Malicious PDF — malware analysis report

Static analysis result for SHA-256 cef0ca2ef2370555…

MALICIOUS

PDF

88.4 KB
MD5: 3b925c264b1527a7c4a929d1694c65be SHA-1: a290f1652c63fc3d4806979625638e194c23bde3 SHA-256: cef0ca2ef2370555314e1533095cc7c52710d0d8ddebb3638f52fef8158272ba
272 Risk Score

Malware Insights

MITRE ATT&CK
T1204 Malicious Link T1204.002 Malicious File T1059.001 PowerShell T1059.003 Windows Command Shell T1059.007 JavaScript

The PDF file contains critical indicators of an XFA heap spray exploit, specifically targeting Adobe Reader. The presence of embedded JavaScript and XFA scripts, along with a U3D content reference, strongly suggests the execution of malicious code. The embedded script is likely responsible for the heap spray and subsequent payload delivery, although its exact function is obscured by obfuscation. The ClamAV detection further confirms the malicious nature of the file.

Heuristics 11

  • XFA form contains risky executable script high CVE related PDF_XFA_SCRIPT
    PDF embeds an XFA form whose script block contains exploit, submission/launch, or shell-execution primitives. Ordinary LiveCycle print/update scripts are left as generic XFA/JS signals unless stronger behavior is present.
  • U3D/3D content in PDF — Adobe Reader 3D parser CVE-family indicator high CVE related PDF_U3D_CVE_RELATED
    PDF contains U3D (Universal 3D) or 3D annotation content — CVE-2011-2462 and CVE-2009-3953 are critical vulnerabilities in Adobe Reader's U3D processing that allow arbitrary code execution. U3D content in PDFs is extremely rare in normal documents.
  • XFA JavaScript heap-spray exploit code critical PDF_XFA_HEAP_SPRAY
    PDF contains XFA script content with heap-spray or shellcode-like JavaScript markers such as large encoded word sequences, util.pack, large arrays, or spray variable names. This is a weaponised Adobe Reader exploit pattern, not a normal interactive form.
  • ClamAV: Pdf.Exploit.Agent-6136306-0 critical CLAMAV_DETECTION
    ClamAV detected this file as malware: Pdf.Exploit.Agent-6136306-0
  • Embedded script payload in PDF stream medium PDF_EMBEDDED_SCRIPT_PAYLOAD
    PDF stream bytes contain an HTML/XFA <script> tag without accompanying Windows shell-execution primitives — common in accessible XFA forms but worth surfacing for analyst review.
  • ASCIIHexDecode filter (with exploit indicators) medium PDF_FILTER_HEX
    Hex-encoding filter present alongside exploit delivery indicators — often used to hide payload or shellcode bytes
  • 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.
  • XFA form low PDF_XFA
    PDF uses XML Forms Architecture — can contain script logic
  • AcroForm button with action trigger low PDF_ACROFORM_BUTTON
    PDF contains a /Btn form field together with a SubmitForm/URI/Launch/JS trigger — this is the building block of fake 'Download' or 'Open' button overlays used in PDF phishing lures
  • 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://ns.adobe.com/xdp/
    • http://www.xfa.org/schema/xfa-template/2.5/
    • http://www.xfa.org/schema/xfa-data/1.0/

Extracted artifacts 1

Files carved from inside the sample during analysis.

FilenameKindSourceSize
embedded_pdf_script_000004c7.bin
96a0c283a11a06dfa7e606438a00047f8293f5aec5a59ffde000076f8ec819a1		 pdf-embedded-script PDF raw stream script payload at offset 0x4C7 89219 bytes

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