Malicious PDF — malware analysis report

Static analysis result for SHA-256 236cdd349c9d9448…

MALICIOUS

PDF

2.3 KB
MD5: 23da8047634f86301897eafa9a1421e9 SHA-1: 69c3d05a5f86ef9db25073262329f44325c1399c SHA-256: 236cdd349c9d9448cde0e5b479c3713abcd62796bbf8c574aa467409bc683c60
286 Risk Score

Malware Insights

MITRE ATT&CK
T1059.001 PowerShell T1204.002 Malicious File

The PDF file contains embedded JavaScript that utilizes eval() and unescape() functions, indicating obfuscation. Critical heuristics identify the CVE-2009-4324 exploit targeting the media.newPlayer object, which is known to execute JavaScript. ClamAV detections on both the original PDF and an extracted JavaScript artifact (Js.Exploit.Shellcode-18) further confirm malicious intent. The embedded JavaScript is likely responsible for downloading and executing a second-stage payload, as suggested by the exploit technique.

Heuristics 9

  • media.newPlayer — CVE-2009-4324 critical CVE exact CVE_2009_4324
    PDF JavaScript calls media.newPlayer — CVE-2009-4324 is a use-after-free in Adobe Reader's multimedia plugin triggered by media.newPlayer(). Actively exploited as a zero-day in December 2009. (identified after JavaScript deobfuscation)
  • ClamAV: Pdf.Exploit.Agent-36082 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION
    ClamAV detected this file as malware: Pdf.Exploit.Agent-36082
  • ClamAV detection on extracted artifact critical EXTRACTED_FILE_CLAMAV
    ClamAV flagged at least one file extracted from inside this sample. Even when the wrapping document carries no AV detection of its own, a hit on the carved artifact is a strong indicator the sample is a delivery vehicle.
  • eval() call high PDF_EVAL
    eval() found — commonly used for obfuscated exploit execution (matched inside decoded stream)
  • unescape() call high PDF_UNESCAPE
    unescape() found — often used to decode shellcode in PDF JS exploits (matched inside decoded stream)
  • JavaScript action low PDF_JAVASCRIPT
    PDF contains a /JavaScript action. Generic JavaScript is common in benign forms; specific dangerous APIs are scored by separate rules.
  • Embedded JS stream low PDF_JS
    PDF references a /JS stream. Generic JavaScript is common in benign forms; specific dangerous APIs are scored by separate rules.
  • String.fromCharCode low PDF_FROMCHARCODE
    String.fromCharCode found — used to construct payload strings dynamically. Common in benign JavaScript libraries for codepoint manipulation, so this alone is informational; weaponised use is also caught by the dedicated fromCharCode-stage and exploit-shape rules. (matched inside decoded stream)
  • Suspicious extracted artifact info EXTRACTED_FILE_STATIC_TRIAGE
    One or more files extracted from inside this sample matched static suspicious-content checks such as script obfuscation, encoded payload blobs, packed data, or execution/download terms.

Extracted artifacts 2

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

FilenameKindSourceSize
javascript_obj111611_000.js
772da696bdb365f3f1eb4ea6af881baad391be62f3591b19f2f9827fcc4c9b53
pdf-javascript-stream PDF /JS object 111611 at offset 0x82C 479 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: No threats found
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact contains 3 eval/decoder/string-building token(s).
legacy_pdfkit_stage_000.js
85f3d09dc6111f4844f30b2a9d7fdbbc73f073c746f16030e66f8ae40120d3a0
deobfuscated-js repeated-marker hex decoded JavaScript at offset 0x189 2445 bytes
Detection
ClamAV: Js.Exploit.Shellcode-18
Obfuscation or payload: likely
Carved artifact contains 2 eval/decoder/string-building token(s).