Malicious Office (OOXML) / .XLSX — malware analysis report

Static analysis result for SHA-256 794f6c7ce1255e51…

MALICIOUS

Office (OOXML) / .XLSX

103.0 KB Created: 2015-06-05 18:19:34 UTC Authoring application: Microsoft Excel 16.0300
MD5: 42e7668edac779698ca9f0b861aaf0ca SHA-1: 11596a8427f246f649be3421ca4e124c36dd398e SHA-256: 794f6c7ce1255e51ece3798a44799ad917149bd3e9b59b4553a60b4c228cfa9e
250 Risk Score

Malware Insights

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

The file contains Excel 4.0 macros that utilize dangerous functions like FORMULA to call Win32 APIs. These macros are designed to download and execute a second-stage payload from multiple URLs. The use of `rundll32.exe` and `wlw.ocx` suggests a payload execution attempt.

Heuristics 6

  • 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 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: Win.Malware.Agent-9983616-0 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION
    ClamAV detected this file as malware: Win.Malware.Agent-9983616-0
  • Hidden worksheet (hidden) low OOXML_HIDDEN_SHEET
    Excel workbook contains 6 hidden sheet(s) — hidden sheets are commonly used to conceal macro code, staging data, or intermediate payload construction
  • 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
5a62a357cb895c98dc30b4c4c5c056eac8ac1b92bc088a5bcf20517cbcd838f8
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/intlsheet1.xml 3434 bytes
xlm_sheet_01.xml
c70a51acb5791492ef3f1e96d2217abba4360bc0964fdbbf0b281da430450073
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/sheet1.xml 908 bytes
xlm_sheet_02.xml
84b5606b26315521210c94dce2556ab11c1d4148efb57521cf114d2065ef725b
xlm-macrosheet OOXML XLM macro sheet: xl/macrosheets/sheet2.xml 905 bytes