileObserved
SIA_Starter.log
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Siemens\Automation\Logfiles\Setup\SIA_Starter.log
04Isolated runtime analysis - Written fileObserved
udhisapi.dll
C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\UPnP Device Host\upnphost\udhisapi.dll
05Isolated runtime analysis - +1 more recorded observation in Analyst mode
5 recorded facts from one runtime window. Every fact remains independently traceable in Analyst mode.
What this file did when executed
This file was detonated in 1 sandbox and its runtime behaviour was observed.
- C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Siemens\Automation\Logfiles\Setup\SIA_Starter.log
- C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\UPnP Device Host\upnphost\udhisapi.dll
- C:\ProgramData\Siemens\Automation\Logfiles\Setup\SIA_Starter.log
- Global\{{1D80C369-0363-4BA2-88BD-CA20D757AE3B}}
- Global\{3080D682-1A9B-43ad-863E-63975B54709F}
- RasPbFile
Detection & Forensics
Consensus, attribution, signatures, code structure, prevalence, and identity.
Evidence integrity
Chain of custody for the facts preserved in this report.
- 0rule hits recorded
- 1 / 72engines flagged
- 1sources in submission history
Why these facts are shown
Each statement identifies whether it was directly recorded or derived from saved scan facts.
- 01
The file has a valid code signature from Siemens AG.
ProvenanceObservedSourceCode-signing metadataObserved at - 02
1 of 72 antivirus engines flagged the file, including APEX.
Verdict inputView chapterProvenanceObservedSourceAntivirus analysisObserved at - 03
The hash has been submitted 1 time from 1 source.
ProvenanceDerivedSourceSaved report factsObserved at - 04
Scanned file: Start.exe — 9c003d0606dd51a3ce9eea19e78997a697d021480d0600311fe1891ea267440d
ProvenanceObservedSourceUploaded fileObserved at - 05
Observed process — %SAMPLEPATH%\Start.exe
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 06
Observed process — auditpol /set /subcategory:Security State Change /success:enable /failure:enable
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 07
File written: SIA_Starter.log — C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Siemens\Automation\Logfiles\Setup\SIA_Starter.log
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at - 08
File written: udhisapi.dll — C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\UPnP Device Host\upnphost\udhisapi.dll
ProvenanceObservedSourceIsolated runtime analysisObserved at
Detection sources at a glance
The available sources did not agree on a named threat category.
MalwareBazaar, YARAify, and CIRCL hashlookup completed and returned no entries for this hash.
YARA rules
No matchesThe rule pass completed without a saved public match.
1 of 72 engines flagged this file
View all 72 engine results
Section entropy & packers
No high-entropy executable section or known packer signature was detected. Data and resource sections can still have high entropy without indicating packed code.
How widely this file has been seen
Rarely uploaded, but has been around for a while. Often niche legitimate software or old internal tooling; not a strong malware signal on its own.
Fingerprint and provenance
- File name
- Start.exe
- Format
- Win32 EXE
- Code signing
- Signature valid: Siemens AG
- Size
- 691.4 KB
- Last analyzed
- Sep 21, 2026, 6:19 PM UTC
9c003d0606dd51a3ce9eea19e78997a697d021480d0600311fe1891ea267440dSafety & FAQ
Complete recovery guidance and answers for the next decision.
What to do now
This file appears low risk based on the evidence available now.
- Recovery step 01
Run it only when it came from the developer's official site or another source you independently trust.
- Recovery step 02
A clean result reduces known risk, but it cannot guarantee that every new or targeted threat has been detected.
- Recovery step 03
Keep your antivirus and Windows updates switched on so you stay protected.
Safety FAQ
Direct answers grounded in the saved verdict and evidence in this report.
Is Start.exe safe?
What is Start.exe?
How many antivirus engines detected Start.exe?
Is Start.exe digitally signed?
What is the SHA-256 hash of Start.exe?
Is it safe to run Start.exe?
How up to date is this analysis of Start.exe?
Community
Member reviews and reports for this exact file hash.