IcedID — Office (OOXML) / .XLSM malware analysis

Static analysis result for SHA-256 236813afbb9c8784…

MALICIOUS

Office (OOXML) / .XLSM

185.5 KB Created: 2015-06-05 18:19:34 UTC Authoring application: Microsoft Excel 16.0300
MD5: acdff723834c2096a2b6cf764530a39d SHA-1: f73118a481aff1b466d3357ed80ad5dda7bdb082 SHA-256: 236813afbb9c8784ac18f4653ee4933de94941b17cce4dad97ed1f21d61eb5b1
242 Risk Score

Malware Insights

IcedID · confidence 95%

MITRE ATT&CK
T1059.005 Visual Basic for Applications T1204.002 Malicious File T1059.001 PowerShell T1105 Ingress Tool Transfer

The file is an XLSM document containing Excel 4.0 macros, which is a known vector for malware delivery. The macros utilize dangerous formula APIs like FORMULA.FILL, CALL, and EXEC, indicating an intent to download and execute a second-stage payload. ClamAV detection as 'Xls.Downloader.IcedID' further supports this, suggesting the file is part of the IcedID malware family and is likely a downloader.

Heuristics 5

  • Excel 4.0 macro sheet (3 sheet(s)) critical OOXML_XLM_MACROSHEET
    Spreadsheet contains an Excel 4.0 (XLM) macro sheet — XLM was a major Office malware vector during 2020-2022 and evaded many VBA-focused controls before Microsoft tightened XLM defaults. Even legitimate XLM use is rare in modern workbooks.
  • Excel 4.0 Auto_Open defined name critical OOXML_XLM_AUTOOPEN_DEFINEDNAME
    Workbook defines _xlnm.Auto_Open or _xlnm.Auto_Close while containing an XLM macro sheet. This is the OOXML/XLSB auto-execution shape for Excel 4.0 macros.
  • Dangerous XLM formula APIs: FORMULA.FILL critical OOXML_XLM_DANGEROUS_FN
    Excel 4.0 macro sheet uses formula APIs that call directly into Win32 (=CALL/=EXEC/=REGISTER/=FORMULA). These are the primitives used to download payloads, write files, and start processes from an XLM macro without invoking VBA.
  • ClamAV: Xls.Downloader.IcedID-9f1f1d193a2a2a2b-9951463-0 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION
    ClamAV detected this file as malware: Xls.Downloader.IcedID-9f1f1d193a2a2a2b-9951463-0
  • Embedded URL info EMBEDDED_URL
    One or more URLs were extracted from the document. The URL itself is not a detection — see the per-URL labels for which channel (macro, JS, link annotation, document body, ...) reached each URL.
    URL http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/spreadsheetml/2006/main
    • http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/excel/2006/main
    • http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/officeDocument/2006/relationships
    • http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006
    • http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/spreadsheetml/2009/9/ac

Extracted artifacts 3

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

FilenameKindSourceSize
xlm_sheet_00.xml
4579e9d9134ee88a7a896edfcabc863e2e82e557af728eaf391ae4946f07af34
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/intlsheet3.xml 1288 bytes
xlm_sheet_01.xml
0101ee9e8c3951ec575bb7566d5eddf13ee538f0fe9782373a93f2413e5887d6
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/intlsheet1.xml 1067 bytes
xlm_sheet_02.xml
3f1fe57153abf51373b41e259e14cd7b677ecfec1f43f73b973ae63b3ad3f3c1
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/intlsheet2.xml 1332 bytes