PDF malware analysis — malicious · 23d485643d3ad0ab

MALICIOUS

PDF

35.1 KB Created: 2009-08-30 00:20:17 UTC Authoring application: AdobePS5.dll Version 5.2.2 (via Mac OS X 10.5.8 Quartz PDFContext)

MD5: c4080034e8701057cd44c6757110a29d SHA-1: 4c91439be100045d9338b6fed33c1e0d49c6a216 SHA-256: 23d485643d3ad0ab33757249f2150335600db0ea25ed3f4bc227ac32c8f073f2

484 Risk Score

Malware Insights

MITRE ATT&CK

T1204.002 Malicious File T1059.003 Windows Command Shell T1105 Ingress Tool Transfer

The PDF file contains embedded JavaScript that triggers a launch action, exploiting CVE-2010-1240 to execute cmd.exe. This action is designed to drop and execute an embedded Windows executable payload, which is disguised as 'form.pdf'. The embedded artifact was detected by ClamAV as Win.Trojan.ShellcodeReverseTcp-1, indicating a malicious downloader or trojan.

Heuristics 11

Adobe Reader Launch action command execution critical CVE exact CVE_2010_1240

PDF uses the Adobe Reader/Acrobat Launch action pattern associated with CVE-2010-1240: cmd.exe is invoked with attacker-controlled parameters, paired with an embedded/exported payload.
Launch action critical PDF_LAUNCH

PDF contains a /Launch action whose target is an executable, URL, or UNC path — can start an external application
Embedded Windows executable payload in PDF stream critical PDF_EMBEDDED_PE_PAYLOAD

PDF stream bytes contain an embedded Windows executable with a verified PE header. Exploit chains often hide droppers inside ordinary streams rather than standard /EmbeddedFile attachments.
/Launch action target: cmd.exe critical PDF_LAUNCH_COMMAND

PDF /Launch action specifies an executable target with parameters '/Q /C %HOMEDRIVE%&cd %HOMEPATH%&(if exist "Desktop\\form.pdf" (cd "Desktop"' — references a known-dangerous executable (cmd, PowerShell, etc.).
Embedded attachment masquerades: declared document, content is windows-executable critical PDF_EMBEDDED_FILESPEC_CONTENT_MISMATCH

An /EmbeddedFile attachment's declared filename extension or /Subtype MIME type contradicts the magic bytes of its decompressed content. The attachment is declared as a benign document or image but the bytes are an executable or executable-bearing archive. This is a deliberate deception used to hide droppers in PDF attachments and is a generic indicator of embed-and-drop weaponisation, independent of any specific CVE.
ClamAV: Pdf.Tool.Agent-1388586 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION

ClamAV detected this file as malware: Pdf.Tool.Agent-1388586
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.
/Launch action paired with attachment-dropping JS API high PDF_LAUNCH_PLUS_DROPPER_JS

PDF combines a /Launch action with a JavaScript API call that writes or opens an attached/external resource — the canonical shape of the CVE-2010-1240 /Launch + exportDataObject family. Benign PDFs do not pair these surfaces; the combination indicates a drop-and-execute chain regardless of the specific JS API knobs or /Launch target.
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.
Embedded file low PDF_EMBEDDED

PDF embeds a file attachment — could carry an executable or another weaponised document as a nested payload

Extracted artifacts 3

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

Filename	Kind	Source	Size
`form.pdf` `df4f452e51b48076c37591cbae881ee644fa7bd5b7ed5e958dd35b1ac3827895`	pdf-embedded-file	PDF EmbeddedFile object 21 at offset 0x3B9E	37888 bytes
Detection ClamAV: Win.Trojan.ShellcodeReverseTcp-1 Obfuscation or payload: unlikely
`javascript_obj0022_000.js` `eff4a0943aaff2d99cb5c8666337775c91d4d5f687782df94d2c5fc77becde7f`	pdf-javascript-stream	PDF /JS object 22 at offset 0x8872	53 bytes
`icc_00_off000002d6.icc` `2b3aa1645779a9e634744faf9b01e9102b0c9b88fd6deced7934df86b949af7e`	pdf-icc-profile	PDF ICC profile at offset 0x2D6	3144 bytes

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