Malicious Office (OLE) / .XLS — malware analysis report

Static analysis result for SHA-256 52a5e5d97e28e15d…

MALICIOUS

Office (OLE) / .XLS

138.0 KB Created: 2006-09-16 00:00:00 Authoring application: Microsoft Excel
MD5: 4bb2e51c0f11c3d6d90a856c52e814bc SHA-1: da6c0f17d7dbd1239c61c995c9a7fd9888eed5e5 SHA-256: 52a5e5d97e28e15df6df719f98f2e38133ff98a5abf699f51257063a11ec55e8
160 Risk Score

Malware Insights

MITRE ATT&CK
T1059.005 Visual Basic T1204.002 Malicious File

The file contains Excel 4.0 (XLM) macros, specifically an Auto_Open macro, which is a known technique for executing malicious code. The macro sheet contains a reference to a URL, 'http://nvelj12qyyfi03kqxy.xyz/i.', which is likely used to download and execute a second-stage payload. The 'SE_ENABLE_LURE' heuristic indicates that the document likely prompts the user to enable macros, further facilitating the execution of the malicious code. The presence of 'Docu Sign' in the document body and sheet names suggests a lure to trick the user into opening the document.

Heuristics 4

  • Excel 4.0 Auto_Open defined name critical OLE_XLM_AUTOOPEN_DEFINEDNAME
    oletools recovered an Auto_Open / Auto_Close entry from an Excel 4.0 macro sheet. The raw BIFF name can be tokenized or partially opaque to byte-string checks, but the recovered macro listing confirms the workbook has an XLM auto-execution entry.
  • XLM Auto_Open with dangerous formula APIs critical OLE_XLM_DANGEROUS_FN
    Excel 4.0 macro sheet contains an Auto_Open / Auto_Close entry and dangerous XLM formula APIs that can invoke programs, write files, or transfer control without VBA.
  • Excel 4.0 (XLM) macro sheet present medium OLE_XLM_AUTOOPEN
    Workbook contains an Excel 4.0 macro sheet sub-stream — XLM is rarely seen in modern legitimate workbooks and was a major Office malware vector during 2020-2022.
  • Macro/content-enable lure medium SE_ENABLE_LURE
    Document instructs the user to enable macros or editing — a common technique used by malware droppers to bypass Office macro security settings

Extracted artifacts 1

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

FilenameKindSourceSize
xlm_macros.txt
3a08691eed72e5ed205a0b2d682f61d57bf1de10bae67e5c55da30ecdcba1b08
xlm-macro oletools.olevba.extract_all_macros (XLM macro listing) 4335 bytes